why need more than adequate food

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red0202
red0202 Posts: 37 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi all, I lost 30 odd lbs in last 3 months. I consume in the range of 1000-1200 cals. Weight is stalled for almost a month now. I have been advised by few pals here that I should increase my intake a bit more.

I fails to understand how eating more will help me reducing my weight ??

Replies

  • StripedSmoker
    StripedSmoker Posts: 104 Member
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    Your metabolism thinks "Too little food, MUST CLING ON TO EVERYTHING I GET" thus eating more will get it going and you burn calories. That's my semi-scientific answer, the answer I will really stand up for is: I tried, it works.
  • shadow2soul
    shadow2soul Posts: 7,692 Member
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    Here is a whole group about it:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/forums/show/3834-eat-more-to-weigh-less

    Here is a website about it:

    http://eatmore2weighless.com/


    And just for comparison:
    I'm 5'4.5" and weigh 177.2lbs (as of my last weigh in)
    Avg weight loss per week is about 1.9lbs (as of my last weigh in)
    I eat anywhere from 1500-2500 calories a day (depending on how active I am)

    1200 calories is what women have been told for years to eat at to lose weight, but I'm proof that you can eat more.

    Also, creating too much of a deficit can actually be bad for your health.
  • LongIsland27itl
    LongIsland27itl Posts: 365 Member
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    Are you sure you're logging/tracking calories 99.9% accurate?
  • red0202
    red0202 Posts: 37 Member
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    Thanks for the replies all.

    Yes, I try to be as accurate as possible while counting calories. Honestly, stopped doing workout in last 3-4 weeks just concentrating on the food intake.

    I will add some cardio to my diary and will try to eat that back and would see the result.
  • askeates
    askeates Posts: 1,490 Member
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    Your metabolism thinks "Too little food, MUST CLING ON TO EVERYTHING I GET" thus eating more will get it going and you burn calories. That's my semi-scientific answer, the answer I will really stand up for is: I tried, it works.

    ^^This. It really does work.
  • LongIsland27itl
    LongIsland27itl Posts: 365 Member
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    Thanks for the replies all.

    Yes, I try to be as accurate as possible while counting calories. Honestly, stopped doing workout in last 3-4 weeks just concentrating on the food intake.

    I will add some cardio to my diary and will try to eat that back and would see the result.
    so how did u calculate ur TDEE? Or did you not? If not howd you decide on the number of cals u eat? You do realize that TDEE calorie number is With exercise included, so when you decide to not work out it changes your TDEE and you have to recalculate with no exercise included.
  • SirBonerFart
    SirBonerFart Posts: 1,185 Member
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    Your metabolism thinks "Too little food, MUST CLING ON TO EVERYTHING I GET" thus eating more will get it going and you burn calories. That's my semi-scientific answer, the answer I will really stand up for is: I tried, it works.

    My metabolism thinks?
  • jwdieter
    jwdieter Posts: 2,582 Member
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    Stopped working out last 3-4 weeks, stopped losing weight for last month. Shrugs.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    For a full grown man 1000-1200 is not adequate. Adequate would probably be in the 1700-2400 cal range
  • InForBacon
    InForBacon Posts: 1,508 Member
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    For a full grown man 1000-1200 is not adequate. Adequate would probably be in the 1700-2400 cal range
    QFT I'm a femaile and I eat around 1600 and lose weight just fine.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
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    A grown man should be eating in the 1800 calorie a day range, not 1,200. More exercise is not going to solve your problem.
  • red0202
    red0202 Posts: 37 Member
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    My query is on food not on exercise.

    I accept I am not doing work-outs but lower-intake should help in reduction in weight. And trying to understand how eating more can help in this.
  • red0202
    red0202 Posts: 37 Member
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    My TDEE is ~1600 and assuming less intake would help in reduction of weight. I am finding its adequate for me to eat in the range of 1200-1300cals. Though I use to do a cardio of 1 hour a day atleast every day of week but stopped for a while. I am 40 and 5'7".
  • chandanista
    chandanista Posts: 986 Member
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    How did you calculate your TDEE? I used your stats of male, age 40, 5'7", and guessed 200 lbs (obviously this will change depending on your actual weight) and gave the calculator a sedentary lifestyle; I got the calculation that your TDEE is over 2200 cal/day. If you weigh 150 and are sedentary, your TDEE is almost 1900 cal/day.

    If you are eating too little, that is your choice. I may not be a doctor but from what I understand, your body will do its best to defend against starvation by attacking lean mass, or muscles, and using that along with the fat; it's easier to metabolize the lean mass, and the fat is easier to store as it doesn't require calories to keep it stored, so you could be doing damage to your internal organs (the heart is a muscle, for example).

