why is 1200 cal/day too low?

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  • sarahmarc
    sarahmarc Posts: 31 Member
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    I've been doing the 20% ish below tdee since November and lost almost nothing so clearly that does not work for me. I tried to decrease about 100 cals for day.....still nothing. By exercising I've converted fat to muscle which has been a success but i'm still got 20 pounds of fat hanging around!So I'm trying out the 1200 cals plus plan to eat my exercise back and see where that gets me. Weigh loss for some is a total experiment and really no one can give advise as we all need different amounts of fuel and very different metabolisms.

    Eat if you're hungry and be wise with your choices:)


    I think on MFP 1200 calorie " dieters" get really bad reputations.....

    Lets not judge, just sort out what works for you.

    Good luck....I wish you and me all the success in the world! Friend me if yo want....

    Ps... Weight watchers is based on a 1200 calorie diet and I've never heard anyone say weight watchers doesn't work!

    Peace out
  • Jennystimetolose
    Jennystimetolose Posts: 58 Member
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    I did 1200 a day for quite a while with great results. I personally don't see why everybody gets all up in arms about it.
    All I can say to you is OMG well done you that is so fantastic 176 pound lost you must be so proud of yourself :)
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
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    I ate 1200 plus exercise calories for a couple of months last year and lost 14lbs. I then went back to eating around 1600 per day and put 10 of those lbs back on.

    I'm only 5'3 and 1200 seemed to work well for me. I'm guessing my maintenance must be somewhere in the region of 1400 (based on the above) so eating in excess of this will just make me put on weight!

    I'm 5'2 and eat between 1700-1800 cals a day, once I get my goal my maintenance will be around 2200 cals!!!....ohh and i am losing. :bigsmile:
  • tryclyn
    tryclyn Posts: 2,414 Member
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    If I can lose at 1800 why would I want to eat only 1200? I'm over 40, fairly sedentary and I already knew what kcal goal to start with before coming to MFP. I've witnessed what rapid weight loss has done to my mother every time she's done it so I know that that is not for me. I much prefer to eat close to my goal maintenance now so that when I am "done"(goal is not set in stone) I will have less of an adjustment and necessary habits will be formed. This is just me, of course.
  • askyej2010
    askyej2010 Posts: 9
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    I'm on 1200 calories a day and I'm 5'9" and loving it lol. I set that goal for myself, MFP suggested I have more, but I change it down to 1200 so I'd lose more. But that's just me, everybody is different.
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,565 Member
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    I'm on 1200 calories a day and I'm 5'9" and loving it lol. I set that goal for myself, MFP suggested I have more, but I change it down to 1200 so I'd lose more. But that's just me, everybody is different.

    At 5'9" you could lose a pound per week at appx 1600-2200 depending on activity.
    I think you are missing the point on what weight loss and fat loss is.
    And aside from metabolic disease, everyone is the same.

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/you-are-not-different.html
  • askyej2010
    askyej2010 Posts: 9
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    I've always eaten around that many calories and its always worked for me. Never been hungry, and I excercise at least an hr and a half a day, and don't lose weight too quickly. Soo yea, everyone's bodies are different. And I could never eat 1600 plus calories a day! Lol that's a lot for me.
  • princessd84
    princessd84 Posts: 121 Member
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    I managed for about two weeks on 1200 before I nearly chewed my own arm off. It was far too low for me. Yes, I want to lose weight but I don't want to spend every day feeling hungry and light-headed.
  • mathteacher2010
    mathteacher2010 Posts: 85 Member
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    simply because 1200 is far below your bmr, unless you are a midget


    Be careful how you phrase things. I am 4'9" and according to MFP, my BMR is 1195. I lose about a pound a week on 1100 calories 5 days a week, more on weekends. I eat plenty of food as long as I choose well, and when I go up to 1200-1300 I don't lose. I exercise, several days a week with TRX straps, and am not wasting away and losing all my muscle.
  • robot_potato
    robot_potato Posts: 1,535 Member
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    For my body type and activity level 1200 is not enough. If you are short with a small frame it is probably more sustainable. I'm 5'7" with a medium frame and at 1200 I was crabby with no energy and would sometimes get woozy when I stood up.
  • amyschicos
    amyschicos Posts: 30 Member
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    Bump!!
  • marykpfist
    marykpfist Posts: 141 Member
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    :tongue: First of all, just be warned-- people get really heated on this subject for some reason.

    There are many, many posts on it!

    In my case, 1200 is absolutely appropriate. I have had my fat % and my BMR checked and my daily calorie intake for NOT LOSING weight is about 1570. So, if I want to lose a reasonable amount (let's say .5-1 pound per week) then I need to cut (exercise off, in my case) a minimum of about 385 calories a day. (That's not even a pound a week...)

    That puts my daily at 1184. (Under 1200.) I eat more when I exercise big. But honeslty at 47, if I can get in a good 2 mile walk and some free weights or circuit training... that's a pretty big day for me.

    My advice-- findout what works FOR YOU. Ignore the nay-sayers if that is the right amount FOR YOU. But know your BMR, your TDEE, and your actual needs. There are lots of posts on how to get that--- or get help from your doctor.

