4' 11" Female, 1200 Calorie Budget too high?

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specandshot
specandshot Posts: 18 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
If anyone could help me get some clarity on this matter I would appreciate it.

I'm hoping to lose a healthy 2+ lbs per week. My height is 4' 11", I am 21 years old (or tomorrow I will be.. woo hoo! :drinker: ) and weigh approximately 130 lbs. MFP has put me on a calorie budget of 1200 calories per day before exercise. My BMR is 1399 calories. In order to lose a significant amount of weight in a short period wouldn't I need to be eating less then 1200? I feel full on 1200 almost every day depending on what I'm eating.

Thanks for your help in advance.

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    if you want to lose 35lbs, you will get the best results trying to lose 1lb per week, not 2. if your BMR is 1399 then that is the MINIMUM you should be eating.

    eating below 1200 will just do you more harm than good in the long run and is not a healthy way of losing weight.
  • d3mon4ngel
    d3mon4ngel Posts: 242 Member
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    What is your goal weight? I'm guessing it won't be a whole lot below what you are currently at. The 2lbs a week setting is for people who have 50+lbs to lose really. The less you have to lose, the less of a deficit you should try to make.

    I believe that it is better to lose weight slowly and healthily and keep it off, rather than drop loads in short period and be more likely to put it back on again.

    Just my opinion :smile:
  • specandshot
    specandshot Posts: 18 Member
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    Thank you both for your answers and opinions.

    My goal weight is 100-110 lbs. As I stated above I'm very short and my weight right now does not look attractive at all on me. I have a vacation coming up at the end of March and it would obviously be a better time if I was comfortable in a bathing suit.
  • geekyjock76
    geekyjock76 Posts: 2,720 Member
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    You seem to have a body composition issue (less lean body mass relative to fat mass) more so than a weight one. Take the advice of setting a 0.5 or 1.0 lb weight loss goal per week. Once you have less than 15 lbs to lose, drop it to or remain at 0.5 per week since the less fat mass you have, the less you oxidize in a given day.

    I know it sounds tempting to lose weight rapidly, but unless you improve your body composition, you likely will not approve of the results. To help preserve lean body mass while under a deficit, lift weights or do some sort of strength-training routine 3-4 days a week.
  • Greenrun99
    Greenrun99 Posts: 2,065 Member
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    I know spring break is a big thing, but losing 20 lbs by March is pretty big goal at your height/weight already. If you want to do it healthy, I would follow the advice your getting and just try to lose 1 lb a week, figure out how much you should be eating (TDEE minus your cut of 10% or so) and eat that.. Try to eat cleanly, I just glanced at your diary and I notice your eating out/fast food a bit.. I know its hard to eat clean at 20/21 but this is all stuff that helps you lose that weight. (Not saying don't eat out, just not every meal/day)
    If your just doing cardio I would suggest adding some strength training in there to help, as you may even get down to your goal weight and still not like your body due to bf%.
  • specandshot
    specandshot Posts: 18 Member
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    I am incorporating some weight training just not logging it on MFP. Thank you all for your advice. I just wanted to make sure I will lose any weight on a 1200 calorie diet before exercise considering my height.
  • elsinora
    elsinora Posts: 398 Member
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    On a sidenote, as someone and a number of people I have trained (depending on the amount needed to lose and how) there is absolutely no problem with losing 2lbs a week. And yes, myself and others have kept it off.
  • specandshot
    specandshot Posts: 18 Member
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    THANK YOU! My goal would be to get down to the weight I want fast and then tone. Thanks for your comment.
  • bongocats
    bongocats Posts: 12 Member
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    First, happy birthday!

    My stats are pretty similar to yours -- I started out at 130 and I'm 5' tall (or, 5' short, haha). I actually found that staying at 1200 calories frequently gave me a headache and left me too hungry, so I'm trying to aim for 1300-1350, and that's going well. As an example, in the last week I lost 2 pounds. And for exercise so far, I've mostly just been walking. So I bet 1200 will help you lose well!
  • specandshot
    specandshot Posts: 18 Member
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    First, happy birthday!

    My stats are pretty similar to yours -- I started out at 130 and I'm 5' tall (or, 5' short, haha). I actually found that staying at 1200 calories frequently gave me a headache and left me too hungry, so I'm trying to aim for 1300-1350, and that's going well. As an example, in the last week I lost 2 pounds. And for exercise so far, I've mostly just been walking. So I bet 1200 will help you lose well!

    Aw thanks so much! What sucks is I only have a scale at work and it's very old so I'm not even sure if its working correctly. I think I'll buy one tonight, lol.Thanks for your tip and good luck!
  • ladyraven68
    ladyraven68 Posts: 2,003 Member
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    I'm 4ft 11, and was initially losing on 1600 a day when I was exercising.

