So why is only 1200 calories for weight loss bad?

christianteach · May 2013

When your doctor told you to eat 1200 calories a day to maintain, you should have told her you wanted to lose 10 lbs. and asked her how much to eat to lose rather than maintain. I would listen to the advise of your doctor. I also would assume she was referring to net calories. Many on this site believe we are all the same and should use the same formula to lose weight. In reality we are all different. I took my son to a weight loss specialist this week that his pcp referred him to. They ran labs and tested his metabolism. It turns out his is slow. Go figure. Even though he is very tall and weighs a lot, his doctor told him to eat 1600-1800 calories per day (I assume he was referring to net because he told him to use this website to track everything, food and exercise), to eat 120-130 grams of protein per day, to get in an hour of cardio 5 times a week and to weight train every 2-3 days. If he listened to the advice on here, he would be eating 2810 per day. He has a follow up apt. in 3 weeks. He also has an appointment scheduled with their fitness trainer to get a fitness test and their dietitian. I'm certainly going to encourage him to follow the advice of his physician, not advice he picks up from strangers on the internet.

JDBLY11 · May 2013

My endocrinologist told me that to maintain my weight (140lbs, height 5'5, 27 y/o) I should only eat 1200 calories a day. I eat pretty healthy, make my own meals, and don't "drink" any calories yet still have a hard time hitting that 1200 cal mark.

At the same time though, I am trying to lose 10 lbs to get back to my base weight from two years ago but dropping my calories to 1000 doesnt seem to work. I run 4-6 miles everyday and walk to and from work which is about 4 miles.

What else can I do? I'm following my doc's advice....

EDIT: When I said I have a difficult time hitting the 1200 mark I meant that I have to eat way more than I want, not the other way around. If I really stuff myself I can hit 1300-1400 but I feel awful afterwards.

I think you either: a) have left out important information, b) have misunderstood your endocrinologist, or c) should seek a second opinion. When I was younger I also had a hyperactive thyroid that was just enough within normal range so as not to need medication as well. I was told by my doctors that i should net at least 2000 calories a day to maintain my weight (compared to 1700-1800 for someone of my weight with a normal thyroid). Your TDEE for your height, weight and age with a normal thyroid for someone who does little to no exercise is just above 1700 calories a day, so I would imagine if you have the same problem as I had, you should be eating at least 200 to 300 more to maintain your weight. Is it possible you have other conditions which affect your weight that you didn't tell us about? Did you mean to say you have a hypothyroid (slower thyroid)? Even so, I would imagine that the decrease in your caloric intake would not be much more than mine was raised (200-300 calories). That would mean you would still have to net 1400-1500 calories to maintain your weight.
It is possible you misunderstood your doctor. I would imagine she meant you must net 1200 calories not only eat that much. Netting 1200 calories means that your total caloric intake is 1200 after taking the calories you ate and subtracting the calories you burned during exercise. Is it also possible that your doctor said or meant that you should net 1200 calories to maintain your current weight loss? you should contact your doctor and ask for a clarification and a reason for their determination. If, indeed your doctor meant to only eat 1200 calories a day to maintain your weight with exercise, then ask what factors are causing this. Also, if this is the case, I would seek a second opinion just to be sure. However, I am guessing that it was either a misunderstanding of your doctor, or that you left out other important information.

I agree. Something is being left out or there is a misunderstanding.

My mom is hypothyroid and used to take Synthroid for it. Thyroid problems run in my family. I have an uncle who is hyperthyroid and a cousin who has hashimotos disease. My mom can lose weight eating at a little less than a normal deficit and has when we did weight loss program together. It may take more time but it is possible to lose weight even if you are hypothyroid. My mom lost weight every week on Weight Watchers when she followed the program, but she did not eat back her weekly points. She lost about the same amount I did when I followed the program. Of course, not everyone is the same but when slow thyroid problems are treated you should be able to lose weight and still eat enough to fuel your body and the exercise you do.

This does not even really apply to OP because she is still in a normal range and she said she was hyperthyroid.

metacognition · May 2013

Well, I am 5 feet tall, 99 pounds and maintain my weight at 1900 calories per day. But I have normal thyroid function.

1200 calories per day for an active woman will usually lead to fatigue, hunger, exhaustion, "hitting the wall" during workouts, and it will actually train your body to get by on fewer calories per day. Ideally one should train their body to get a generous amount of healthy food without gaining fat.

I would suggest eating more and interspersing your steady state jogs with high intensity interval training which will typically yield faster results than a constant jog.

JDBLY11 · May 2013

I'm certainly going to encourage him to follow the advice of his physician, not advice he picks up from strangers on the internet.

But she asked for advice from "strangers on the internet." Your son's doctor sounds perfectly reasonable and what you wrote sounds reasonable. OP eats 1200 calories and exercises a lot. She probably burns most of the calories she eats exercising and I think she said she does not eat her exercise calories back. Her thyroid levels were a little high but normal so why would she eat so little when she is exercising so much when she is a normal weight? Usually people with hyperthyroid issues have to eat more and struggle with losing too much weight. What she wrote does not sound right.

idaholawchick · May 2013

You may consider having your BMR/RMR tested. Your doctor can't do that from blood tests so any thought that the calorie recommendation is based on your individual metabolism is incorrect. To test it, you basically breathe into a tube for 10-15 minutes and the off gases are measured.

You can usually have it done at a university. I had my done & it was almost 300 calories higher than the formulas.

toutmonpossible · May 2013

You are under a doctor's care. The doctor has taken a medical history, examined you, and understands the nuances of your individual condition. You have no problem complying with the prescription to eat 1200. A calorie max of 1200 is not unhealthy, it is not even classified as a Very Low Calorie Diet. Follow your doctor's orders.

nainai0585 · May 2013

I'm just going to come out and say it. I think that you should take the advice of your doctor over a bunch of random people on the internet. I don't think there is anything wrong with what you are doing and I think an Endocrinologist who is a doctor who very specifically studied hormones and related metabolism, etc... Probably knows what is better for YOU than a bunch of random strangers. (just my opinion)

I fully agree with this statement.

AleciaG724 · May 2013

I don't think you can cover all your nutritional needs on less than 1200 calories/day unless you are very careful about what you eat at every meal.

bevmcarthur · May 2013

hi Dawn
I would not go by MFP numbers they are VERY low and there macro numbers are not correct also. Here is a good site to find your right numbers there are a lot out there just google it
http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/

So why is only 1200 calories for weight loss bad?

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