Who has been able to lose with 1200 calorie diet?

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Replies

  • birdieaz
    birdieaz Posts: 448 Member
    I've lost most of my weight eating between 1200 and 1400 cal a day, but I'm short and my bmr is around 1325 and TDEE 1580
  • chezileigh
    chezileigh Posts: 255
    MFP has got me on 1200 calories set to sedentary, so I add all exercise I do to that and for the most part I do eat those back. I've lost weight like that in the past and I do think the more realistic your diet is as a lifestyle, the less likely you are to gain the weight back. I have gained some of the weight back that I lost last time I was dieting but not nearly all of it. Having said that I'm quite happy for it to take longer, I guess if I was losing for my wedding or some special event I would probably want to go a bit harder at it.
  • torskeina
    torskeina Posts: 1
    I JUST STARTED TWO WEEKS AGO AND I HAVE LOST 7LB. SO TIME IS STILL HUNGRY BUT I JUST DRINK A GLASS OF WATER....HOPE THIS HELPS.
  • HamsterNut
    HamsterNut Posts: 78 Member
    I am doing the 1200 cals until I am no longer obese my BMI is 31.8 right now, doing the low cal to get a kick start, some fast results if you like to keep me motivated , then doing 1500 cals until my goal and that includes eating back exercise cals.
  • beesweet57
    beesweet57 Posts: 2
    featheryowls,
    Gracious. I must have typed something in wrong! I eat chicken and fish every day, occasional eggs, cheese, lots of green veggies, and Hass avocados. My only grains are at breakfast, oatmeal most days but sometimes Ezekiel bread. Think I will stop the bread though, cause even though it is in the refrigerator I think it is going to petrify before I eat the whole loaf and I don't like bread from the freezer. Just prefer the oatmeal. I pretty much follow, Bob Harper's Skinny Rules, which I purchased a few week ago, but I don't eat berries and apples every day. I am not a fruit person. I eat prunes in my oatmeal for the potassium and make my oatmeal with skim milk for the calcium, D and potassium. I drink 8-10 glasses of water a day and love that Bob says to take a splurge meal once a week. But even with that I am splurging with my favorite salad which has smoked cheddar, toasted pecans, craisins, grilled chicken, romaine lettuce and buttermilk dressing. I think I eat a dishpan full.
  • jennituck23
    jennituck23 Posts: 1 Member
    I have been on this diet for 36 days now and I have only lost 1lb. I'm getting discouraged I only have 20 lbs to lose. How long should I give this diet a chance to work.
  • magerum
    magerum Posts: 12,589 Member
    For what it's worth... I was able to lose 140 lbs in 7 months with a strict 1200 - 1300 calorie diet. The key is consistancy. Don't falter and you'll reach your goals. Weigh everything with a food scale and if you plan on "eating back exercise calories" make sure you have top-notch equipment to measure your burns by. Otherwise you'll under estimate your food and over estimate your burns and end up not loosing and then wonder why.

    Just my opinion.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,333 Member
    I just started three weeks ago with the 1200 calorie thing. Seems to be going slow and I toy with increasing calories and throwing in exercise.

    I find broiled fish and a vegetable for dinner keeps me within my calories. And eating the same thing for breakfast helps too. That leaves lunch as the loose cannon. I usually do a salad filled with all sorts of vegetables and a lean protein.

    also..google.."the lowest calorie foods" ..and the list is helpful.
  • apedeb09
    apedeb09 Posts: 805 Member
    i was eating over 1500 - 1600 a day before and my weight loss was slow.. now that i've lowered my calories to 1200/1300ish, i seem to be losing weight more steadily.
  • Apazman
    Apazman Posts: 494 Member
    I have lost almost 110 lbs on 1200 calories plus lower carb.

