How can people live on 1200 calories?

Options
245678

Replies

  • rachelg145
    rachelg145 Posts: 185 Member
    Options
    Anyone who's been a friend of mine eating that little gets dropped off my friend list because ALL THEY DO is complain about how they aren't losing any weight. You don't lose weight when your body thinks you are starving! Don't get offended if it works for you, my personal experience on MFP is that people just complain constantly when they are that low on calories. And I don't believe for a second that you can work hard at the gym with such a minimal amount of fuel.
  • Meerpka
    Meerpka Posts: 20
    Options
    their stomachs shrink and they live happily ever after..

    YES!
    This is where I am eventually getting to. As of right now eating anything lower than 2500 is good enough, but I try for 1370(MFP set).
  • Hungry_Annie
    Hungry_Annie Posts: 807 Member
    Options
    I struggle eating only 1500 a day....I could easily eat 4000 calories a day and be a happy, fat lady :)
  • DeliriumCanBeFun
    DeliriumCanBeFun Posts: 313 Member
    Options
    I'm new to all this but so far I've hit 1200 about 50% of the time. Usually when I miss it, it's only by a couple hundred calories. Exercise also buys you some more - I don't mind stuffing my face after a long bike ride, and I don't feel guilty about it either.

    But even if you can't hit 1200, if you're still managing to make your weight goals, you're doing fine! The most important thing is that you're conscious about what you're eating and making an effort to change your lifestyle.
    I'm not trying to single you out for attack, but this is so wrong. Idk your stats, but I'm a 5'3" woman, and there's no way I could survive even 10% of the time on 1200 calories. Thinking you can "stuff your face" just because of a long bike ride isn't doing you any favors. It's "easy" for me to burn 1200+ calories on a not very long ride, but it's also hella easy to go over my goal on those days if I don't watch it.
  • nomad1000
    nomad1000 Posts: 206 Member
    Options
    I sometimes net 1200 cals but that is on a day when I am working my *kitten* off in the yard for hours and am to busy to eat.

    I don't know that I could do it long term. I like to eat stuff that is higher in cals way too much.
  • natashahh
    natashahh Posts: 5
    Options
    It's do-able, I do it! You just have to know how to balance out your calories, and drinking lots of water helps out, so I don't ever feel hungry! (-:
  • izoku67
    izoku67 Posts: 1 Member
    Options
    I get 1440 a day, and that's VERY difficult to maintain. I get to add some for exercise, but it never seems like enough. Small portions many times a day & a 40-35-25 protein-carb-fat ratio helps some. Basically I get through it with the over-abundance of stored calories (i.e. FAT) I've accumulated while eating whatever I wanted, whenever, and not tracking any of it. My own worst enemy! :ohwell:
  • starznholes
    starznholes Posts: 170 Member
    Options
    To each their own. I range between 1200-1400 depending on activity level and i'm fine.
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    Options
    If I'm going strictly by hunger, 1200 calories is fine for someone of my age and current activity level. The problem is that it's insanely easy to go over if I'm not closely monitoring what I eat.
  • beachylove
    beachylove Posts: 137 Member
    Options
    At first I found it hard to be on 1200-1300/day but now that I understand better what to eat and how to eat I have no problem. Hell there are my busy days that I forget to eat my lunch until very late in the afternoon now (never happened before I never ever missed meals before...)
    I get that not everyone is the same, I have friends that cant be on that low of a calorie deficit but for me it works just fine and I am not finding that I am hungry. If I am a little hungrier one day I go closer to the 1300 but generally I am around 1200.
  • _HeartsOnFire_
    _HeartsOnFire_ Posts: 5,304 Member
    Options
    their stomachs shrink and they live happily ever after..

    Nope. Just nope. Your stomach doesn't shrink.

    Your body doesn’t work that way. Your stomach can expand to handle a large meal – up to a certain limit. As food moves on to the small intestine, the stomach goes back to its usual size. When you cut back on your portions, your stomach keeps its normal size even if your appetite isn't as big.
  • MBrothers22
    MBrothers22 Posts: 323 Member
    Options
    No idea. I've had 1200 calorie DINNERS since joining MFP. Albeit I'm losing ~3 pounds per week on 2100 calories per day but it's totally unnecessary unless you are COMPLETELY sedentary and are like a 5 foot nothing female.
  • taisanica
    taisanica Posts: 2
    Options
    I live on good 900 Calories and am man that works hard work within training every evening (freeletics- 5day a week) and guess what, I am never hungry! So go figure that! ;) Everything is possible within right food combination!
  • _HeartsOnFire_
    _HeartsOnFire_ Posts: 5,304 Member
    Options
    I live on good 900 Calories and am man that works hard work within training every evening (freeletics- 5day a week) and guess what, I am never hungry! So go figure that! ;) Everything is possible within right food combination!

    No. just no. Everyone needs more than 900 calories. Eat more food.
  • MBrothers22
    MBrothers22 Posts: 323 Member
    Options
    I live on good 900 Calories and am man that works hard work within training every evening (freeletics- 5day a week) and guess what, I am never hungry! So go figure that! ;) Everything is possible within right food combination!

    This is this persons first post. TROLL ALERT
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    Options
    You can, been there but thank god my doctor said it's not enough and I listened because it's pretty boring and I don't want to live like that.
  • KeepGoingKylene
    KeepGoingKylene Posts: 432 Member
    Options
    Anyone who's been a friend of mine eating that little gets dropped off my friend list because ALL THEY DO is complain about how they aren't losing any weight. You don't lose weight when your body thinks you are starving! Don't get offended if it works for you, my personal experience on MFP is that people just complain constantly when they are that low on calories. And I don't believe for a second that you can work hard at the gym with such a minimal amount of fuel.

    :drinker:
  • Ashaleet
    Ashaleet Posts: 59
    Options
    I'm currently doing around 1300, but I've done 1200 before. I fluctuate between the two when i'm at a plateau. Last time I was on MFP I was doing 1200 and I lost 39 pounds. But alas, I stopped counting my calories and poof. There goes 6 months of hard work. 1200 and 1300 is definitely doable, especially if you like eating vegetables. You can get a lot of those for not a lot of calories. ;)

    I won't say that my stomach has "shrunk" but I will say that I just listen to my body. If i'm feeling hungry I analyze it. Am I bored? How much water have I had today? Same goes for when I actually sit down to eat a meal. Most of the time I finish about half of a meal and I realize I'm full. So I save it for later.

    I will admit there are days where I feel like i'm just watching the clock waiting for lunch time. Days like this I usually end up going over on my cals by a couple hundred. But I still log everything I eat.

    I also keep my calorie count so low because i'm pretty much sedentary. I hate excersizing, I won't do it, and I'd rather be a little peckish every now and again then get on a treadmill, go for a walk, or go to the gym. I guess I'm just lazy. Haha!
  • Strokingdiction
    Strokingdiction Posts: 1,164 Member
    Options
    their stomachs shrink and they live happily ever after..

    Nope. Just nope. Your stomach doesn't shrink.

    Your body doesn’t work that way. Your stomach can expand to handle a large meal – up to a certain limit. As food moves on to the small intestine, the stomach goes back to its usual size. When you cut back on your portions, your stomach keeps its normal size even if your appetite isn't as big.

    Stomachs don't shrink but they can stretch. It's the main physiological reason for weight gain after bariatric surgery.

Categories