Is my doctor crazy?

I know it's an "evil fad diet", but I did Medifast. I was in the weight loss phase for about 9 months, started at 328 and went to 200. I am 6'4", 46 years old. I was eating a little higher than their recommendation of 800-1000 calories. I was usually hitting 1000-1100.

I didn't die. I didn't starve, or really even feel hungry. I was not cranky (more than usual), nor did I feel sick. My metabolism appears to be fine. I lost 3 to 3.5 pounds per week, approximately. As far as I know I did not lose significant muscle mass.

I did 8 weeks of transition, during which I lost down to 193 at one point. I've been in maintenance for 12 weeks and have not gained, beyond returning back up to my goal weight of around 200. I am maintaining at around 2100-2300 calories per day, which is technically lower than my TDEE. But I am not that concerned.

Take it for what it's worth. TDEE-20% isn't the only safe, reliable way to lose weight.

I am also doing Medifast via "Take Shape For Life" which means, I have a health coach. I started at approximately 280. So far, I've lost just under 60 lbs. I have another 80 or more to lose to reach goal. I did much better during the first few months, but I'm trying to get back on track and stay solid. While I was solid, I stayed approximately 1000 calories and 85-100 carbs per day. I was never hungry, in fact, I had to set a time to remind myself to eat.
I'm considering becoming a Take Shape for Life health coach myself, as I have already 'walked the walk', at least part-way.
I'm not giving up until I am at my goal.
I am also under the care of my doctor, who is strongly involved in nutrition, so I have my bases covered. So far, I've been able to reduce all my 'weight related' meds, such as diabetes meds, cholesterol meds, and high blood pressure meds. My dosages have been reduced to such a low, that the next step is to take me off them completely. My doctor is so proud of me!!
So what I'm saying is, do what works, and if your doctor suggests something, he/she probably has more to back up his or her suggestions than we do.

I was 270. I lost the first 50 just by going entirely fat free and walking. You can do it. Your life depends on it and you know it. Also your happiness and self esteem.

I took 3 nutrtion classes in college and my DR told me that was more than he took. I would talk to a dietitian instead

Thanks to everyone for your input. I'm going to try it for a month or so and see how it goes. My doctor's hope is that with 1300 calories a day, plus at least 5 hours of cardio per week, plus resistance training, I can lost up to two pounds a month. This seems like a LOT of effort for such a small slow weight loss, but with PCOS that's how it goes. The good news is that as my weight gets lower, the hormonal imbalance also steadies which will hopefully make weight loss a little faster as I go along.

Search for PCOS in the success stories section- there are a LOT of us here with PCOS who face the same struggles. I bet you'll do more than 2lbs/month!

I'm no doctor but you can do it and feel full. It's amazing what healthy fruits and veggies you can fill into 1300 calories. I helped my sister through her calorie shock by showing her the right foods make a world of difference. It's all about portion control. If you can do a whole foods or vegan diet you would get more food for even less calories.

Example: One of my meals was

4 oz. Baked Salmon
Salad - 2 cups romaine lettuce chopped, 8 Cherry tomatos, 2 tbsp ranch dressing
Stuffed Porabella Mushroom- 1 Large 6 oz. Cap stuffed with 2 tbsp kraft italian cheese
Raw Broccoli - 1 cup
Raw Cauliflour- 1 cup
Water - 8 oz

Total Calories was 451, Carbs 29 , Fat 19, Protein 45, Sodium 751, and Sugar 10

That was my dinner at 6 pm that night. I snacked on that same raw broccoli, cauliflour and tomatoes that i didn't slice into my salad for the rest of the night before bed. Water is also very filling on a full stomach. If you choose your meals wisely you can have reasonable snacks. You can follow my food diary if you want. Mine is to help me maintain my weight but I often just can't eat the amount of calories needed to do it. I often fall short because I'm just not hungry after I eat until much later. I am a late night snacker if I do feel like snacking. I mostly graze through the day. My meals are broke up in my diary but I literally spread them out more. Example: Today I had breakfast smoothie. But I drank it and 3 waters over the course of an hour. Mostly because I was trying to clean kitchen and wait on my babies like the slave I am. lol. When I did finish the shake I made myself lunch which was a Peanut butter and miracle whip sandwich. I ate a light snack 2 hrs later of 2 cheese sticks and gatorade (we were at zoo it was only closed container beverage we had in fridge). I then ate some crackers and raw broccoli while I fixed dinner. Then I ate a few bites of meatloaf, 2 large stuffed mushrooms, 2 baked potaoes (not the skin) and spinach. yumm. I am so full. That is the biggest trick I'm beating into my husband's head...don't clean your plate just eat until your full not stuffed. Eat the rest later if you want but don't eat it just to eat.

Hope that helps. So in summary no he's not crazy.

Your doctor may not be crazy...but I bet she doesn't know how MFP is set up. On the other hand, you can certainly try it her way for a few weeks and see howvit goes.

What you need to take in calorie, protein and carb wise is very individual. So many factors affect are metabolism. I could not lose weight pre-op without reducing my calories to under 1500/day and keep my carbs to under 80. Your mileage may vary, of course. I agree that most doctors have little understanding about nutrition. Many were given little instruction when at med school. Either consult a nutritionist or give his advice a try. If you don't do well with it you can always make adjustments.

I went to a weight loss doc (after all insurance pays for a doc, but not weight watchers) some time back and he put me on 1250 cal diet.
So yeah, 1300 seems about right.

I'm a doc myself , but in a different specialty. So I checked before I did it and yeah, that's about right for weight loss.
First couple days are hard, but it started to melt off, once I got in the groove.
(Then I got pregnant and had to stop. But I never did put that weight back on, though I still have lots more to lose.)

i do think the calories is a little to low. You should be around 1500. But not adding in the exercise calories is a great thing to do and it shouldnt be to hard. I weigh the same amount and I have a food addiction problem. I see a diet Dr. and she said 1500 calories is a good place to be and the best way to lose the weight is stick to those calories and burn about 500 calories a day but not to add on calories because of exercise. Hope I help. Feel free to add me as friend!