STOP Under-Eating Folks!!
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I haven't been around here at MFP for long - but one thing I've learned from all the reading I've done here, is that you won't lose more weight if you undereat!!
Why go hungry?
Why put yourself in starvation mode?
Why set 1200 calories as your goal - and even then under-eat?
Why don't you eat your exercise calories?
Why don't you plan ahead?
I see so many posts:
I'm starving!!
I'm eating 1200 calories and not losing - what should I do?
I haven't lost in six weeks - help!!
I'm eating 1200 and exercising 6 days a week for 3 hours a day and not losing??!!
I want chocolate!!
Help me - I'm going to binge!!
I hate veggies!!
Read, Ask Questions, Listen and Learn!!
It's not rocket science.
It's not a race.
It's not a diet.
I'm taking it slowly. I have an appointment with my nutritionist next week, and expect to post another loss.
Don't know if it will be two pounds, five pounds or ten - I only weigh once a month - so I'm confident it will be a loss because I've been eating pretty much on target - over a little bit a day here or there - but not over by much and only two or three days this month.
I'm not hungry; I'm not starving myself; I eat foods I like and enjoy.
I don't get support from SO - but I come here and get it.
I plan ahead.
I work my plan. :blushing:
Life happens - if I have a bad day, I don't agonize over it.
I know it's not going to happen overnight.
I'm happy!
Go with the flow! :flowerforyou:
Don't worry - be happy! :bigsmile:
How wonderful for you. Sadly after trying to eat at the amounts MFP suggests and failing... and working with a dietician for nearly a YEAR and having to slash and slash and slash my calories at every visit until I started losing at a snails pace, I can attest that it DOESN'T work for every single person out there. I agree that everyone should TRY IT but if you're not successful, you can't blame yourself.. or keep banging your head against the wall trying to "eat more to lose weight" like some people swear will work for EVERYONE.
I have lost my most recent 70 pounds eating 800-1050 calories a day (DOCTOR SUPERVISED of course... I'm not advocating this approach unless it someone has tried other approaches AND is being seen by a doctor) I've lost an average of 2.5 pounds a week which is like a miracle to me. Also, in the past 70 pounds of weight loss.. it has been mostly fat and excess water.. I've only lost half a pound of lean mass. Eating this few calories has been very difficult, but it recently became much less torturous after I had the VSG weight loss procedure to reduce the size of my stomach... now my appetite matches my caloric requirements.0 -
I don't like to eat folks whether it's under or over.0
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I haven't been around here at MFP for long - but one thing I've learned from all the reading I've done here, is that you won't lose more weight if you undereat!!
Why go hungry?
Why put yourself in starvation mode?
Why set 1200 calories as your goal - and even then under-eat?
Why don't you eat your exercise calories?
Why don't you plan ahead?
I see so many posts:
I'm starving!!
I'm eating 1200 calories and not losing - what should I do?
I haven't lost in six weeks - help!!
I'm eating 1200 and exercising 6 days a week for 3 hours a day and not losing??!!
I want chocolate!!
Help me - I'm going to binge!!
I hate veggies!!
Read, Ask Questions, Listen and Learn!!
It's not rocket science.
It's not a race.
It's not a diet.
I'm taking it slowly. I have an appointment with my nutritionist next week, and expect to post another loss.
Don't know if it will be two pounds, five pounds or ten - I only weigh once a month - so I'm confident it will be a loss because I've been eating pretty much on target - over a little bit a day here or there - but not over by much and only two or three days this month.
I'm not hungry; I'm not starving myself; I eat foods I like and enjoy.
I don't get support from SO - but I come here and get it.
I plan ahead.
I work my plan. :blushing:
Life happens - if I have a bad day, I don't agonize over it.
I know it's not going to happen overnight.
I'm happy!
Go with the flow! :flowerforyou:
Don't worry - be happy! :bigsmile:
How wonderful for you. Sadly after trying to eat at the amounts MFP suggests and failing... and working with a dietician for nearly a YEAR and having to slash and slash and slash my calories at every visit until I started losing at a snails pace, I can attest that it DOESN'T work for every single person out there. I agree that everyone should TRY IT but if you're not successful, you can't blame yourself.. or keep banging your head against the wall trying to "eat more to lose weight" like some people swear will work for EVERYONE.
