4th day 1200 calories diet...

Don't get discouraged. You are doing great meeting your daily calorie goal! ...........................<snip>

Oh seriously?! Eating under 1200 is not 'doing great' unless your trying to cultivate an eating disorder or grind yourself into the ground with a serious lack of energy..........................................<snip>

My TDEE is 1500... so, to loose weight Ineed to eat under that. Perhaps the OP is in a similar situation.

Further I (like others) am unable to exercise to increase my energy expenditure.... so the only way for me to loose weight is to cut cals. 1200 is NOT too low in my situation and probably is not in the OP's situation either.

Indeed I loose weight at about 1\2 lb a week on 1200 cals... hardly an eating disorder!

Are you sure your TDEE is 1500? That's awfully low.

Yes - I am quite light already (BMI 22 point something) and I have a health issue that means I do not move around much.

1200 cals of good wholesome foods is not starvation for me. Actually, a larger person eating 500+ below their TDEE will be feeling more hunger pangs than me, and no-one harrangs them for their "starvation".

Ah well - Tis the internet... we can't expect to agree.

I just I hate to see some-one coming on here for support and being told that 1200 is definitely too low. It might be - BUT there are situations where it might NOT be! Those various folk who reply should be aware of this be a little less dogmatic in their replies.

I peeked at your diary, and you may want to see a nutrition about getting your foods on target. I noticed the cake and soda, and i see where you said it was for a birthday party - but you basically skipped lunch only eating a jolly rancher - which is not good for your metabolism.. you're eating white bread in the morning when there are better options such as whole wheat or multigrain.

Calories are different. If you're eating empty calories, your body is not going to have the nutrition it needs.

I eat white bread (or rolls) too because I don´t like multigrain. But I´m loosing. THere is no problem in bread I eat fiber from other resources...

hello everybody,
I weigh 146 lbs and I measure 5,4" I really want to lose 15 lbs in a healthy way so i am trying the 1200 calories diet. I want to lose one pound per week. with this diet I basically eat everything but I dont eat junk food and I try to eat a lot of fibers drink water. I dont go over 1200 calories and sometimes I am so full that I dont get to finish my 1200 calories...usualy I have a 120 calories that I dont use.
today its the fourth day and I dont see any progress on the scale and because I always feel full I have the impression that I wont lose any weight especialy that I dont work out and I eat at night (fruits or vegetables).
please if you tried this diet let me know when will i see results and if you have any advices for me I would appreciate it very much.

Stick with it. Keep in mind that you are loosing fat and building muscle. In about 2 weeks you should feel difference in how your clothes fit and starting to see difference on scale and measurements.

Don't get discouraged. You are doing great meeting your daily calorie goal! (under 1200) Keep it up! You WILL decrease your weight. I encourage you to do at least some walking at least 3 days a week. It makes a big difference. Also, remember your vitamins.

Oh seriously?! Eating under 1200 is not 'doing great' unless your trying to cultivate an eating disorder or grind yourself into the ground with a serious lack of energy. Your advice sucks. I advice you OP to work out your TDEE and eat 20% under it and stop starving yourself, even if 'you feel stuffed'. You will regret eating at such a deficit eventually when you can't lose anymore or go back to eating a normal amount of cals and bang any weight you've lost right back on.

normally, i'd agree completely with you, but in this case, her sedentary BMR/TDEE should be in the 1800 range, so a 1lb per week rate of loss would give her a daily calorie goal of 1300. of course, any extra exercise she does such as walking or running or aerobics will increase that on the days she does it, so she should "eat back" those exercise calories on those days. the difference between 1300 (1 lb per week loss) and 1450 (your suggestion and 0.7 lb per week loss) isn't huge, so i think she's in the ballpark with her 1200 calorie goal. however, she should add 100-200 calories to her limit if she feels hungry at 1200, and she certainly should avoid being well under 1200 consistently.

You really should only weigh yourself once a week :flowerforyou:

Why?

I weigh myself every day. It helps me stay on track. When I stop weighing myself daily, I start to gain weight. It works for me.

She's having a fit because she hasn't lost anything and it's been only 4 days. That's probably why. What works for you doesn't work for everyone.

I hope you'll be able to maintain this for a lifetime. That's low.

Don't worry about this; you'll be able to eat maintenance calories like everyone else. Everyone, no matter what calorie number they eat to lose, will have to not return to the same eating habits that got them overweight in the first place if they want to maintain. When you get to maintenance, you can start increasing your calories slowly, one week at a time, while you work out the right number for you.

