1200 calories a day.

What is Dan's roadmap? Is he part of this myfitnesspal group? Thanks :-).

Yar, he's a member a here and always willing to answer questions you have about his program.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

For some reason I got really sick eating 1200-1300 calories for 6 weeks (Throat infection twice and a migraine...maybe just a coincidence?) and lost no weight but my measurements went down slightly... . This week for the past few days I ate way above maintenance and feel much better and actually have energy.

I am on 1200 calories a day. I have hypoglycemia and have to eat often, but I have learned to eat just enough to level my blood sugar. I lose weight slowly but average at least a pound a week. You can send me a friend request if you would like. Best to you! K

What is Dan's roadmap? Is he part of this myfitnesspal group? Thanks :-).

Yar, he's a member a here and always willing to answer questions you have about his program.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

Props IA!

I wonder if the obesity epidemic exists because people don't know that they can EAT and still lose weight? When you set the bar too high (such as 1200 a day), it makes the hurdle impossible for most people.

It's funny that once our culture started obsessing about dieting and being thin, we all got fatter. Wonder why?

A coworker of mine was pushing 350 at 5'2" and ate about 500-1k a day.
she had quite the sedentary life except at work where she would break out in sweats when she walked around too much.
Reduced RMR/BMR is a ***** but it can be reversed.

I'm just a firm believer that if you give fat a reason to exist beyond its hormonal state then it will.
This happens by overeating and not effecting p-ratio with activity or under eating and burning some off then eating above TDEE for any given day without effecting p-ratio.

Even people with EDs, metabolic disease etc can retrain their bodies to work more efficiently.

I have 2 people do far who had such success that it brought years to my eyes.
1 is no longer insulin dependent so we reversed diabetes and the other beat ED and is well on her way to successful weight loss.

I'm so lost in this thread it's not worth bothering with, so silly. lol

Dan, I just want to ask you what you're saying or trying to say in the first paragraph in the above quote.
Curious as to how you are going to significantly affect or control P-ratio without the use of drugs, and, more importantly, why are you bringing up P-ratio anyway? From what I've heard and read 85% to 90% of it is determined genetically.

The only advice I'd give the majority of people on this site is to eat less and move more.

I just started this site yesterday, I am going to try the 1200 a day, out of town this weekend so that went down the drain yesterday and with Thanksgivng next week with the office dinner and home I am not going to add the stress of watching everything I eat. I have been reading a lot of the posts and think I am going to like it here. Any tips greatly appreciated.

I'm just a firm believer that if you give fat a reason to exist beyond its hormonal state then it will.
This happens by overeating and not effecting p-ratio with activity or under eating and burning some off then eating above TDEE for any given day without effecting p-ratio.

Even people with EDs, metabolic disease etc can retrain their bodies to work more efficiently.

I have 2 people do far who had such success that it brought years to my eyes.
1 is no longer insulin dependent so we reversed diabetes and the other beat ED and is well on her way to successful weight loss.

I'm so lost in this thread it's not worth bothering with, so silly. lol

Dan, I just want to ask you what you're saying or trying to say in the first paragraph in the above quote.
Curious as to how you are going to significantly affect or control P-ratio without the use of drugs, and, more importantly, why are you bringing up P-ratio anyway? From what I've heard and read 85% to 90% of it is determined genetically.

The only advice I'd give the majority of people on this site is to eat less and move more.

P-ratio is genetic but can be manipulated through resistance training and some forms of fasting.
For instance I can eat 40% carbs 30% protein and 30% fats.
If I eat above TDEE while remaining sedentary this gets stored as energy for later.
If I lift before eating above TDEE I have a better chance of effecting p-ratio to push those nutrients towards recovery and not storage.
So sedentary people who just diet down have more of a chance for fat gains if they eat above TDEE on any given day as opposed to someone whos using resistance training on a regular basis.
As for fasting i've had people use this to break insulin resistance and effect p-ratio as well.

To sum up...lift and fast a little.
=D

Man I really have some haters on here.
;D

Good info found here on p-ratio.
It all boils down to hormone balance, caloric intake and training.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/calorie-partitioning-part-1.html

PS: By under eating for long periods of time youve already lost the hormone part.

dan, I calculated my tdee yesterday. 2049.
I'm currently 217lbs, so i think a 2lb a week weight loss is still reasonable, which of course puts me under 1200. Now, if your arguement is that I shouldn't be in such a rush to lose weight, or that eating like this isn't sustainable, I can tell you a few things:
1. I have no problem sticking to it. I changed WHAT I eat and feel satisfied. I still go out to eat a few nights per week, still have alcohol once in a while, and haven't really given up much other than candy and fast food. I don't miss either.

2. when I started here, I was 255lbs. setting my goal to 1lb a week would mean it would take me over a year to get under 200. That's fine for some, but yes, I need to see results faster than that. at least at first. I was worried about my health.

