The 1200 Calorie Myth

what does TDEE stand for

Total Daily Energy Expenditure .... The amount of energy it takes to power your body at your nominated activity level (i.e if you are active/sedentary, etc).

BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is less than that, basically this is how much energy you would burn in a coma.

Or listening to Coldplay.

Same thing ...

I know what I'm going to say is controversial since this site seems to think that 1200 calories is a healthy way to live.

It's not. Put it into any search bar and you will find some kind of scientific statement saying that this kind of diet is the BARE MINIMUM the body can handle in order to survive. Sure, this kind of deficit in calories will cause weight loss. But calories are not a bad thing -- calories are just units to measure energy. The bad thing is fat. The bad thing is excessive carbs. Consequently, they all have a significant amount of energy to them, or calories.

Eating 1200 calories will make you lose weight at a noticeable pace. It is important to remember that eventually, your body will realize it isn't getting enough. The metabolism starts to slow, causing a plateau. The answer is not to work yourself harder or eat even less or the combination of the two. The answer is to eat more and work harder.

It's just a little disturbing how I'm finding a lot of people who are relying on solely what the big number means. You could eat 2000 calories of veggies and proper protein a day and lose weight. Whatever the case, I urge those who think a successful diet is based on your caloric intake to eat a little more and exercise a little more. It's just healthier.

Doctors/Nutritionists, care to weigh in? (no pun intended)

It's all about cals in vs cals out.

Cals in > cals out = gain
Cals in < cals out = loss
Cals in = cals out = maintain

Fats & carbs are not evil. If it weren't for those I wouldn't be able to reach my calorie goals.

I know what I'm going to say is controversial since this site seems to think that 1200 calories is a healthy way to live.

It's not. Put it into any search bar and you will find some kind of scientific statement saying that this kind of diet is the BARE MINIMUM the body can handle in order to survive. Sure, this kind of deficit in calories will cause weight loss. But calories are not a bad thing -- calories are just units to measure energy. The bad thing is fat. The bad thing is excessive carbs. Consequently, they all have a significant amount of energy to them, or calories.

Eating 1200 calories will make you lose weight at a noticeable pace. It is important to remember that eventually, your body will realize it isn't getting enough. The metabolism starts to slow, causing a plateau. The answer is not to work yourself harder or eat even less or the combination of the two. The answer is to eat more and work harder.

It's just a little disturbing how I'm finding a lot of people who are relying on solely what the big number means. You could eat 2000 calories of veggies and proper protein a day and lose weight. Whatever the case, I urge those who think a successful diet is based on your caloric intake to eat a little more and exercise a little more. It's just healthier.

So much wrong in one post, see bolded

I eat 1200-1400 cals 3-4 days a week and 600 cals 2-3 days a week. I pay attention to ALL my numbers: protein, carbs, fats, potassium, sodium, etc...it ALL matters to me. It's amazing that I can get all my nutrition in 1200 calories---it is enough! I exercise everyday. I've done this my whole life and I like it! To each their own!!! I'm so sick of hearing about 'eat more to weigh less'....it does not appeal to me.

Our brains are made of mostly fat and cholesterol (about 20% of the weight of our brain is from cholesterol)

From Ignore The Awkward: How The Cholesterol Myths are Kept Alive:

...That saturated fat is harmful to human health runs counter to common sense. Fat is composed of various types of fatty acids and fatty acids are molecular chains of various lengths, mainly composed of carbon and hydrogen atoms. Some fatty acids lack hydrogen atoms and therefore they have one or more double bonds between the carbon atoms. They are named monounsaturated with one double bond and poly unsaturated, if they have more than one. Small amounts of mono and polyunsaturated fatty acids are necesary for normal cell function. We produce them ourselves except for a few of the poly unsaturated ones, whihc we need to get from our food. (My NOTE: what we get in animal foods is plenty and much healthier than the industrially processed ones) Saturated fatty acids are stable moleucles because they are saturated with atoms of hydrgen. One of the main constituents of our cell walls is saturated fat (ME: well look here. Sat fat that isn't being used as energy but in cellular repair and maintenance) We produce saturated fat ourselves to build new cells and the excess is depposited in our fat cells for later use. Saturated fat is the dominat type of fat in milk, the fluid that is able to nourishthe growing baby for a long itme after birth, on its own.
Do you really belive that humas are designed to produce a toxic molecule that will eventually kill us? Could the dominant fat in mother's milk be poisonous to the baby? It is simply a masterpiece of deceit to convince a whole world that too much saturated fat in our food should cause a deadly disease. (heart diease, atherosclerosis)