But please do eat at least the 1200 calories. Follow the MFP program and don't worry about people that judge you for it; MFP chose 1200 as the cutoff, not 1400 or 1500 or 1800. It's funny to me how many people are anti-1200 "dieters" on a website that assigns that number--I think you said you have it set for 1 lb a week? Enjoy your exercise calories and carry on. Eat more if you feel hungry, tired, or "off" emotionally.

Oh seriously?! Eating under 1200 is not 'doing great' unless your trying to cultivate an eating disorder or grind yourself into the ground with a serious lack of energy. Your advice sucks. I advice you OP to work out your TDEE and eat 20% under it and stop starving yourself, even if 'you feel stuffed'. You will regret eating at such a deficit eventually when you can't lose anymore or go back to eating a normal amount of cals and bang any weight you've lost right back on.

/agreed

I'm currently on 1200 a day, personally though I would say 4 days is not long enough to see a significant improvement scales wise. The only suggestions I would say would be to try not to eat past 8pm in the evenings and obviously if possible to include some form of exercise (regardless of how long, what intensity) and I guarantee you that with a 1200 diet and including exercise you will see results a lot quicker.

My TDEE - 20% is 1057 calories. If I go over I start gaining weight. Everyone is different.

That said, try tracking your salt, give up soda, you are getting plenty of protein, but you might want to cut back on carbs. Get moving.

Have you had your BMR tested? I'm not anti 1200 calories at all, but that seems awfully low. My BMR (in the low 100's) is 1131.

hello everybody,
I weigh 146 lbs and I measure 5,4" I really want to lose 15 lbs in a healthy way so i am trying the 1200 calories diet. I want to lose one pound per week. with this diet I basically eat everything but I dont eat junk food and I try to eat a lot of fibers drink water. I dont go over 1200 calories and sometimes I am so full that I dont get to finish my 1200 calories...usualy I have a 120 calories that I dont use.
today its the fourth day and I dont see any progress on the scale and because I always feel full I have the impression that I wont lose any weight especialy that I dont work out and I eat at night (fruits or vegetables).
please if you tried this diet let me know when will i see results and if you have any advices for me I would appreciate it very much.

I'm shorter than you and have a low RMR so I had to eat low to lose weight. Everyone is different. If ever in doubt talk to your doctor. My doctor said eating low for me was okay because I'm so small and it was frustrating around here because people will look at your diet and tell you to eat more, or you need more of this or that macro. All that matters is calories, of course you want to eat healthy and balanced but it does not have to be perfect and you do not have to obsess about macros. I hate it when people tell you advise opposite of what you doctor tells you. He was the one who reviewed my blood and hormone levels, not the people here telling me what to do. So I had to learn to ignore the people here telling me what to do when I didn't even ask. My diary is open because people asked me to open it, not to get advice.

What you need to eat for a deficit is relative to your RMR. If you are short you really don't have much room for up compared to the 1200. If you are taller you will have a higher RMR and can go up or down and still be in a deficit (way above 1200) so you can lose no matter what. All that matters is a calorie deficit.

There is no mystery to weight loss, everyone thinks something is wrong, their metabolism is broken, they have low thyroid, they have menopause or whatever issue, they are as unique as a snowflake, whatever. I thought a lot of these things once too but once the doctor helped resolve the health issues for me I learned there is still no magic pill. Most people eat more than they need to and are not at good at estimating calories as they think they are. Most people have a lower BMR than they think they do. The only way to know for sure is to go to a lab and have it tested. It doesn't seem fair to have to eat less and feel a little hunger. It's hard to face the truth of it, very hard. It's not fun. It's drudgery at times. But if you learn to enjoy your smaller amounts of food (necessary to lose weight, since the reason we got fat in the first place was eating too much whether we knew it or not), and rejoice in your victories it can be done.

All I can do is share what worked for me. I achieved my goal at age 50 after beating my head against the wall for 15 years. Yeah anyone can do it, but I can tell you that you are up against a lot when you are older and I believe females have some unique issue to face with hormones and such. The sooner you can get a handle on it the better. DO NOT GIVE UP. As I got older and the weight piled on (and I didn't feel I was eating too much!) everyone kept telling me to give up, this is what happens when you get older. I'm small, and I didn't realize how small I was until I lost the weight. Everyone said I had big bones. I looked hefty because I worked out. Once I lost the weight I realized how small I really was and that small people don't need to eat as much as big people. HINT: If you are short you are probably small.