I have lost my most recent 70 pounds eating 800-1050 calories a day (DOCTOR SUPERVISED of course... I'm not advocating this approach unless it someone has tried other approaches AND is being seen by a doctor) I've lost an average of 2.5 pounds a week which is like a miracle to me. Also, in the past 70 pounds of weight loss.. it has been mostly fat and excess water.. I've only lost half a pound of lean mass. Eating this few calories has been very difficult, but it recently became much less torturous after I had the VSG weight loss procedure to reduce the size of my stomach... now my appetite matches my caloric requirements.
That definitely sounds like a lot of hard work. Congrats on your weight loss!0 -
I know a lot of people are already saying this but seriously.
1200 calories is fine for a lot of people.
I am 4'11" and weigh 104.4lbs (as of this morning). I eat between 1000-1200 calories a day. I am VERY sedentary, I only workout in the evening. When I eat over 1200, my weight goes up, every time, no fail.
The people who are "starving" on 1200 calories are not eating the correct foods. I can eat a lunch of just 200 calories and be STUFFED! Different foods are going to fill you up differently.
It's more about what you are eating rather than how much.
True ~ here's an example of a typical lunch I eat (292 calories) ~ very filling and tasty too
Lunch
Cabbage - Cole Slaw Mix, Plain, 2 cups 27 calories
Egg - One Egg Over Easy With Pam, 1 egg large 70 calories
Perdue - Ground Chicken Burger Pattie, 4 ounces (112g) 160 calories
Victoria - Marsala Sauce, 1/4 cup 35 calories
This is an excellent point. Yesterday I ate three quesadillas with full fat cheese and chipotle sauce for breakfast. For lunch it was half an avocado filled with a whole pouch of tuna mixed with a cup of steamed veggies and 1,5 tbsp of mayo. For dinner I had a stew of a sweet potato, several cups of vegetables and 3oz of meat and a cup of cooked black beans.........and I did not break 1000 calories.
It's easy for me to do and I make efforts to eat at least 1200 calories, but with all fresh and natural food, it's not easy. Before I started MFP I also ate rice twice a day ( and that was part of my weight gain ), which I have been able to almost avoid ( had rice 4-5 times in the last 45 days ). I have no thyroid ( which supposedly makes it " impossible " to lose weight ) and still have lost 5 kilos/11 pounds and lost 4.5 inches total in thirty days.
I am not telling people what to eat, but am surprised at times when I look at a food diary how people lose weight only by eating less calories but almost no healthy or quality food., I am always surprised that people at half a cup of vegetables in a whole day or no fruit for weeks but several low cal chocolate treats or similar things a day and have a hard time imagining that they could maintain the weight they lost over the long run. But as I said, it's really none of my business.........:o).0 -
I respectfully disagree with you. You say that you have 182 pounds to lose and you have lost 12 ... obviously you can eat more calories and still lose weight than someone with 20 or 30 pounds to lose. I have been where you are now and losing weight was much easier then ... it gets harder the less weight you have to lose and that usually means less calories and more exercise. When you get down to the last 20 pounds to lose ... let's revisit the issue and you let us know how many calories it takes to maintain a steady weight loss. Good luck in your journey.
Maybe I have a little bit more credibility. I'm 60 years old, 5'7", and have maintained at about 123 pounds since losing 58 pounds in 2011. In my case maintaining a steady rate of weight loss was achieved by working out for 30 to 45 minutes a day, 6 days a week, alternating cardio and lifting days. And by eating in the 1500 to 1800 calorie range including exercise calories. I actually ate more toward the end, not less, because I dropped my weekly goal from one pound to a half pound and then I cut my deficit in half again before settling into maintenance at about 1900 calories. No stalls, no plateaus, no drama.
I can't know for sure because it didn't happen that way, but I suspect the course of my progress would have been different if I'd assumed from the start that I was too old or too close to goal to follow MFP's recommendations. Doing so gave me plenty of room to maneuver as my calorie needs dropped along with my weight.0 -
I know a lot of people are already saying this but seriously.
1200 calories is fine for a lot of people.
I am 4'11" and weigh 104.4lbs (as of this morning). I eat between 1000-1200 calories a day. I am VERY sedentary, I only workout in the evening. When I eat over 1200, my weight goes up, every time, no fail.