    I am 5'7", female, and eat ~1500-1600 cal a day, and have been steadily losing since February of this year.
  • SirBonerFart
    SirBonerFart Posts: 1,185 Member
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    I think your mood swings are from not eating enough
  • red0202
    red0202 Posts: 37 Member
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    How did you calculate your TDEE? I used your stats of male, age 40, 5'7", and guessed 200 lbs (obviously this will change depending on your actual weight) and gave the calculator a sedentary lifestyle; I got the calculation that your TDEE is over 2200 cal/day. If you weigh 150 and are sedentary, your TDEE is almost 1900 cal/day.

    If you are eating too little, that is your choice. I may not be a doctor but from what I understand, your body will do its best to defend against starvation by attacking lean mass, or muscles, and using that along with the fat; it's easier to metabolize the lean mass, and the fat is easier to store as it doesn't require calories to keep it stored, so you could be doing damage to your internal organs (the heart is a muscle, for example).

    I am 5'7", female, and eat ~1500-1600 cal a day, and have been steadily losing since February of this year.

    I take your point. I am 165lbs now and TDE is 1900 but consumption should be TDEE-20% which is equal to 1500.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
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    How did you calculate your TDEE? I used your stats of male, age 40, 5'7", and guessed 200 lbs (obviously this will change depending on your actual weight) and gave the calculator a sedentary lifestyle; I got the calculation that your TDEE is over 2200 cal/day. If you weigh 150 and are sedentary, your TDEE is almost 1900 cal/day.

    If you are eating too little, that is your choice. I may not be a doctor but from what I understand, your body will do its best to defend against starvation by attacking lean mass, or muscles, and using that along with the fat; it's easier to metabolize the lean mass, and the fat is easier to store as it doesn't require calories to keep it stored, so you could be doing damage to your internal organs (the heart is a muscle, for example).

    I am 5'7", female, and eat ~1500-1600 cal a day, and have been steadily losing since February of this year.

    I take your point. I am 165lbs now and TDE is 1900 but consumption should be TDEE-20% which is equal to 1500.

    so this means you should be eating 1500 with no exercise, if you exercise then you should eat more. 1500 is much more than 1000-1200, so eat up.

    And eating more should not help you lose more, what it will do is help ensure that most of your loss is fat loss, if you don't eat enough a larger % of your weight loss will come from lean muscle. So is it weight you want to lose, or fat?
  • eblakes93
    eblakes93 Posts: 372 Member
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    My TDEE is ~1600 and assuming less intake would help in reduction of weight. I am finding its adequate for me to eat in the range of 1200-1300cals. Though I use to do a cardio of 1 hour a day atleast every day of week but stopped for a while. I am 40 and 5'7".

    You weigh 165 and are a 5'7" male? How much weight do you think you need to lose? Have you talked to a doctor? If I were you I would work on building muscle mass, which requires eating at and above TDEE, and changing your percentage of body fat that way. Pounds of fat will probably still come off with a good weight routine.
  • red0202
    red0202 Posts: 37 Member
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    My TDEE is ~1600 and assuming less intake would help in reduction of weight. I am finding its adequate for me to eat in the range of 1200-1300cals. Though I use to do a cardio of 1 hour a day atleast every day of week but stopped for a while. I am 40 and 5'7".

    You weigh 165 and are a 5'7" male? How much weight do you think you need to lose? Have you talked to a doctor? If I were you I would work on building muscle mass, which requires eating at and above TDEE, and changing your percentage of body fat that way. Pounds of fat will probably still come off with a good weight routine.

    I appreciate your comment. For me to be in the healthy weight category (BMI) I need to be 155lbs. Also want to reduce the fat our of my tummy part which shows up awkwardly. You are right in saying so that I would rather try to build mussle rather than losing lean mussle by going on lean diet.
  • red0202
    red0202 Posts: 37 Member
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    How did you calculate your TDEE? I used your stats of male, age 40, 5'7", and guessed 200 lbs (obviously this will change depending on your actual weight) and gave the calculator a sedentary lifestyle; I got the calculation that your TDEE is over 2200 cal/day. If you weigh 150 and are sedentary, your TDEE is almost 1900 cal/day.

    If you are eating too little, that is your choice. I may not be a doctor but from what I understand, your body will do its best to defend against starvation by attacking lean mass, or muscles, and using that along with the fat; it's easier to metabolize the lean mass, and the fat is easier to store as it doesn't require calories to keep it stored, so you could be doing damage to your internal organs (the heart is a muscle, for example).

    I am 5'7", female, and eat ~1500-1600 cal a day, and have been steadily losing since February of this year.

    I take your point. I am 165lbs now and TDE is 1900 but consumption should be TDEE-20% which is equal to 1500.

    so this means you should be eating 1500 with no exercise, if you exercise then you should eat more. 1500 is much more than 1000-1200, so eat up.

    And eating more should not help you lose more, what it will do is help ensure that most of your loss is fat loss, if you don't eat enough a larger % of your weight loss will come from lean muscle. So is it weight you want to lose, or fat?

    I should agree with you and try to build up my muscles with workout and countering the exercise with intake. But saying so, I can only do cardio (walking/running on treadmill) for an hour every day...anything other than this like pushups/pullups not my cup-of-tea...Or I would say I struggle coping with it.

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