    There are others here who are 5ft and eating 2000 calories per day.

    It will all depend on your activity levels, but personally 1200 was too low and made me feel I'll, dizzy, tired, cold etc.

    With only a small amount to lose a goal of 1lb per week would be preferable, especially if you are likely to get discouraged and give up if you don't hit your 2lb a week goal.
  • nfgchick79
    nfgchick79 Posts: 89 Member
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    Hi.

    I'm 5'0." I started in January 2012 at 134. By about October I was down to 106 where I've pretty much hovered around (give or take a few lbs here and there). I started at 1200 and did that for about 4 months and then did a little research and upped my calories. I did not feel well on that many calories and was working out sometimes 2 hours a day (about 5-9 hours a week). So I changed my calories to 1500 and now I work out 2-5 days a week. I'm doing well maintaining and don't feel like I am going to pass out. I switched to 1500 around June I think and lost a little slower from June-Nov but I still lost about 6-7 lbs in that time frame. I think for a very petite person that is reasonable. I wanted to do something that was manageable for life and sustainable. I go over sometimes and I don't give myself a hard time for it. The 1200 obsessive thing was really starting to give me a complex. I definitely would tell you not to eat less than your BMR and don't go below 1200!

    P.S. my dates may not be exact but you get the idea!
  • AblazeRiver
    AblazeRiver Posts: 47 Member
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    THANK YOU! My goal would be to get down to the weight I want fast and then tone. Thanks for your comment.

    that actually makes it much much much harder to tone. If you exercise regularly through your weight loss, your skin/fat will stay much tighter against your muscle, rather than reaching the point of "skinny fat" where your skin and fat just hangs from your body (been there, it sucks). When you weigh a bit more as you start weight training, you are working with the weights plus your body weight, thus resulting in more calorie expenditure and a better workout, even though the extra effort isn't very noticeable to you. That's why a lot of guys "bulk and cut" meaning they gain weight as they start working out and then diet as they increase resistance. The same model applies to women in the sense that the more you weight, the more effort it takes to work out (hence why someone who is obese can have an easier time losing 2 lbs a week than someone who is mildly overweight).

    In addition it takes more energy to maintain muscle, since it needs circulation/nutrients etc, which means you will be able to eat more calories and lose weight faster. Fat is a method of energy storage, so it really doesn't take much energy to maintain it.

    Furthermore, your BMR is the minimum calories you need to keep your body alive if you were in a coma. If you were absolutely not using ANY energy, except for vital functions. When you eat less than your BMR, you will see weight loss at first but your body will adapt to using less energy than it really needs, since that's what you're giving it. That causes a slowdown of metabolism resulting in almost unbeatable plateaus (case in point, I'm about 5'1" and I was eating 1300 cals/day. I lost weight for about 2 months, and then had an 8 month plateau before I upped my goal to 1500 calories. Then it started coming off consistently again).


    source: nursing and nutrition student
  • sum1crazy4jesus
    sum1crazy4jesus Posts: 2
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    Check this out and determine it yourself, nothing better than getting your own answers. http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harris-benedict-equation/
  • specandshot
    specandshot Posts: 18 Member
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    Thank you all so much for your comments. Taking into consideration all your experiences and reading more on other posts I am going to up my weight training a lot and eat 20% less of my TDEE which would be 1548 calories. For some reason it just seems so high for someone so "little" but I will give it a go. Thanks again!
  • AblazeRiver
    AblazeRiver Posts: 47 Member
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    woohoo! I usually eat between 1500-2000 calories depending on my activity level (i have a fitbit so I set my cal goal to my BMR and then let MFP adjust based on how many calories I've burned), and I've been losing much faster that way. You might gain a little bit as your body adjusts, but it will come back off in about 3 weeks.

    Here's a good guide, even though it's REALLY long :)

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/804485-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12
  • squigglypuff
    squigglypuff Posts: 279 Member
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    4'11 also, woop woop. I started on MFP in spring/summer 2011 around 148lbs, eating 1000-1200 calories a day. It sucked and yes, I did lose some weight that was but I was miserable. I now net around 1300-1600 and I'm much happier and less exhausted. I'm about 125lbs now, though I was able to dip down to 115lbs a few times but then life happens! Right before hurricane Sandy hit New York (where I live) I was about 117lbs but the storm really screwed up my diet and exercise routine (no heat/power/fresh food for two weeks -- yikes!!).

    Since you're short and not really overweight, it is likely that you will NOT lose weight as quickly as some larger people. I see a lot of larger people on here that can easily lose 20lbs in 3 months but it just doesn't happen that way for us little people. Good luck and happy birthday!

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