The people who are "starving" on 1200 calories are not eating the correct foods. I can eat a lunch of just 200 calories and be STUFFED! Different foods are going to fill you up differently.
It's more about what you are eating rather than how much.
True ~ here's an example of a typical lunch I eat (292 calories) ~ very filling and tasty too
Lunch
Cabbage - Cole Slaw Mix, Plain, 2 cups 27 calories
Egg - One Egg Over Easy With Pam, 1 egg large 70 calories
Perdue - Ground Chicken Burger Pattie, 4 ounces (112g) 160 calories
Victoria - Marsala Sauce, 1/4 cup 35 calories
This is an excellent point. Yesterday I ate three quesadillas with full fat cheese and chipotle sauce for breakfast. For lunch it was half an avocado filled with a whole pouch of tuna mixed with a cup of steamed veggies and 1,5 tbsp of mayo. For dinner I had a stew of a sweet potato, several cups of vegetables and 3oz of meat and a cup of cooked black beans.........and I did not break 1000 calories.
It's easy for me to do and I make efforts to eat at least 1200 calories, but with all fresh and natural food, it's not easy. Before I started MFP I also ate rice twice a day ( and that was part of my weight gain ), which I have been able to almost avoid ( had rice 4-5 times in the last 45 days ). I have no thyroid ( which supposedly makes it " impossible " to lose weight ) and still have lost 5 kilos/11 pounds and lost 4.5 inches total in thirty days.
I am not telling people what to eat, but am surprised at times when I look at a food diary how people lose weight only by eating less calories but almost no healthy or quality food., I am always surprised that people at half a cup of vegetables in a whole day or no fruit for weeks but several low cal chocolate treats or similar things a day and have a hard time imagining that they could maintain the weight they lost over the long run. But as I said, it's really none of my business.........:o).
What? So-called dirty eaters (of which I am one. I think I had veggies twice this week. Maybe. If they tasted like cookies I'd consider eating more.) Will maintain the same way clean eaters do. If my calorie amount for maintaining is 2100 and I eat 2100 calories of junk I will weigh no more than the woman eating 2100 clean calories daily. To suggest otherwise isn't logical.0 -
Well, what can I say?
I'm sorry if my post offended you - I certainly didn't intend to ruffle feathers or insult anyone. And I didn't mean to sound preachy.
I'm just happy I found MFP, and I'm thankful for all the information people have shared, and the support offered. I guess I just wanted to share too.
So again - my apologies to anyone I've insulted. And thank you to others who have commented. :flowerforyou:
Mary
It's a sensible post, and you're far more gracious than the forums deserve. :drinker:
Welcome to MFP Mary, it's an amazing community of people for the most part, also congrats on your weight loss so far. You have been doing great!!
)
I currently am 249 pounds, 5"6.5. Some days I eat 1,500, another 1300, today 1,100. I by no means am starving. I do get the munchies around 9-10pm but that is easily taken care of with a glass of water. I have a hard time eating more than those amount of cals because I am very mindful of what I put into my body, veggies, fruits, etc make it hard to have cals around 1700-1900.
I think most people are up in arms about you coming across of telling someone what to do. I however can tell that you were only trying to be helpful and encouraging.0 -
oh nooooo what a mess im no 1200 cal eater but each to there own i guess0
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I'm on the 1200 calorie plan and I'm not starving. I'm not dieting and I workout 6 times per week. It works for me I've lost weight. The calories that each of us eat are based on our individual needs. There is no scientific need to eat more than what you require just so MFP doesn't state you were under you calories.0
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I started here Friday and I find it hard to find foods that are within the fat/protein/sugar requirements and still get all the calories/carbs
allotted.
Can you tell me what foods (besides cucumbers at 1/4 cup) that are not in any sugar/protein/fat category that are carbs? I'm
having a bit of trouble with it. I thought broccoli and green cabbage were among others like red peppers and mushrooms.
I can't eat the 1580 calories and stay within the amounts for the sugar/protein/fats.
I am, therefore, not meeting the calories by 200-300 per day but the weight it says I will loose is about the same range and I'm
gauging by that.
I did exercise and entered it late so I'm not going to eat more food tonite. I just had my snack of half apple and 1/4 cucumbers.
I had added evaporated milk 2 tsp and coffee to dinner.0 -
I started here Friday and I find it hard to find foods that are within the fat/protein/sugar requirements and still get all the calories/carbs
allotted.