...Cholesterol [is] one of the most important molecules in our body. It is impossible to build cells walls and produce nerve fibers without cholesterol. We produce other important molecules, for instance the sex and stress hormones, by changing the structure of the cholesterol moleucle a little. With a little help from the sun our skin cells use the same method to produce vitamin D. Cholesterol is also of vital importance for the brain. Wecannot think clearly without it. Not only is cholesterol used by the brain cells and all nerve fibers as an important building material; the chemical processes necessary for the cration of nerve impoulses are also dependent on it presence. It is therefore no surprise that the brain has the highest concentration of cholestero in our boy. The importance of cholesterol is apparent from the fact that the richest source of cholesterol in our food is the egg, because much cholesterol is necessary to produce a healthy, living, warm-blooded creature. Cholesterol is so important that all cells are able to produce it by themselves. In fact, every day we produce three to five times more cholesterol than we eat. If we eat too little in our diet, the production goes up; if we gorge on animal foods, it goes down. This is why it is so difficult to reduce and control blood cholesterol with diet.

(question: what do you think will happen to the brain - and the skin - if we take drugs that stop our bodies from producing that important cholesterol. What do you think it will do to the reproductive system? The fact that infertility is on the rise should be a HUGE WARNING. That is THE most important aspect of evolution. Continuance of the the species.)

My N=1: I maintain my weight not with exercise, not with how much I put in my mouth, but with what I put in my mouth. I maintain my weight and body composition with a high-fat diet and good protein. Carbs are an afterthought for me - if my body needs them it lets me know - just like it lets me know when I need water, when I need protein, when I need sleep, when I need to move.

Last Saturday AM I was 111.2. Went a little crazy this weekend on "functional paleo" (still didn't overeat on calories and the majority of carbs were complex - and I was still eating plenty of fat). Monday AM I was 115. It is now Wednesday and this morning I actually saw 110.4. The body fat % dropped and the body water % went up - probably because the bf% dropped. And no I didn't lose any muscle mass. I get plenty of dietary protein.

Sometimes I make things using coconut sugar (unrefined with nutrition), raw unfiltered honey (need to scoop with a spoon - solid), unsulphured blackstrap molasses (this is where all the nutrients that are removed from table sugar end up) - hence "functional paleo" - although I follow Primal Blueprint more than anything. I dropped 12lbs when I went high-fat (this is what I did to lose my belly. And I had already spent six months following the conventional wisdom diet and dropped 10lbs. That extra 12lbs sent me 12lbs below the lowest weight I've ever seen as an adult. I'll be 42 in a couple of weeks. And it was ALL fat and water. And I backed off the exercise.

Like I said, this is my N=1. What works for me won't work for the next person.

And just becuase someone got obese on "healthy" foods doesn't mean that person overate. What did that healthy food consist of - plenty of low-fat processed foods? Lots of "heart-healthy" whole grains? If the goverment deems it healthy then I know to stay far away from that product. The government doesn't care about our health. They care about their wallets. So does BigAgra and BigPharma.

Healthy food is real, whole food. Food doesn't contain ingredients. Food IS an ingredient. - of course not in this day and age.

Body composition is 80% diet. The other 20% is a combination of exercise and genetics.

Put it into any search bar

Did I happen to mention I'm a French model?

Bonjourno

:laugh: That is one commercial that I actually love !!!! lol :laugh: :drinker:

The bad thing is fat.

nope. fat is a good thing

My TDEE is 1,700 or so, so I do not lose weight eating 2,000, I maintain and slowly start to gain

My TDEE minus 20% is 1037 calories. Under this I loose weight. Over this I gain. I am never hungry.

Then your TDEE is wrong. TDEE is the number where you do not gain or lose. And unless you are a midget, or a small child, or you have a suppressed metabolism, your TDEE is not 1037.

And just becuase someone got obese on "healthy" foods doesn't mean that person overate. What did that healthy food consist of - plenty of low-fat processed foods? Lots of "heart-healthy" whole grains? If the goverment deems it healthy then I know to stay far away from that product. The government doesn't care about our health. They care about their wallets. So does BigAgra and BigPharma.

In my mother's case, fruits, vegetables, lean protein mostly. Almost entirely homemade. She never ate things like potato chips or sugary things. She was a binge eater. She binged in healthy food. Too many calories.

I, however, spent most of my youth eating nothing but junk food and I was tiny.

I don't eat as low as 1200 calories... but, I can't imagine eating as high as 2000. It's just not possible anymore. I literally don't want to eat that much. I work hard and eat as much as I am comfortable with (until I am satisfied)... and then I'm done. No need in stuffing yourself if you aren't hungry.