Your body loses weight in chunks, not linear. I have found that you can do everything right and your weight loss seems to plateau but if you are patient and keep exercising and eating at a deficit (however slight) you will lose it, it will suddenly "whoosh". There are so many variables for the scale; water retention, digestion, hormones, allergies, sodium, carbs, water intake, DOMS, inflammation, the list goes on. People mistakenly think they lose or gain weight when they eat more or less because of these fluctuations.

Losing weight requires tremendous patience. You will not lose it when you want it or where you want it. The body does its thing. Some apparent plateaus can last a month or so. You cannot make it happen faster. You must focus on two things; calories and exercise. Nothing else matters. Scales and metrics don't matter. The day in and day out grind of exercise and calories are all that matters. It is not very exciting until things fall into place. You get your victories and you ride one victory to the next.

The scale is a trend tool. The scale is good but put it away and only check once a week and only use it as a trend tool. It will fluctuate, it does not matter. Take front side and back progress pictures at least once a month. You will see differences that the metrics won't tell you and it's that little bit of NSV that will keep you going until the next victory.

To say eat more is wrong.

To say eat less is wrong.

To find the exact calories needed for YOU to be in a healthy sustainable calorie deficit is the right answer. Wait, if you need to adjust by 100 do it, wait, adjust, wait, adjust, wait. The tortoise wins this race.

All that matters is calories. A healthy balanced diet within a calorie budget for a deficit that is right for YOU is all that matters for weight loss. Don't make it complicated.


Also people play mental accounting games with calories just like with finances. Make steps to make sure you are making accurate measurements. Packaged foods can have MORE than they say but not less (they get in trouble if less so they would rather error with MORE).

If you typically intake sodium at a certain rate your body adjusts, but if you make a sudden change then you will see a spike.

Exercise is for making your lean body mass pretty (especially lifting weights) for when the fat is gone. Losing fat with no muscle is ugly and cardio alone will not make you pretty. You cannot out exercise too many calories.

It really is about calories. I tell people this all the time and they say "Well if calories are all that matter why do you eat so clean???!!" Well, because it makes me feel better, sleep better, and perform better at my sports.

Too many changes at once can be hard on some people. I've always eaten healthy so it easy for me to simply eat less. Eating at a calorie deficit is hard on people; even a small deficit puts your body in a state of flux with hormones and such. Everyone is different. Some people can handle a deeper calorie deficit than others, this is not right or wrong, it just is. Stress in your life affects your hunger hormones; lack of sleep, fatigue, job stress, family stress, financial stress, etc. Add in emotional eating issues and it gets even more complicated. Most people can only handle so much change/stress at once, they try to do too much and fail. Sometimes it might be a better strategy to eat at maintenance and make some small changes first, it really depends on how much stress you are taking in at the moment.

What is the exact number of calories for you?

We’ve been trying to figure out an exact NUMBER of calories that everyone should be eating, without recognizing that everyone is slightly different. In truth, the calories aren’t the end game. Your body is. So the EXACT amount of Calories that are right for you is the EXACT amount that will allow you to maintain your ideal bodyweight no matter what some calculator or chart says.

In other words, an online calculator might tell you that you need to eat 2,500 calories
per day to maintain your ideal bodyweight. But the only way to know for sure if this is
the right amount for you is to test it out. If you gain weight or can’t lose weight eating
that much, then you know you need to eat less to lose weight no matter how many
calculators and text books say otherwise.

This doesn’t mean your metabolism is broken, it just means the estimate of your needs
was just a bit off.

-John Barban (The Body Centric Calorie Guide from the Venus Index and Adonis Index Manuals)

The good thing is you don't have to worry about the starvation mode myth if you are fat. Only skinny people have to worry about starvation mode. It does not mean you have the capability to eat at a large calorie deficit if you have emotional eating disorders or other issues going on, but at least you don't have to be afraid of it anymore.

The Theory of Fat Availability:
•There is a set amount of fat that can be released from a fat cell.
•The more fat you have, the more fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•The less fat you have, the less fat can be used as a fuel when dieting.
•Towards the end of a transformation, when body fat is extremely low you
may not have enough fat to handle a large caloric deficit anymore.

At the extreme low end, when your body fat cannot ‘keep up’ with the energy deficit
you've imposed on your body, the energy MUST come from SOMEWHERE. This is
when you are at risk of losing lean body mass during dieting (commonly referred to
as ‘starvation mode’). This happens at extremely low levels of body fat, under 6% in
men and 12% in women [Friedl K.E. J Appl Phsiol, 1994].

