eating 1200 calories, not losing weight

You definitely need to eat a bit more. Your body is holding on to weight because it thinks there's a food shortage and is holding on to all it can. As for eating chicken, you definitely do not need to...I'm vegan and have no problems meeting my nutritional needs without junk food (100% natural and plant-based), so message/add me if you'd like some tips/advice on eating plant-based

ok.....everyone is going to tell you to eat more......I know it's hard to get your head around it but it is true.....just want to let you know what's coming.....:).....

Why would anyone tell her that?

OP - if you are not losing weight, you are not in a deficit. How do you track your calories? Do you use a food scale for solids and measuring cups for liquids? Log everything you put in your mouth?

ETA: Your logging looks incomplete. Also, you are entering a lot of restaurant food which has a high margin of error. And 'a scoop' of ice cream is not going to be accurate for something that is calorie dense. You are going to need to invest in a food scale.

This. The people saying you need to eat more have absolutely no idea.

You've been logging food for.......9 days. Your post makes it seem much longer since you are discussing workouts for the past several months. Log accurately and consistently for the next several months. Best of luck.

I think it's what you are eating - and what you are not getting enough of. I am also vegetarian - trying for vegan. I generally net at least 1500, sometimes over 2000 and I've been able to lose weight. It's slow, but I'm in no rush. I'm on the last 10 lbs.

Are you eating anything processed? I have noticed that some vegetarians/vegans may not eat meat/dairy, but they eat processed foods.

Many will tell you it's calories in/calories out.....and while there may be studies that back it up, there are also those who believe (and who have had success) eating WAY ABOVE what MFP recommends - and successfully lost weight. I am one of those. THis is primarily because of WHAT I eat - and also that the settings are too low.

MFP had originally told me to eat about 1300 calories when I first started. I was 178 and 5'5" - I was STARVING and grumpy. I upped my calories to 1650 net and lost about 25 lbs in 6 months. I'm currently putting my settings at 1500, but I eat over at least once a week and still have either maintained or lost weight in the last 1.5 months I returned. I'm on the last 5-8 lbs, so I'm okay moving slowly. I'm currently at the point where I am more concerned about inches vs. weight on the scale.

Hope that helps somehow. :P

I agree. You have to be accurate with logging to find the routine that works best for you.

A year ago or so under a different name, I was tracking 1200 calories per day and figured the few bites extra that I had, like a sip of husband's beer, wouldn't amount to enough to prevent me from losing weight. Well, I wasn't losing weight. And since I had various sips and nibbles that never got logged, I never figured out what would work for me. This time around, I'm trying to be accurate. I can't find a calorie count for one sip of beer, but I can find it for 12 ounces and divide from there.

I started eating at 2000 and I gained weight, went down to 1500, still gaining weight, then 1200, still gaining.

I went to my doctor who sent me to the hospital where they tested my BMR and found out it was 801 - 911. A recreational therapist calculated my TDEE to be around 1100. So it's perfectly healthy for me to eat between 911 - 1100 calories a day. I have upped my TDEE to about 1500 now, on some days. I eat to my BMR plus exercise now.

My advice would be to get your BMR tested. You never know. Mine was sooo much lower than the online calculators and it's not like I have any medical issues that would affect it.

How do you find out what your BMR is?

Go to your doctor. Don't trust the online calc's. Your doctor can send you to the hospital where they will test it. It takes one night.

At this point, you need to up your calorie count to 1400-1500. If you are burning that many calories a day, you are starving your body so its holding on to what it can. Try upping your calories for a week or two and then see where you are at in the weight loss area.

If she bumps up her calories without addressing the fact she's not logging accurately and vastly overestimating her caloric burns she's gonna start gaining weight.

Just saying.



Next time I see a thread about 'OMG Sabotage!' I'm gonna point people here. The responses here are sabotage.

I also think it is what you are eating which frankly is quite a bit of junk food which is very high in sodium. Study up on nutrition. You can eat healthy and be vegetarian...research. Also if you have only been doing this 9 days, you would not expect a huge loss, especially considering your sodium intake.