Can you tell me what foods (besides cucumbers at 1/4 cup) that are not in any sugar/protein/fat category that are carbs? I'm
having a bit of trouble with it. I thought broccoli and green cabbage were among others like red peppers and mushrooms.
I can't eat the 1580 calories and stay within the amounts for the sugar/protein/fats.
I am, therefore, not meeting the calories by 200-300 per day but the weight it says I will loose is about the same range and I'm
gauging by that.
I did exercise and entered it late so I'm not going to eat more food tonite. I just had my snack of half apple and 1/4 cucumbers.
I had added evaporated milk 2 tsp and coffee to dinner.
I am still struggling with the fact that bananas have such high amounts of sugar, makes me so sad
I know where you are coming from though. I get a lot of ideas looking at other people's diaries for the day.
I am trying no coffee for a week, I like DD in coffee :P Think I soon will need to be chained up. Missing it a **** ton 0 -
...just biting my tongue....0
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Im talish you could say (1.70 m) and I gain weight at 1800 cals...
So to me if I eat 2000 cals a day Id be working against that wich I am working for.
Its sad, I love eating hehehe so I get jealous of people who spoon everything in and still lose weight.
I geuss Each person must go through the motions to find their balance.
One can not conform to the norm when it comes to weight loss, because honestly there is no norm.0 -
Just adding my two cents - I've been trying to stay between 1200-1300 and getting very frustrated and even gaining two lbs. I just raised my calories to 1700 in the past three days and lost 4 lbs. In the past calorie cycling has really helped me and I tend to eat intuitively when I'm at my healthiest. I do agree that people obsess about calories often and tend to under eat because of it. If its not working for you change it up and keep an open mind, every body is different.0
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Just adding my two cents - I've been trying to stay between 1200-1300 and getting very frustrated and even gaining two lbs. I just raised my calories to 1700 in the past three days and lost 4 lbs. In the past calorie cycling has really helped me and I tend to eat intuitively when I'm at my healthiest. I do agree that people obsess about calories often and tend to under eat because of it. If its not working for you change it up and keep an open mind, every body is different.
You see? how lucky0 -
People are making me laugh here seriously...with their hangry people... I bet the hangry people on 1200 calories a day that actually eat healthy food and low calorie dense food are fuller than the ones that `fuel their body`with no veggies and a bunch or crap. Some peole here keep talking about healthy and such but they should take a closer look to themselve... Those bodies might actually be starving essantial nutrients...
And for your information I am not hungry nor hangry....0 -
This thread...
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Yeah? And what about us who's calories are automatically set at 1200 or in my case 1250 bc of my height and weight and how much I need to lose?? Did you not take this into account? I can easily eat 1800 cals and still be under because I love to workout. If someone is consistently eating only like 1000-900 cals then call them out on it..not those of us who know what the f*** we're doing.
Done rant :grumble:
You eat back your exercise calories? Then the OP's post wasn't directed at you, assuming you aren't consistently shaving too many calories off MFP's overly generous estimation of your exercise burn.
Well... At least I never thought for a moment that it was directed at me or people like me. When MFP automatically set my goal at 1200, they intended that I net 1200 after my exercise calories had been taken into account. They never intended that I declare myself to be sedentary and then jack up my deficit with hundreds of uncompensated exercise calories. But a lot of people do just that, and not necessarily because they know what the f*** they're doing. Some do, of course - the tiny, the old, the truly sedentary, those with certain metabolic problems - but if you really fall outside the limits assumed by MFP's algorithm then you should be looking elsewhere for guidance in setting your calories goals.
You would think people wouldread the op and go "Hey, I'm not hungry or starving on 1200, I'm not stalled and wondering why, I'm eating my exercise calories, this thread isn't about me!" But instead they see '1200 calories' and lose all common sense, reading comprehension, and logical reasoning. They claim they aren't hungry and live fine, yet they're so defensive they attack an op who literally wrote out, point by point, who her comments were about.
If you're fine on 1200 this isnt for you. I dont know how much more clearly that could be laid out. Folks need to L2read.
This0 -
Had a lot to say, then decided not to
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I'll keep doing what I'm doing, it's obviously working. 130 lbs and counting! 1200 calories a day here, I'm also short and I guess older haha.0
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