1200 cals enough?

Hi I am new here, I am on Day 3. Reading some of these forums is making me think that the 1200 cal a day MFP has set for me may be too low. I am 5'6" and weight 155. I am 36 years old. Thoughts anyone?

Replies

  • bcoleman78
    bcoleman78 Posts: 1 Member
    HI There,
    I am 34 years old and 5 foot 5 I set my calories to 1200 and I started at 153 pounds in May and I am now 131. It works but you have to increase your calories once you are maintaining or you will continue to lose.:happy:
  • lambjoo
    lambjoo Posts: 60 Member
    Wondering the same thing myself....I have a history of an unhealthy relationship with food. I am 44, 5'6" and after a divorce my weight went up to 156. I have it back down to 149 and am trying to do it the healthy way for life this time. I would like to get down to around 128 which is where I feel most comfortable in my own skin. I have eaten around or under 1000 cal for waaaay to long.

    I have just started trying to make sure I get around 1200 cal a day. My BMR is 1283 and my TDEE is 1808.

    Glad to see someone else with similar body stats made it back down to around 130lbs. So is it ok to just stay between 1200 and 1300 until maintenance phase?
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    1200 wasn't enough for me. I did it for awhile, lost some weight, but also lacked energy, was hungry, and got cranky! :tongue:

    This topic helped me set my numbers and understand thing much more clearly: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    Since upping my calories I have plenty of energy for my workouts and all through my day, I'm satisfied, and the fat is coming off. Knowing your BMR and your TDEE and eating in between those two numbers makes things a lot easier for me!
  • lilmissymoo90
    lilmissymoo90 Posts: 324 Member
    i just dropped mine i was eating 1000 a day .. which i moved up to 1200 as its saposs to be healthyer ... and i gained 5lb ... so today i dropped myself back down to 1000 and hoping to continue loosing again
  • Krizzle4Rizzle
    Krizzle4Rizzle Posts: 2,704 Member
    i just dropped mine i was eating 1000 a day .. which i moved up to 1200 as its saposs to be healthyer ... and i gained 5lb ... so today i dropped myself back down to 1000 and hoping to continue loosing again

    1000 is really low. Are you hungry?
  • Crochetluvr
    Crochetluvr Posts: 3,262 Member
    I eat 1200 a day....its ok, if you feel alright (physically and mentally) with it AND if you eat more than that when you exercise. You don't want to eat 1200 calories and then exercise off 900. Doesn't leave you much to go on.
  • Cliffslosinit
    Cliffslosinit Posts: 5,044 Member
    i just dropped mine i was eating 1000 a day .. which i moved up to 1200 as its saposs to be healthyer ... and i gained 5lb ... so today i dropped myself back down to 1000 and hoping to continue loosing again

    Could be water....EAT!!! research and educate yourself! 1000 is WAY to low!:explode:
    Have a nice day:flowerforyou:
  • escloflowneCHANGED
    escloflowneCHANGED Posts: 3,038 Member
    i just dropped mine i was eating 1000 a day .. which i moved up to 1200 as its saposs to be healthyer ... and i gained 5lb ... so today i dropped myself back down to 1000 and hoping to continue loosing again

    Could be water....EAT!!! research and educate yourself! 1000 is WAY to low!:explode:
    Have a nice day:flowerforyou:

    Eating too little will have negative effects on weight loss, if I eat anything below 1800 calories net per day, I don't lose weight and even gain sometimes. 2000 net and I'm losing 2lbs per week.

    Obviously your calories would be different!
  • lilmissymoo90
    lilmissymoo90 Posts: 324 Member
    tbh nope i drink alot of water thou and i found myself forcing myself to eat the extra 200 cals ... plus i gained 5lb ! so back down to the 1000 =D might increase i slowly see what happens but im really not hungry.
  • lilmissymoo90
    lilmissymoo90 Posts: 324 Member
    i just dropped mine i was eating 1000 a day .. which i moved up to 1200 as its saposs to be healthyer ... and i gained 5lb ... so today i dropped myself back down to 1000 and hoping to continue loosing again

    Could be water....EAT!!! research and educate yourself! 1000 is WAY to low!:explode:
    Have a nice day:flowerforyou:

    Eating too little will have negative effects on weight loss, if I eat anything below 1800 calories net per day, I don't lose weight and even gain sometimes. 2000 net and I'm losing 2lbs per week.

    Obviously your calories would be different!

    myfitnesspal had me automatically at 1200 so its only really 200 calories ...
  • No, it's not enough. It. is. not. enough.