Am I eating too little?

Frostbitten007
Frostbitten007 Posts: 84 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am a 5'5" female I am about 145 pounds right now. My calories are set at 1200. I do exercise almost every day and eat back some of the calories. Most of the time I am under the amount of calories allotted to me. I feel like maybe I am eating too little. I used to eat about 1800 when I wasn't exercising but I weighed more then. I am losing weight steadily around 1-3 pounds a week. But, I read that if I eat too little, my body will go into starvation mode and my weight loss will stall. So, how many calories should I eat a day?

Replies

  • conniemaxwell5
    conniemaxwell5 Posts: 943 Member
    This will help:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13
  • jamielynas
    jamielynas Posts: 366 Member
    are you frequently hungry?
  • spoiledpuppies
    spoiledpuppies Posts: 675 Member
    Sounds like what you're doing is working. As long as you feel good and continue to lose, keep at it.
  • seliinac
    seliinac Posts: 336 Member
    If you are thinking you are eating too little then you probably are.
  • babydiego87
    babydiego87 Posts: 905 Member
    This will help:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13
    thats not what she asked.
  • BluejayNY
    BluejayNY Posts: 301 Member
    Are you feeling ok? If you are feeling fine and losing what you say then I think you are ok. If you are feeling tired, weak, shaky then up it a little and see how you feel. I don't believe in starvation mode unless you are seriously denying yourself food for days.
  • debaloo
    debaloo Posts: 129 Member
    Sounds like you are doing great. The proof is in the results and you are getting results!
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    You're doing well. Just make sure your meals are basically healthy.
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    This will help:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13
    thats not what she asked.

    Who cares. She is being given the tools to find the answer for herself.
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    Are you feeling ok? If you are feeling fine and losing what you say then I think you are ok. If you are feeling tired, weak, shaky then up it a little and see how you feel. I don't believe in starvation mode unless you are seriously denying yourself food for days.

    It takes weeks and weeks and weeks of eating way fewer than 1200 calories to go into starvation mode.
  • BluejayNY
    BluejayNY Posts: 301 Member
    Are you feeling ok? If you are feeling fine and losing what you say then I think you are ok. If you are feeling tired, weak, shaky then up it a little and see how you feel. I don't believe in starvation mode unless you are seriously denying yourself food for days.

    It takes weeks and weeks and weeks of eating way fewer than 1200 calories to go into starvation mode.

    I intended it to mean way fewer than 1200 calories. I didn't know that it took so long! Thanks for letting me know. I thought it took about a week of eating nearly nothing. Does it make a difference if you are already very thin to start with?
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    Are you feeling ok? If you are feeling fine and losing what you say then I think you are ok. If you are feeling tired, weak, shaky then up it a little and see how you feel. I don't believe in starvation mode unless you are seriously denying yourself food for days.

    It takes weeks and weeks and weeks of eating way fewer than 1200 calories to go into starvation mode.

    I intended it to mean way fewer than 1200 calories. I didn't know that it took so long! Thanks for letting me know. I thought it took about a week of eating nearly nothing. Does it make a difference if you are already very thin to start with?

    The thinner you are the less fat you have for your body to use so yes,you would go into starvation mode faster than someone who needs to lose weight. But it is a realistic concern for very few of us here.
  • P3MK
    P3MK Posts: 23
    I am eating the same and sometimes find it hard to eat all of them and other days I feel that I am eating hardly anything! I have just started and so far this week have never hit the target, but I am looking forward to weighing tomorrow!

    Silly question, is it wrong if we dont hit the target?
  • JulesAlloggio
    JulesAlloggio Posts: 480 Member
    Uh yeah! Try bumping that up to about 1600 a day and tell me how you feel.


    Im gonna smack MFP for putting 1200 as the daily intake...
  • clbowman91
    clbowman91 Posts: 32
    I eat 1200 a day + my exercise calories. I eat all of my exercise calories back unless I'm not hungry. I eat healthy things when I'm hungry and I don't eat a lot when I do. I eat every 2 or 3 hours. I burned of 500 calories the other day and was like "man, I'm not even hungry enough to eat them all back" lol. If you don't feel like your eating too little then you should be fine. If you feel like you're starving then I'd eat more. (: I just restarted my journey I lost 25 lbs doing things the way I just said and then I gained it all back after starting college and working full time. smh...oh well, no excuses this time. lol. Listen to your body, if it needs more then give it more, just healthy choices (:
  • _thirtytwo
    _thirtytwo Posts: 25 Member
    bump (to save http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13 for future reference)
  • sevsmom
    sevsmom Posts: 1,172 Member
    I'm not a 1200 fan. You need to feed your body. Food is fuel. I'm your height. . .weigh about 6 pounds less...am training for a full marathon...i eat at LEAST 1600 NET a day. Starvation mode is a phrase people use somewhat carelessly. But, if you want your body to respond well, you do need to feed it well.
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    I'm 5'4", 128 pounds and generally eat between 1,500-2,100 calories depending on the day's activity level. I'm still losing body fat at a reasonable pace.

    1-3 pounds a week is an awful lot for someone so close to their goal weight. You're likely losing lean mass, which is counterproductive to fat loss.
  • Serah87
    Serah87 Posts: 5,481 Member
    bump (to save http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/974888-in-place-of-a-road-map-2k13 for future reference)

    Bump. Again. :bigsmile:
  • j6o4
    j6o4 Posts: 871 Member
    If you had to ask the question, then you probably are.
  • laele75
    laele75 Posts: 283 Member
    If you had to ask the question, then you probably are.

    This.

    Seriously girl, stop starving yourself.
  • AlongCame_Molly
    AlongCame_Molly Posts: 2,835 Member
    Yes, you are eating FAR too little for someone your height. I would not eat less than 1600-1700 if I were you. I am only 5'0", and 1200 is too little for ME!

Categories