Lost 19 lbs in a months and a half!

Great job. I'm 5'7 too and would probably also need to eat less than 1200 calories/day in order to lose weight.

Don't up your intake if this works for you (unless you take up a new exercise regime or something).

I'm not saying that that's always the case, but SOMETIMES it appear to me that people on here are trying to ruin other people's diet success .

OP - I will say this, while I completely agree that you most likely should be eating more, please understand that when you do up your calories, you will probably gain a little weight back in the beginning. Please don't freak out and think this is going to be par for the course.

You will gain a little weight, your body will adjust, and as long as your are eating at a calorie deficit for your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) you will go back to losing weight, only at a more healthy and sustainable level. You will need to give it time and not get discouraged.

OP - I will say this, while I completely agree that you most likely should be eating more, please understand that when you do up your calories, you will probably gain a little weight back in the beginning. Please don't freak out and think this is going to be par for the course.

You will gain a little weight, your body will adjust, and as long as your are eating at a calorie deficit for your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) you will go back to losing weight, only at a more healthy and sustainable level. You will need to give it time and not get discouraged.

Ah, good call, man...^this.

Also, don't let an occasional week or two without any loss for no apparent reason get you discouraged either. There are so many factors that affect scale weight that, while they usually seem to offset the others a little, sometimes they all nudge it in one direction.

(My own OCD weight log of 2.5 years has quite a few 24 hour periods where I gained/lost 3-6 pounds...and before someone suggests it, no, less frequent weighing wouldn't have made those go away. I have similar volatility between weeks. That said, over a sufficient period of time, the lines resolve to a nice smooth curve depending on which direction I'm trying to move the scale at the time. The process works...it just takes more time that many wished it did.)

Okay, maybe I shouldn't of used the word jealous. At the time I was upset because I've seen this before. Someone post a success story and they are so proud of themselves and on such a high and then someone chimes in and says that what they are doing is wrong and that they need to do it a different way. The negative comments toward myself does not bother me so keep them coming. Ha!

Thanks everyone! This site said to stay under 1200 pounds by the info I put in. I still eat plenty. This morning I ate a banana and a toaster strudel. I just try to stay under that amount of calories:)
And no additional exercises.

Have you not noticed that every time you complete a day with under 1200 calories, a big warning pops up?

Dear, congratulations so far but you are doing this in an unhealthy way that is sacrificing muscle, organ, and bone mass unnecessarily.

You have to eat more.

If you're just going with 1200 because MFP told you 1200, reset your goals to 1 lb a week instead of 2 lbs a week. 2 lbs a week is horrifically inappropriate for someone who is not obese, and you are not close to obese.

You look great. I started with 195 in October. 173 this morning and shooting for 150 by April. I am 5'7 as well. I was 290lbs in June 2010 when I delivered #2. Whatever you are doing keep up awesome results.