-Brad Pilon and John Barban (from The Reverse Taper Diet in The Adonis Index and Venus Index manuals)

Lifting weights is key

Lifting weights is KEY. I recently had my DXA scan done and at 51.5 years of age I have the bone density of a super athletic 30 year old. That is a direct result of lifting for over 30 years. Now if that is not scientific proof that lifting weights keeps you younger I don't know what is! Also I believe it is why most people think I look much younger than I really am.

Start lifting now, lift heavy and change it up often, find a lot of weight routines with free weights, make it fun, embrace it, make it part of your life. Only 3 days a week is all it would take. Crank up your tunes and learn to love it, because your body will love it and it will make your quality of life better in many ways, especially when you get older like me.

Because of this I don't have to worry about osteoporosis. If you wait until you are older and your bones start to deteriorate it's a bit too late, you can't get back what you lost, and you can only start a resistance routine that will prevent further damage.

If you are female you don't have the hormones to get big naturally. I lift heavy and I'm still really tiny. My lean body mass is only 104 lbs and that is fairly heavy for a 5'1" female, and quite a bit of this is due to my having very dense bones from 30 years of lifting, not all muscle, and I'm still quite tiny.

My muscles really are not that big, but they show a lot of definition because I'm quite lean. If I gained some fat then I would have a softer more toned look (which is OKAY too!). Then if I gained more fat I would look bulky and hefty like I did most of my life until last year. YOU CAN HAVE WHATEVER YOU WANT. Lean and ripped, soft and toned, or hefty, it all depends on how much fat you leave on your body. Calories are the only thing that changes fat. Exercise is for changing or maintaining your lean body mass only. Lifting weights will give you the best bang for your buck for shaping your body. I finally changed my shape by putting lifting first and cardio 2nd. You cannot out exercise too many calories.

No skin off my nose, you want to live on starvation rations crack on lol. You 'loose' as much weight as you like, no doubt i'll still be here when you come back to 'loose' the weight you have piled back on again due to messing up your metabolism by eating so low for so long. I am NOT getting into a 1200 and under debate with a group of hungry cranky women, i'm not mad!! But I off to bed. Eat as little as you like, it's your body. Enjoy!

It's lose, not loose.

That's why it was in quotations! I was quoting the poster I was responding to.

I'm with most of the other posters. You want to at least hit 1200 and not go under that, and possibly up your calories. You also don't have very much to lose, so if you want to do this the healthy way, the weight is going to have to come off slow -- and by slow I mean .5 - 1lb. a week, if that.

4 days is definitely not enough time to see if what you're doing is working. It takes me at least 2 weeks eating at a specific calorie goal to see if it's the right number for me. There's a good chance 1200 is too low for you though, most people cannot eat that low a calorie amount and maintain their loss. I would recommend finding your TDEE and then taking 20% off that, as others have probably already told you.

Being that you're very close to a healthy weight, and do not have a lot to lose, aiming to lose 1 lb a week may be a bit too aggressive. Your body just can't lose fat as quickly as someone who is very obese. I am shorter than you, and eat between 1500-1850 calories a day, and lose. It looks like you're getting plenty of protein, which is good, but you will probably do better if you try to reach at least 1200, a little more consistently, and ideally more.

If you're not feeling hungry (which is not uncommon for people who are undereating) then you can get extra calories by eating more calorie-dense foods like nuts, nut butters, seeds, eggs, cheese, avocados, healthy oils in salads and cooking, and full-fat dairy. Not getting hunger signals does not necessarily mean your body doesn't need more food.

Oh, and eating at night is fine, by the way. And try to accept that this is going to take some time. Patience is key.

This. Try to eat at least 1200 cals, that is the absolute minimum that MFP will give you. I'm 5'4", 137 lbs, and I eat 1420 to lose .5 lbs/week.

Be patient. If you do this right you'll be doing it for the rest of your life, so just think of it as the way you eat now, not a "diet" you are going to do for awhile and then quit.

ETA: eating at night is fine as long as you have the calories for it. I eat consistently at night, as much as 20% of my calories. I save them for that purpose because I'm a late night snacker. It hasn't slowed down my progress. Also you don't need to cut out any food groups unless you have a food intolerance or metabolic disorder (like PCOS).

While we are correcting spelling, is greatful vs grateful like color vs colour or spelled versus spelt?