    same here .. but 96 so far.
  • beautifulbeast11
    beautifulbeast11 Posts: 202 Member
    I lost 10 pounds in 2 months on 1200 calorie, but I have found that the more I work out and the more muscle I build, the more calories I need to recover. Otherwise, my body goes into starvation mode and I hit a wall... So basically, I just kind of eat as my body tells me, not necessarily by the number of calories per say.
  • kali31337
    kali31337 Posts: 1,048 Member
    I have. On the days that I workout, I have a problem sometimes even eating my exercise calories back. I make better choices because my calorie count is so slow. It works for me.
  • cannotfailunlessyoustoptrying
    cannotfailunlessyoustoptrying Posts: 90
    bump for later
  • gilaman0819
    gilaman0819 Posts: 6
    I have lost 33lbs so far in a couple of months..........................
  • kzcortes
    kzcortes Posts: 208 Member
    It's worked so far for me. Almost 4 lb in 7 days
  • ErinBeth7
    ErinBeth7 Posts: 1,625 Member
    I tried to do the 1200 for the first four weeks and in the first two weeks I dropped 8 pounds. In the third week I dropped 1. In the fourth week I actually gained back two. And I was cranky and miserable and hungry. I know it works for some people but for me personally 1200 was too low. I calculated my BMR and my TDEE and using those two numbers I set myself at 1650. I usually don't get that high, though. I tend to stick around 1500. I've been doing that for about five days and I am hoping it helps (haven't weighed in yet). I definitely feel less cranky though, haha :)

    I also stay around 1500. I'm 5'9 and at 175. I need that amount of calories because my workout is weightlifting and cardio. Besides, I felt crappy at 1200 calories. I don't know how others do it.
  • sleonardbranson
    sleonardbranson Posts: 161
    I'm eating 1200 calories, have lost 8 lbs in 5 weeks....I do eat back my exercise calories on days when I burn a lot.....Do what feels right for you...If you are hungry the days when you exercise, eat more....it was very hard for me at first, the first two weeks were hell for me....Now I'm so use to it and it's a breeze...I'm losing at a steady pace, and that is okay for me:)

    Take care:)

    PS...1200 is really low, so if your feeling tired and sluggish eat more...eat clean:) Don't hurt yourself trying to lose, time is on your side...no rush:)
  • happythermia
    happythermia Posts: 374
    Hi! I've been on a 1,200 calorie diet since mid-feb...and have been losing pretty steadily.

    I eat my exercise calories back if I am hungry, and I loosen up a bit on the weekends (meaning I go over from time to time - life happens!)

    As long as it works, I'm sticking with it!
  • ball858
    ball858 Posts: 395 Member
    I started at 1500 losing 2lb a week, then dropped to 1200 but couldn't sustain my workouts and felt tired all the time so went back up to 1700 losing 1lb a week.

    Now I am on 1400 a week and I eat back most of my exercise calories and average 1-2lb a week, but I am doing 4 x Bootcamp (circuits) and 3 x strength sessions with running and cycling in there too - hence why I need the calories!

    IMO, 1200 is too low if you are doing high calorie burn exercise, but all depends on what your activity level is. Give it a go, if its not enough increase by 100 - 200 - good luck :0)
  • Rach_Gem_n_Disguise
    Rach_Gem_n_Disguise Posts: 140 Member
    Worked fine for me.....2 lbs to my goal weight. I never deprive myself of anything...just portion control.
  • mgs68pony
    mgs68pony Posts: 306 Member
    I started really working on loosing about 4 1/2 months and I have lost 17 pounds. I know this is not a great deal but I am happy with it.....I have done it all on the 1200 cals and I rarely eat all my exercise cals back. I eat when I am hungry and don't eat to hit that certain number of calories a day. I try to eat pretty clean and this tends to be lower in calories.

    Good Luck this "game" is all about finding out works for you personally........not everything works for everyone on here. We are all different!
  • imissbagels
    imissbagels Posts: 166 Member
    It works very well for me (more so than if I were doing 1500 +)

    I have lost around 35 lbs so far in the past 1.5 months... and that includes 2 weeks of total cheating.


