1,200 calories?

I have a B.S. in exercise science and am a personal trainer. I will not recommend 1200 calories to anybody, nor a high fat/low carb diet.

at 1200 calories the body is usually in starvation mode, going back to it's survival instinct it will hold onto fat for future energy use because it doesn't know that food is readily available, instead it will get rid of lean body mass (muscle) which burns calories 24/7, thus making your body much less efficient throughout the day.

Carbs is both muscle and the brains preferred source of energy, mental and physical performance will drop with a lack of carbs. Although this is not to say to avoid fat either. A good macronutrient breakdown for weight loss is 30% fat, 40% carbs, 30% protein. Protein also gives you the full feeling of fat but also helps your body hold onto its lean muscle mass.

you had me until starvation mode…you cannot be in starvation mode if you are eaten 1200 calories a day …you have to eat nothing for a 72 hour period to see the initial effects of starvation mode…

^^ Correct. It takes 72 hours before the metabolism starts to slow down.

1300 works for me..and im noticably losing. I believed if i ate right under 2000 and worked out alot , id build muscle and trim down. Nope. Major plateau. Good to reduce cals when slimming down. Then you add more once youve reached your ideal weight and try something new with your work out and tone. Just my thoughts

I exercise to be able to eat a little more and have my net calories be 1200/day. I can't get any weight to come off if I don't do both.....also if you avoid simple carbohydrates and lean protein, it's a lot easier to stay within calories.

I eat between 1200 and 1300 daily. I am diabetic, so I do eat lower carb (approx 100 to 125 a day), higher protein (to make up for lower carbs. I eat 6 times a day, 3 main meals and 3 snacks. I have an open food diary, so take a peek.

If you eat the right foods, you get plenty of quanity for the calorie. Rainey

I Would have to change jobs and lead a more sedentary life for 1200 to be anywhere near enough for me. I had over 1200 calories for dinner last night...

Carbs is both muscle and the brains preferred source of energy, mental and physical performance will drop with a lack of carbs. Although this is not to say to avoid fat either. A good macronutrient breakdown for weight loss is 30% fat, 40% carbs, 30% protein. Protein also gives you the full feeling of fat but also helps your body hold onto its lean muscle mass.

Um, I've been on keto since July. I can workout just fine and my brain is functioning normally. Sure, the first week I had a case of "Poo-brain" and felt a bit on the weak side, but once I went into ketosis, I found I had more energy and was feeling better than I did when I was eating mostly carbs and very little fat. Plus, keto helped me shed weight that was refusing to budge for months. I'm 11 lbs from my final goal weight.

How do you stick to 1,200 calories without starving?

I am starving at 1500-1600, so unless you are tiny/elderly/bed-ridden, 1200 is not a good goal.

Carbs is both muscle and the brains preferred source of energy, mental and physical performance will drop with a lack of carbs. Although this is not to say to avoid fat either. A good macronutrient breakdown for weight loss is 30% fat, 40% carbs, 30% protein. Protein also gives you the full feeling of fat but also helps your body hold onto its lean muscle mass.

Um, I've been on keto since July. I can workout just fine and my brain is functioning normally. Sure, the first week I had a case of "Poo-brain" and felt a bit on the weak side, but once I went into ketosis, I found I had more energy and was feeling better than I did when I was eating mostly carbs and very little fat. Plus, keto helped me shed weight that was refusing to budge for months. I'm 11 lbs from my final goal weight.

Are you feeling better because you are in ketosis, or are you feeling better because before you were deficient in fat? Hint, it's not cuz of ketosis.

Well...I know that there is a lot of controversy around this one, and I'm going to post it anyway...

I started on 1200/day and was hungry and found it unsustainable for ME. I do NOT exercise much, I'm 5'2," and 130 lbs. So...I upped my intake to 1350, which is about 20% less than TDEE.

Guess what? Still not losing. Yep. I have scales. Yep. I measure. Yep. I'm brutally honest. Still nothing... Now, I DO recognize that you can't eat more to lose. It makes no sense that one would think that, but they oftentimes do think that. I DID realize that I'd lose slower, but I DID expect to lose weight. Nope.

Here's the culprit, I think: I eat out a lot, SO, I figure that I MUST be underestimating my calorie intake. Now, I'll have to decrease my calories, to attempt to achieve a deficit, which will probably be 1250 calories/day, and see if that helps move things along.

Now, the thought has often occurred to me, when ppl on MFP bash others for being a "1200er"; what if I'm actually currently eating a 1500 calorie/day diet, but only *think* I'm on a 1350 calorie/day diet? If I decrease my calories by 100, I'll be at 1400 calories/day. Not as horrible as it sounds, right? Well, what if that's where A LOT of MFP'ers are? "Faux 1200ers"...

Because of this, numbers serve as a baseline for me. My 1350 calories may actually be "wrong" and therefore, will look different than someone else's 1350 calories, perhaps someone who STRICTLY controls their diet and won't eat anything without a food label.

Adding to this nonsense, is the fact that nutrition facts are still estimates, in some cases. The local brewery, for example, mentioned to my husband that they were required to place a nutrition facts label on their Root Beer. They did so, BUT they fully admitted that they analyzed NOTHING and simply "guesstimated" the calories to appease the FDA. :noway:

So, yeah...I wonder how accurate everyone else's calories really are, as well. Just sayin'...

*Sorry* This didn't answer anything, either. :ohwell:

Oh, yeah...I make sure I eat plenty of protein with each meal and fewer simple carbs; that tends to satiate me for longer.

Short answer: I don't.

