Too many calories verses not enough calories...I need help

believe it or not you need to eat at least 1200 calories per day in order to lose any weight at all. otherwise, your body isn't getting the fuel it needs to burn off the fat. one question i would ask is are you doing any exercise? if you are, are you entering that into the exercise portion of MFP so that those calories are added back to your daily allotment? if you're doing that, i would suggest to you to stop doing that. my husband and i are doing this together and found it extremely difficult to eat back all the calories that were added back. not adding them back has worked so far. he's currently down 31 pounds and i'm down 22. we do the best we can to eat all the calories we're allotted for the day. if we don't we won't drop any weight. my sister is having this problem. she's been having trouble losing some extra weight but the problem is she isn't eating enough. she's lucky if she eats 900-1000 per day. 1200 calories is NOT a lot of calories. that is what i'm allotted for every day and some days more than others it's harder to eat so few when i've been used to eating way more than that. another thing you may not be doing is eating often enough. small portions every 3-4 hours throughout the day will help as well. also, it's a good idea to have at least one cheat day per week. otherwise your weight loss will never last. you'll deny yourself the things you like and then when you get the chance to have them again you'll go overboard. the weekend is usually when my husband and i "cheat". we'll have a good healthy breakfast and lunch but for dinner we'll have burgers and fries or wings or pizza and ice cream. it all works together to keep your body guessing. most of the time, though, we don't feel like we're on a diet at all because we try to eat the things we like but make a healthier version of them. if you want to chat or need suggestions or want to see the kinds of things we eat my food diary is public so you can check it out. remember, if you don't see any entries for the weekend it's only because that's when we "cheat" so i don't bother to keep track. i'll be glad to help you in any way i can.

I am not going to pretend to be an expert but I have had weight issues all my life. I have worked with doctors and nutritionists in the past when I lost weight. I just never could get with the program and stick to a life style change. Anyway, I am going to tell you that eating your BMR, which is what I am guessing is where you are getting the 1200 from as it is your BMR minus whatever goal you told MFP, is for sure the bare minimum that you should be eating. Exercise is going to raise that number each day that you do exercise but you could search for "eat more to lose weight" and enjoy the reading. I believe based on many years of eating experience that you do not need to be afraid to eat your BMR minus a reasonable deficit but really having said that, 1200 sounds really low to me.

believe it or not you need to eat at least 1200 calories per day in order to lose any weight at all. otherwise, your body isn't getting the fuel it needs to burn off the fat.

Not to be all like.. but... *facepalm*

How do all those study participants lose any weight at all when undergoing 10 day fasts, university controlled VLCD's, and other cited works which show the effects of less than 1200 calories per day?

I'm not saying they're a good idea, but.. try to say things that are supported by research, instead of the opposite of it.

Sooper restrictive calorie cuts are, essentially, unsustainable. If someone truly ate that little for a length of time, they'd feel lethargic, want to stay on the couch all day, and want to sleep for ever. Milder calorie cuts are more effective, and don't cause as sharp of a drop in a person's base metabolic rate as severe cuts do. Some research also points towards greater muscle mass retention with a mild cut vs a deep cut.

If you hate yourself so much that you ARE able to sustain a VLCD, go see a therapist and learn how to love yourself, and THEN start your weight loss journey. (Not directed at OP, just saying to anyone reading. Don't starve, love

I seem to be doing bad then lol, I have a personal trainer and she staggers my calorie intake differently each day one days its 1300, next its 1400 and one others its 1500 and then back down, I actually feel so full when I hit 1100, so I won't push myself to eat. I listen to my body, if it wasn't getting enough I would be feeling hungry all the time, but I actually don't and I am loosing a great deal of inches more than seeing the scale move , so it really is what your body needs more than following an eating plan to the T. thats what I do anyways

I seem to be doing bad then lol, I have a personal trainer and she staggers my calorie intake differently each day one days its 1300, next its 1400 and one others its 1500 and then back down, I actually feel so full when I hit 1100, so I won't push myself to eat. I listen to my body, if it wasn't getting enough I would be feeling hungry all the time, but I actually don't and I am loosing a great deal of inches more than seeing the scale move , so it really is what your body needs more than following an eating plan to the T. thats what I do anyways

That's awesome! I love it when PTs step out of the box and help their clients change up their diets!

I was thinking the same thing. I struggle with 1,200 calories.

BUMP

This hasn't made it here yet:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/912920-in-place-of-a-road-map-3-2013

One of the best explanations I've found yet in the forums.

STOP!

Go to this website: http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

On that website you will calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) which is the MINIMUM number of calories you should eat in a day.

You will also calculate your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) which is the MAXIMUM number of calories you should eat in a day if you want to lose weight. This number includes the calories burned from your workouts, so if you use this method you do NOT have to eat back your workout calories - (otherwise you totally would)!

Select the "15% cut" option and eat at the recommended calories.

PLEASE don't get sucked into this 1200 calories per day nonsense, that's almost nothing and will just leave you starving and will just drive you mad.

Please contact me if you have any questions.

This.. a thousand likes for this.