3. I couldn't walk up the stairs without being out of breath. That's one reason why I wanted to lose it faster than 1lb per week. If something happened, i couldn't run. I could barely walk fast. those things mean that I also could barely exercise. a 10 minute slow walk on the treadmill was hard at first.

BUT, now that I've gotten thinner and healthier, I CAN start burning more. I'm also probably going to increase my calories as I get closer to 200...
My point is that some, or even most people can lose wieght eating more - but some can't. Perhaps you should stop chastizing people and find out their goals and history.
I would never tell someone to eat at 1200 calories - it may not be right for them. I can help them come up with a better eating plan that will give them enough fiber and protein and keep them full if they do choose to eat at 1200.

but like you... I'm no expert.

Good for you! I love it when people actually make it work and you are one of the few that have!
You could lose the same amount of weight at a 30% cut from 2k just by increasing how many steps you take.
That gives you another 200cals.

I have yet to chastise anyone.
In fact my friends list grew about 10 people by posting yesterday.
New people discovering how easy it is to lose weight eating more.
They have since been introduced to the high calorie community.

I hope you reach your goal quickly and you have the look you want!
Great work!
Just be careful that you dont lose it too fast.
Its easier to gain fat than to lose it.
Its easier to lose lean mass than to gain it.

Wow! I replied from reading the first page THEN discovered there was 8 more pages! I will have to read up on Dan's info. Thanks!

My 2 cents, I believe a LOT of us start off on 1200 cals in the beginning but as our weight goes down and activity goes up we will need more calorie intake.

This entire topic is just incredibly confusing to me.
I've been losing weight just fine with my 1,200 calorie goal, but are you guys saying I could be losing more and quicker if I ate more?

Maybe not "faster" weight loss, but BETTER weight loss.

You don't have much to lose. Ideally, you should have your weekly goal set to lose a half pound a week at this stage. Get more protein than MFP suggests, add more exercise especially strength training, eat most of your exercise calories, and you'll probably reach your goal body before you reach your goal weight.

When you just cut calories a lot and get minimal exercise, you lose a larger percentage of muscle with your weight loss. That means you lose less fat than you would following the advice above, so you need to lose more pounds to achieve the same size goal, and might not be able to reach the kind of tight body you probably want.

My daily goal is set at 1100 calories, and it is doable but with a very limited menu. Adding exercise to my daily routine helps a lot, getting anywhere from 200-400 calories a day back from working out suddenly makes that eating goal a lot more realistic, plus helps to keep me motivated to work out daily.

My daily goal is 1200 calories a day. During the week i find it easy to meet this goal. The weekends are harder, so I have incorporated working out on weekends to allow myself some extra calories throughout the day, and also give me time out of the kitchen/apartment Goodluck with your goals! Feel free to follow me for ideas or support!

Eating below your BMR is very unhealthy and setting yourself up for failure.

Her BMR is probably around 1,200 because shes in her 40's.

I have been at this 1200 Calorie thing for a 5 days, and honestly I have no idea how to do this! My life style over the last 5 years has lead to kid friendly, easy, junk and it is a struggle for me and a big struggle for my five year old to eat healthier! Anyone can add me as I need ideas on what to eat!

I'm aiming for 1200 cal a day until I leave for a 10 day vacation on December 22. I agree with many here that it can be unsustainable long term but would like to drop an initial 8 to 12 pounds rather quickly. I'm adopting a sort of "holiday plan" with the amount of calories I eat:
Plan A: Several days a week, I would like to eat 1200 calories and not eat back my workout calories. If I feel full and energized and don't have a social engagement I'll do this. 1200 cals of high protein, moderate carb, clean, healthy foods.
Plan B: If I feel at all low energy or cranky, or want to have a glass of wine at a party, I will eat back my exercise calories.
Plan C: Indulgence days/coming down with something/getting frustrated with the diet and tempted to binge eat: Eat maintenance calories (1800) and don't eat back exercise calories.
Plan Damage control days, even on Thanksgiving, holiday parties, etc.: Exercise until net calories are maintenance calories (eg, eat 2300, burn 500 on the treadmill).

In the New Year I plan to eat about 1500 calories most days and eat a couple hundred extra cals on very hard workout days. I like the plan I have now because I think it will allow me to keep losing weight through the holidays. If I feel good on the low cals and am successful, I could drop quite a bit of weight in the five weeks before my trip. But by having a Plan B, C, and D I can both eat a little extra on days I need the energy and have a plan to deal with holiday temptations. And I'm guessing the lower cal and higher cal days will average out to a moderate calorie deficit each week, which seems to work well for my metabolism.

Just wanted to share this plan if it's helpful to anyone. I hope having backup plans will prevent that mentality of "Oh, I blew my calories by having that extra slice of pizza, might as well pig out."