P90X

Just starting the P90X program, well sort of. I am reading through the provided materials as we speak. Well, according to these calculations, I should be eating at a level 3.... 3,000 calories a day! I have been eating 1,200 calories a day, won't eating 3,000 calories cause me to gain weight??

Anyone have any experience with this program? Did you have to eat more calories and if so how did it turn out for you?

I am 28, female, 5'1", 206 lbs.

The P90X nutrition guide is great, but it's just a general guide designed to fit as many people as possible - that doesn't mean it's exactly right every time. It also already factors in the exercise calories from P90X.

I'd personally probably put you at closer to 2000.

Your BMR is about 1700. Throw a couple hundred calories for daily burn, which would roughly put you around 2000. Then depending on how much you burn in your workouts, you'd add that to 2000 and then subtract 20% and that would be how much to eat that day. If you want to generalize it so you don't have to do the calculations daily, just throw 500 exercise cals up there to put you at 2500, subtract 20% (500) and you're back at 2000 cal.

but it's also a lot of trial and error to find what works the best for you. But it's incredibly important to eat enough food while doing an intense program like P90X. You should not eat fewer than 1700 cal no matter what. And you'll get better results by eating even more than that. 2000 is a good place to start, and then you can adjust accordingly as things progress.

Thanks @CoachReddy.

So, could the fact that I have been eating around 1200 calories a day be why I have been on a plateau for so long?

that's exactly why.

1200 is not sustainable for anyone. you'll lose weight fast and then - like you've seen - you'll plateau.

Hey girl! That's awesome about P90X.

Not sure if you know this or not... there is a great group out here in the community forums called "P90X Insanity The Game Changers"

IT's a great resource about the program, nutrition, fitness.

Good Luck!

so what will happen the first few days I up my calories? Will I have a weight gain? What should I expect to see?

this is really important.

When you start P90X, no matter how much or how little you eat, you will probably see a gain of a couple pounds. Not everyone does, but many do. The reason for this is your body goes through what's called an "adaptive phase" when it's getting used to a new workout regimen or routine - something it's never done before. Your body will retain water, which will show up as a "gain". Unless someone was there to tell you that's normal, you'd probably get pretty bummed out. DON'T. It IS normal. And once your body adjusts and adapts to the new physical demands and eating plan, the weight will start falling off - I promise.

Something else to keep in mind is this - P90X is a slow burn program. So what that means is that your body will be continually adapting to new exercises and thus, everyone's experience of weight loss is different. Some lose 30 pounds in the first month, some don't lose a damn thing until month three, and then it ALL falls off. But it is designed so that most of the weight loss occurs in the latter half of the program. So just TRUST in the program and trust in yourself, and as long as you STICK WITH IT you absolutely will see results. The important thing is not to lose sight of the whole journey because you feel you're not making progress in the short term.

meant to add - it's up to you how you get up to that 2000 cal also. You can slowly ramp it up over a few days, or you can just switch to 2000 today. Either way is fine, and neither will cause you to gain as long as you're also doing your workouts!