Not eating enough calories, will weight loss be a problem?

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emmavisman
emmavisman Posts: 33 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've only been a member since monday but whenever i finish my food log i always finish under my calorie intake, and it comes up with a warning saying:
'Based on your total calories consumed for today, you are eating too few calories. Not only is it difficult to receive adequate nutrition at these calorie levels, but you could also be putting your body into starvation mode. Starvation mode lowers your metabolism and makes weight loss more difficult.'
So my question is, why does this happen? is this really going to be a problem? should i be forcing myself into eating up to 1200?
Has anyone had a problem with losing weight when under your daily calorie goal? (im never too much under the goal intake)
Should I be eating my exercise calories? i dont understand that, why exercise at all if you have to eat the calories?? ahhh im so confused!
is someone understands, help me out pleaseee :)

Replies

  • kk_stephens
    kk_stephens Posts: 129 Member
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    The average body requires 1200 calories to function. MFP already figures a calorie deficit into the equation -- therefore if you exercise you are creating a greater dificit. You should eat back most if not all of your exercise calories and always consure at least 1200 calories a day.

    I know I dont drop any weight and actually can even gain weight if I dont eat all of my calories from the food diary and exercise.
    Try to get as close to possible to what MFP says you should eat.
    Hope this helps
  • Fat_n_Happy
    Fat_n_Happy Posts: 20 Member
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    Go read several articles. Click Message Boards -> General Diet and Weight Loss Help -> then read the four threads at the top with the thumbtacks. It will all become clearer.
  • themommie
    themommie Posts: 5,023 Member
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    Your food diary is not public so it is hard to make suggestions since I dont know what you are eating. But I often get this same warning and have lost 14lbs in 5 weeks. You dont want to be constantly under , you should try to eat at least 1200 calories. Maybe sprinkling some nuts on your salad or putting some peanut butter on toast or eating a granola bar in the afternoon or evening to increase your calories. You dont want your body to think it is starving or it will hold onto the weight. Good luck
  • sarahliftsUP
    sarahliftsUP Posts: 752 Member
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    Hi there and welcome to MFP!

    When you sign up for MFP it asks you a serious of questions: gender, current weight, height, activity level based on your job, how much weight you want to lose per weight, etc. (or maybe that is all of them, ha.)

    The 1,200 calories that you were assigned to is already calculating a deficiency of calories. That means that you can even go above 1,200 calories a day by 100, but still lose weight, because MFP already has you under your basal metabolic rate. Your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is how many calories you would burn a day by doing absolutely nothing, i.e. sitting on the couch all day and watching tv.

    Therefore, if you are eating less than 1200 calories AND exercising without eating any of the calories you burned from that activity, then your total calorie intake is not enough to live off of. This is putting your body into starvation mode. Your metabolism is slowing down and your body is basically holding onto every nutrient it possibly can, storing it away for later use. It basically thinks that you are stranded on a dessert island with no food resources. You will lose weight at first since you aren't getting enough food.. but it's not healthy at all. Your body needs a certain amount of nutrients to fuel the body and yours is lacking.

    It's important to eat most of your exercise calories, as long as you are above 1200 calories a day for your net calorie intake. If you find it hard to consume that much, go to healthy foods that are high in calories but still full of good nutrients such as avacodo or almonds.

    If you have any other questions, feel free to ask. You can add me as a friend too if you like!
  • stormieweather
    stormieweather Posts: 2,549 Member
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    It won't hurt you for a day or a couple of days (ie: if you get sick or something). But long term, depriving your body of adequate nutrition is not good for your well being. You may not actually STARVE (that's a sensitive point to some people here ), but your weight loss might slow, you may feel tired and irritable, and if the deprivation is too much, you will stress your organs and other possible harm may result. If you aren't eating enough, your cravings may eventually get the better of you and you might undo all that you worked so hard to achieve.

    The thing is...it is possible to lose weight without depriving yourself. You can eat nutritionally dense foods, get enough fuel for your body, feel like a million dollars, have a treat now and then, and actually LIVE like a human. My advice is to learn to eat in such a way that you can meet your goals easily, as long as you are eating healthy foods. 5 lbs of broccoli might fill you up, but it isn't going to meet your body's needs. Preplan your meals until you are able to meet your goals without preplanning, simply because you know how much your body needs of this, and that and the other. That's the goal :).
  • emmavisman
    emmavisman Posts: 33 Member
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    I'm going to put my food diary public now! thanks for all the suggestions (i haven't finished reading them all yet)
  • FemininGuns
    FemininGuns Posts: 605 Member
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    I only started eating at least 1200 calories in the last few months. I didn't know what my calorie intake was prior to that - but someone had looked at what I was eating and they informed me that I was only eating about 1050 calories a day!!! When I started eating at least 1200 (more like 1300-1400 when I exercise) I started losing weight. So it's not good to have your body in starvation mode cause you won't lose weigh you'll most likely gain. If you feel tired, your low calorie intake could be the culprit.
  • FemininGuns
    FemininGuns Posts: 605 Member
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    I've made my diary public if you'd like to have a look for ideas :happy:
  • LisaJayne71
    LisaJayne71 Posts: 197 Member
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    Welcome to MFP!