    Good luck with your journey!
  • sarahmonsta
    sarahmonsta Posts: 185 Member
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    There are a lot of different opinions about this. How I feel? I lost a lot of weight on 1300 calories and it has worked for me. For some people it wont work. It all depends on the person. I think the best route is to try and figure out what works for you. Good Luck.
  • burnt_irish1
    burnt_irish1 Posts: 55 Member
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    I'm also doing 1200 a day and have no problems staying at that. I generally eat back some of my exercise calories. MFP has shown me exactly where I have been going wrong in what I had been consuming every day and why I am overweight. I am not a big eater, never have been. Never one to eat donuts, cookies etc....What my problem was is what I had been drinking, not thinking of the tons of calories I was consuming. I am a coffee addict and had been POURING in the Coffeemate French Vanilla. Or I would drink a lot of Simply Lemonade or sweetened teas. Never really paid attention to nutrition labels on food either. And then there's that portion control thing. I had to relearn what a portion was. I have since found that 1200 a day is more than doable. I am not hungry throughout the day. I rarely snack between meals. I no longer have any coffeemate unless it's a rare treat and I do NOT pour it in anymore. If it's not sweet enough for me I add a dash of Splenda. And I have started exercising even though I hate doing it.

    This is me too!!! It's so nice to meet someone else on here!! :love: :flowerforyou:
  • REDI4CHANGE60
    REDI4CHANGE60 Posts: 170
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    bump
  • Sparklysmiles
    Sparklysmiles Posts: 2 Member
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    I think anyone who is on the petite side, with not too much to lose and over 35 (i'm female just under 5.'2" and 45 and most of my life have been around 7.5 - 8.5 stone but over the last few years have seen weight gain around my middle - started MFP at 9 stone 12, now down to 9 stone 5 and my goal is 8 stone 12) is going to find it harder if they don't stick to the 1200 calories at least part of the week or massively increase their exercise. I've lost half a stone (halfway to my goal) over 3 months by eating 1200 calories (+ any added through exercise) for around 5 days of the week and between 1400 - 1800 for the other two (yes usually the weekend) but I have also increased my exercise to 4 times a week, either spin classes, body pump or interval training + some pilates. The results have been great and I do believe a great proportion is down to the exercise as it took a month before anything started to happen and now most weeks I see weight loss and a stronger tighter body! :)

    But we are all different and what's right for me, might not be right for you, however if you can increase your exercise it will make a difference, quicker.
  • carolynbergen1
    carolynbergen1 Posts: 57
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    Last year I was eating 1200 calories a day and eating my exercise calories usually around 350 calories a day back. I lost around 1.5 - 2.5 lbs a week doing that. Guess who gained it all back? I'm now eating 1670 and my exercise calories back, around 350 still, so I usually consume around 1900-2000 calories a day. I feel better, I have more energy and guess what? I'm still losing at the same rate.

    You gained all the weight back that you lost while continuing to eat 1200 calories per day and eating back your exercise calories or did you lose the weight, then up your calories and stop working out? Or even worse, lose the weight and then just stop with the diet and exercise altogether? I have to ask because I've heard many people say they've lost weight using whatever method, whatever caloric intake and then they "gain it all back". If you lost a lot of weight, reached goal and then consumed more calories than you burned off, then without a doubt, you are going to gain it all back regardless of what you were doing before. It's a lifestyle change after all...it's for the rest of our lives, and many people won't like it, welcome to reality. This is all basic physics and even more basic it's math. Calories in, calories out. You've got to burn more than you eat if you want to lose, burn=calories in to maintain, more calories in, burn less to gain. I know there's macros and all that stuff but I think we tend to make it more complicated than it needs to be, The fact is that I, as a normally small framed, short (I prefer "petite" but whatever) menopausal woman need less calories than a healthy 20 year old woman same height, weight, frame. does to survive. I also need less than any man does, and need less than I did 30 years ago. There are distinct differences in everybody and every body. My doctor tells me my 1200 cal eat back with exercise is safe and effective for me. She is the same height that I am and was obese out of college...some 20 years ago. Now she's normal weight and in shape. She did it long term on 1200 and is healthy and has kept the weight off for decades. I'm good to go with what I am doing. .
  • carolynbergen1
    carolynbergen1 Posts: 57
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    You hard core eaters are going to hate this but the people of Okinawa (and there are a handful of other cultures who share the same basic principals), are the people with the highest longevity and lack of diseases in the world. Cancer and cardiovascular diseases are almost unheard of.
    They attribute this to calorie restriction, low fat, no processed goods, no meat or very little meat which is boiled and the fat scraped off before consumption, They do eat fish....which is usually raw. They rarely drink alcohol. They value age and the elderly and don't do ANYTHING to try and look younger. No botox for them!
    Sucks, huh? Too bad it's factual. Americans are some of the most obese people in the world and while we should be living the longest or close to it we rank 41 I believe. How pathetic.

    Read and Weep

    http://www.okinawa-diet.com/news/20050316_seven.html
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
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    It's not too low for everyone. But that's the goal it gives you If you put 2lbs a week. Just put 1 and see if it changes.
  • ehsan517
    ehsan517 Posts: 114
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    1200 cals is too low because it will create what we call "metabolic damage"

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