You can eat way more than 1200 cals/day and reach your goal!

Eat more to weigh more.

Most of us got fat eating more.

EM2WM doesn't mean eating random thousands of calories. It means eat more than a pitifully restrictive diet e.g. 1200 in order to lose FAT only, not "WEIGHT"

I have eaten 1300 for months now and gained lean mass while losing the fat. So it all depends on your goals. Some just want to lose weight others want to retain lean muscle you can do both on a calorie deficit without stuffing your face.

and your weight loss will almost certainly plateau before you reach your goal.

Actually it did. when I was eating 1600 1700 and 1800 cals. I reduced because I stalled out eating too much. I enlisted the help of a registered dietician. Who says there is nothing wrong with eating below your BMR if you have plenty of fat stores.

... meh, I disagree, but obviously I'm not the registered dietician. in any case, wish ya luck!

That's right. Like all the others promoting eat more 2 weigh less. :yawn:

Eat more to weigh more.

Most of us got fat eating more.

EM2WM doesn't mean eating random thousands of calories. It means eat more than a pitifully restrictive diet e.g. 1200 in order to lose FAT only, not "WEIGHT"

I have eaten 1300 for months now and gained lean mass while losing the fat. So it all depends on your goals. Some just want to lose weight others want to retain lean muscle you can do both on a calorie deficit without stuffing your face.

and your weight loss will almost certainly plateau before you reach your goal.

Actually it did. when I was eating 1600 1700 and 1800 cals. I reduced because I stalled out eating too much. I enlisted the help of a registered dietician. Who says there is nothing wrong with eating below your BMR if you have plenty of fat stores.

... meh, I disagree, but obviously I'm not the registered dietician. in any case, wish ya luck!

That's right. Like all the others promoting eat more 2 weigh less. :yawn:

ouch, i took the high road and you stuck to the low one. bummer.

appeal to authority is a fallacy.

Bumping so I can come back and read more of CoachReddy's arguing.

I'm honored.

I need Coach to be my dietitcian lol or atleast my trainer me *kitten* is stuck to the sofa I just cant exercise ....so freaking lazy.....

I am no expert - and would never claim to be - just doing what works for me.
I have been on 1200 since Nov12 and have lost 62lbs - I have another 48lbs to go before I am able to see my final target weight in sight - I do clean cooking and eating which is hard work compared to the easy way -which put weight on me. I know at some point I will have to up my intake the closer I get to my target and the loss slow's down (at least thats what I think I will have to do)

Yeah, thanks everyone that says 1200 is too little, it makes me feel great. Why can't people accept that 1200 is OK for some people, why do people need to make "No one should eat at 1200 calories " comments.

I'm 5'0", 25, 125lbs, and Sedentary (desk job), how much do YOU think I should be eating?

Actually, even you could do more than that. Your BMR is ~1350, no? So you could eat 1.2*1350 = 1620 (i think... no calc) and still maintain. If you were to eat at a 200 calorie deficit, you'd be eating 1420 calories a day. You'd still be losing weight at a reasonable rate.

EDIT: To be clear, this isn't from some 6 foot tall gazelle with an uber fast metabolism. I'm small too.. 5'1" and 105 lbs. I'm looking to maintain for now and am a *tad* bit taller than you, but I eat close to 1800 a day and still maintain. Just saying. Why suffer so much in effort to lose weight? I certainly think it's more sustainable to eat as much as I do rather than go on an extreme deficit.

agreed; and I think her point is specifically for those that have that "last little bit" (5 or 10 lbs) to lose that are the ones that get stuck on the 1200 a day mindset. I know several people that think this is something they have to abide by in order to lose weight, when in reality, once the BULK of the weight has been lost, you can increase cals and still lose weight. it is a very hard concept for a lot of people to grasp because they have been stuck on the idea of limiting for so long..

great post OP - glad to hear your experience - and hope others might be encouraged to try it that have been feeling restricted.

/\ /\ /\ This is me......I have been in a year long plateau. Just last night I reset my calories to 1600/ now I feel more confident about it!

No one should eat at 1200 calories IMO. That's just ridiculous nonsense.

And IMO, this one sentiment negated all the good things you said in your post. To infer that someone who eats 1200 calories a day is nonsensical is ridiculous. Perhaps there are a lot of people that can eat more, but there are others who can't. Like me. Age, medical issues.... they play a part. You can't speak in absolutes when not everyone's body is like yours.

outside of people under direct supervision of a doctor, 1200 calories is unnecessarily restrictive and ... somewhat ridiculous.

you talk about medical issues - is your 1200 cal diet doctor or nutritionist-prescribed?

No one should eat at 1200 calories IMO. That's just ridiculous nonsense.

And IMO, this one sentiment negated all the good things you said in your post. To infer that someone who eats 1200 calories a day is nonsensical is ridiculous. Perhaps there are a lot of people that can eat more, but there are others who can't. Like me. Age, medical issues.... they play a part. You can't speak in absolutes when not everyone's body is like yours.

outside of people under direct supervision of a doctor, 1200 calories is unnecessarily restrictive and ... somewhat ridiculous.

you talk about medical issues - is your 1200 cal diet doctor or nutritionist-prescribed?

At my last diabetes check up last month, armed with my A1C results and several print outs of my food diaries, my doctor was very pleased with my numbers, my weight loss (and the amount of time it has taken me to lose the weight), and my calorie intake. I would not call my progress ridiculous.

It's difficult for diabetics to lose weight, but it can be done.... slowly. And that's how I am doing it. You can't paint everyone with the same brush.

I'm not going to keep grilling you since obviously you're handling it in the best fashion for you at this point, but depending on whether you're type 1 or type 2, the approach is different. if the goal is to lose a lot of weight quickly, then yes, a highly restricted calorie count can work in the short term. the point people like me keep going back to is that it is not a SUSTAINABLE plan for weight loss. Eventually you will plateau.

CoachReddy is an expert on all matters, didn't you guys know?

CoachReddy is an expert on all matters, didn't you guys know?

:drinker:

nah, but I learn by throwing a lot of **** at the wall, and when I get schooled by those who know more than me, the next time I'll be armed with that info.

it's worked pretty well. I've learned a lot since I started posting here.

bump

OP, I appreciate the post. I'm new here, and have never really tried to lose weight with any seriousness before these past few weeks, so came to this with very little knowledge and a LOT to learn on the weight loss/fitness subject.
When I signed up here, I put in my details, and MFP calculated for me my daily calorie goal which just so happened to be ..........
1200 CALS!
And so on my journey I embarked, and have pretty much stuck to the 1200 cals or even less on some days :blushing:
I initially lost 5-6lbs, but I have a feeling I have already hit a plateau.
Glad to have found this post, I shall now do a bit of searching and researching and recalculate. See where this thing takes me.

Eat more to weigh more.

Most of us got fat eating more.

Nothing wrong with eating 1200 if you have plenty of fat stores.

Yep!! I've been netting 1200 or less and have lost 6lbs since 4/5.When I was netting over 1200 it took over a month to lose 3.I think it really depends on how overweight you are.