    35 LBS IN 1.5 MONTHS??? SERIOUSLY? That is incredible! Was it just the calorie intake or what else did you do to lose so much? Congrats!
  • marketdimlylit
    marketdimlylit Posts: 1,601 Member
    I started on 1500+, my body just stopped losing after I lost around a stone.
    I then lowered my cals to around 1300-1400.. often do eat around 1200.. started up my weight loss again.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    It works very well for me (more so than if I were doing 1500 +)

    I have lost around 35 lbs so far in the past 1.5 months... and that includes 2 weeks of total cheating.


    35 LBS IN 1.5 MONTHS??? SERIOUSLY? That is incredible! Was it just the calorie intake or what else did you do to lose so much? Congrats!

    You may want to do the math and not be too desirous of their example.

    35 lbs, if only fat, would be 3500 cal/lb, or 122500 deficit that must have been created.
    In 6 weeks that means 20417 deficit each week.

    Or a daily deficit of 2917 calories.

    So sadly they did NOT lose just fat, because there is no way they made a deficit each and every day of 2917 calories.

    But you can lose a bunch of muscle and water weight, which is great if you want to enter the lifestyle of the yo-yo dieter.

    You can do the math again if you want to say 5lbs up-front was just water weight - but still a whole lot more than fat was lost sadly.
  • ancurtis
    ancurtis Posts: 68 Member
    I am a small woman who is pretty active in my work and I work out regularly....3-5 days a week. My daily goal is at 1200. I use it as a guide and it works for me. I feel like I eat and eat and I work in my daily wine. I do go over at time and I'm under at times. I eat when I'm hungry and pretty much whatever I want in moderation. I do try my best to feed my body healthy and am usually successful. You have to do what works for you!
  • somedaysoon84
    somedaysoon84 Posts: 82
    i've been on 1200 since march 1st. i have lost 37 pounds so far. i would out 3-6 times a week, HARD on the elliptical. my legs are rock hard, and i do about 250 bicycle crunches a day. my abs are hard under my belly (lol)

    i try and eat back my excercise calories. sometimes i get them all, sometimes i don't. i use them as my treat.... so that junk food i wanna eat.... i gotta work for it!

    i eat tons of fruits and veggies, so i'm NEVER hungry. when i first started i was eating a lot of processed junk, and i was ALWAYS hungry. now that i've added more clean foods.... its all good.

    i can pretty much sustain this way and these calories forever. we went on vacation, and i bumped them up to 1600, and couldn't hardly meet my goal, unless i added a few glasses of wine, and naughty things!
  • BMJ1225
    BMJ1225 Posts: 12
    IIm in with 1200 calories. Lost 2 lbs in the last week.
  • autumnpennell
    autumnpennell Posts: 196 Member
    1200 is the ONLY thing that works for me! I've been eating 1200 for about 4 months now and I've lost 15 lbs. :) if I go a little over 1200 a day or two, it won't ruin anything, but if I go a lot over, I will put weight right back on. A lot of people are concerned when I tell them I'm eating that much; they think I'm starving myself. However, I am never hungry on 1200! Just make sure you plan out your meals and replace all your abundance of calories (your unneeded sweets and stuff) with good foods, fruits and veggies, and you'd be surprised how low on calories they are and yet how full and satisfied they make you.
  • scorpio2546
    scorpio2546 Posts: 1
    You must eat back what you are burning off or your body will go into "starvation mode" which is not good because then it will harder to lose weight or you might lose weight but once you stop forget about it.... I learned the hard way smh now trying to lose it all back.
  • michealgormley
    michealgormley Posts: 1
    Hi all.
    I am wondering will eating 1200 cal a day alone lose weight or should I be exercising as well.
    I have tried to take up joggin, max I can muster is 15mins a day! (only started a few days ago)
    I'd like to lose 2 stone weight.
    Thanks
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