    I think you have to try and see what happens... Everyone is different and it's trial and error

    I personally can not eat 1200 cals and lose weight............ I have PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) and my body just does not allow me to eat that many calories and lose
    I have my calorie goal set at 1000 calories and I tend not to eat back my exercise calories back... because that works for me... but you will find other people say that they have to eat at least 1200 and eat back their exercise calories to lose... try and see what works for you... The one thing you'll find here is that you will come across so many different experiences and so much support that you know you've found the right place to try different ideas out!!

    Good luck and add me as a friend if you want to!

    Lisa :-)
  • emmavisman
    emmavisman Posts: 33 Member
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    I only started eating at least 1200 calories in the last few months. I didn't know what my calorie intake was prior to that - but someone had looked at what I was eating and they informed me that I was only eating about 1050 calories a day!!! When I started eating at least 1200 (more like 1300-1400 when I exercise) I started losing weight. So it's not good to have your body in starvation mode cause you won't lose weigh you'll most likely gain. If you feel tired, your low calorie intake could be the culprit.

    Thank you! i'll have a look :)
    its really difficult to know how many calories you're actually having when it goes up and down due to exercise! I think i'm starting to make sense of it all now though
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    MFP already sets you up in a caloric deficit to lose weight at 1200 calories so if you don't eat your exercise calories your body will perform as if you ate less than 1200 calories. At maintenance you may burn 1600 calories, if you eat that much and exercise for 400 cals you will be at a net of 1200, since you are already at a deficit at 1200 MFP tells you to eat them so your deficit is not too large. And yes less than 1200 cals can affect your weight loss dramatically and you will most likely not be able to get the vitamins and minerals your body needs on so little nourishment (food).

    If you want to up your calories try adding a handful of nuts, or use nut butters, drink a higher % fat milk, eat full fat cheese and yogurt, add avocado to salad and sandwiches.

    And after looking at your diary, you are not getting anywhere near the fruit and veggies that your body needs.
  • forbiddendestiny
    forbiddendestiny Posts: 5
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    The problem is, your matabalism slows down if you don't eat enough, as your body thinks it's starving, so slows itself down to cope, this could make you less likely to lose weight! D:
    if you want to speed up your matabolism you need to eat breakfast, and exercise, also if you eat into your exercise calories, you're less likely to be hungry so you'll maintain your exercise and food routine. :D
    I hope things go smoother for you hunni!
  • GymRat86
    GymRat86 Posts: 1
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    umm my calorie count for the day is 1500, and I always finsh my day under my calorie count. It hasn't given me a warning,but it says if i keep it up for 5 weeks i will lose like 10 lbs. All I do is excerise,and besides for my main three meals I am snacking on fruit,granola bars,and nuts. If you do that the calories should add up quickly. I don't know what your eating habits are,but if you are eating healthy like lean meats,veggies,and etc you should try making your portion sizes a little bit bigger and see if that helps.
  • fudJy23
    fudJy23 Posts: 87 Member
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    Thank you! i'll have a look :)
    its really difficult to know how many calories you're actually having when it goes up and down due to exercise! I think i'm starting to make sense of it all now though

    Well, I like to think of my food calories as my aim for the day. Since MFP calculates your net calories based on food and exercise, as long as I'm within 100 of my goal, I'm happy. This was the one thing that kept me here rather than over at sparkpeople where I was constantly having to track calorie in and calorie out and then figure out what my net calories was.

    I agree with the others that you want to try to aim for eating around your goal calories. From my own personal experience, I know you can drive your metabolism down since mine is actually lower than what MFP calculates out (had it measured recently).
  • fmax46
    fmax46 Posts: 20
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    Although i know previously I wouldn't always make the best food choices, I also know that some days I really didn't eat a lot. My first week on this site I literally forced myself to eat snacks to bring my calories up to at least 1200 - my goal is slightly higher than that. I would have fruit, 100 calorie cookie/snack pack, or smoothie. I was definitely eating more than I previously did and I lost weight that first week.

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