Long answer: It's why I chose to abandon the MFP method. For me, the idea of only eating 1200 calories for the rest of my life made me want to cry. And this was going to be something I could do for the rest of my life. So I figured out my TDEE and took a 20% cut.

If you are trying to find ways to fill up, then I'd suggest eating as much protein as you can. Also foods with a lot of fibre will help keep you feeling full. Otherwise all I can suggest is to maybe set a smaller deficit and eat a little more (instead of trying to lose 2lbs/week maybe aim for 1lb). It'll take longer but you won't be as hungry.

Why would you think you would have to eat 1200 calories for the rest of your life?

That was my thought too..........

1200 calories is as low as MFP will go......sometimes people put in a (too) aggressive weekly weight loss goal so MFP spits out 1200. Just because 1200 is a popular number doesn't mean it's for you.

I can get to 1200 with 3 meals....no snacks. 250 breakfast, 350 lunch, 600 dinner.....then I can exercise more for snacks. If I plan everything high protein, high fiber, enough fat....I stay full.

At least check out your BMR ......basal metabolic rate ..... calories needed if you stayed in bed all day

http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/bmr-calculator.html

If you are above 1200....and most women are.....I would definitely up my calories. Too big a calorie deficit leads to muscle loss, a moderate deficit is best for (mostly) fat loss.

Here we go again...

I eat 1200 calories everyday. I lose about 2 pounds/week and do NOT feel like I'm starving all the time. I feel better than I ever have. I eat a lot of lean meats, veggies and some complex carbs. My diet is open to the public so have a look if you'd like to see how it's done. I also work out 5 times/week and have plenty of energy. I really don't understand the 1200 calorie hysteria...

On a side note, I do 16/8 intermittent fasting so I skip breakfast and break my fast after my am workout. This helps with hunger because I can have large sized meals for lunch and dinner. Skipping breakfast actually helps with my appetite.

Good luck to you!

(edited for spelling)

I am for 1200 and most days I exceed and so 1400 which I think is fine.
Its quite simple - 3 x 250cal meal + 3 x 100 cal snack.

You just need a repoitoire of each of these
I also snack on boiled egg whites which staves off the hunger esp first thing in the morning.

I severely limit junk food, things in bright wrappers, and cut portions in half.
Right now Im pigging out on cottage cheese on rice cakes lol
You can have 1 pc of chocolate, 1 pc bread if you really want it.

Well...I know that there is a lot of controversy around this one, and I'm going to post it anyway...

I started on 1200/day and was hungry and found it unsustainable for ME. I do NOT exercise much, I'm 5'2," and 130 lbs. So...I upped my intake to 1350, which is about 20% less than TDEE.

Guess what? Still not losing. Yep. I have scales. Yep. I measure. Yep. I'm brutally honest. Still nothing... Now, I DO recognize that you can't eat more to lose. It makes no sense that one would think that, but they oftentimes do think that. I DID realize that I'd lose slower, but I DID expect to lose weight. Nope.

Here's the culprit, I think: I eat out a lot, SO, I figure that I MUST be underestimating my calorie intake. Now, I'll have to decrease my calories, to attempt to achieve a deficit, which will probably be 1250 calories/day, and see if that helps move things along.

Now, the thought has often occurred to me, when ppl on MFP bash others for being a "1200er"; what if I'm actually currently eating a 1500 calorie/day diet, but only *think* I'm on a 1350 calorie/day diet? If I decrease my calories by 100, I'll be at 1400 calories/day. Not as horrible as it sounds, right? Well, what if that's where A LOT of MFP'ers are? "Faux 1200ers"...

Because of this, numbers serve as a baseline for me. My 1350 calories may actually be "wrong" and therefore, will look different than someone else's 1350 calories, perhaps someone who STRICTLY controls their diet and won't eat anything without a food label.

Adding to this nonsense, is the fact that nutrition facts are still estimates, in some cases. The local brewery, for example, mentioned to my husband that they were required to place a nutrition facts label on their Root Beer. They did so, BUT they fully admitted that they analyzed NOTHING and simply "guesstimated" the calories to appease the FDA. :noway:

So, yeah...I wonder how accurate everyone else's calories really are, as well. Just sayin'...

*Sorry* This didn't answer anything, either. :ohwell:

I believe if you eat out a lot your calories tend to be less accurate. However, if you eat prepackaged food like Lean Cuisine, you know exactly how many calories you eat because it's already figured out for you. Or, like me, and eat 98 % of your food cooked from scratch. I can measure the portion of carrots, or w/e, I put in my plate.

Well, yeah, obviously it's more accurate if you do packaged foods, BUT I intend to live in the real world and eat in the real world, so...I just have to eat even smaller portions, when I eat out. I refuse to resign myself to eat items, like Lean Cuisines ever again. I never lost weight on those, anyway. I DO like Amy's frozen foods, though. Yum!

My point was that people bash others for eating 1200 calories, but don't consider that, if they're new, they probably aren't that accurate with it, anyway.

Sheesh, I was really surprised to see how many people say 1200 calories is starvation level! I do 1200 and it's just about the perfect amount. There are days when I'm still hungry, and if that's the case I'll have a small, healthy snack even if it's over 1200 calories, because I don't think it's healthy to not eat when you're hungry.

There are other days when I feel so full that I have to force myself to choke down a snack or two because I don't want to be under 1200 calories, since I keep hearing that 1200 is the bare minimum that a female human body needs to function without going into "starvation mode" or whatever.

As far as the original question...I eat fewer calories for breakfast, maybe 200, so I know I have plenty to last throughout the day. I eat small snacks between meals so I don't feel the need to gorge myself at meals.