1200 cals is just fine. 1100 is just fine too. If....
Options
Replies
-
OP so you say you got all your nutritional needs under 1200... now your logging is very inaccurate but it shows your protein is extremely low, your fats are low. The other issue with your calories so low you really shouldn't be using those precious calories for soda and chocolate when you aren't reaching your bare minimum nutritional needs. Keeping my calories at 1700 or so a day I can get all my nutrition and plenty of room left over for sweets, but protein comes first.
But it's also got lots of inaccuracies and inconsistent logging so would go with you were eating more than you think anyway.0 -
Hey, congrats OP! I'm 5'3, and near your age, but the problem I have is that I love to eat, so I'm okay with eating more and having my weight loss take longer and be more manageable once I hit my goal.
But good on you!0 -
you'll die.
Okay, with that out of the way, five pages to catch up on before I either chime in or click the X.
Oh, and before I forget...that is *not* "what exercise is for." Exercise is more broadly for health, not so you can eat a few more calories...(and personally, when I exercise for something like 300 calories, my body declares that it needs 600 calories...(which is why I think that people who try to increase their exercise without tracking calories struggle to lose weight, but that's another topic)).0 -
My Doctor always says get your vitamins from food, but yeah I have been on vitamins since I started my eating program and I take some other vitamins as well, like I always take extra vitamin B and D in the winter. But I definitely do not expect something out of a bottle to ensure I get proper nutrition. My plan has 45--50% protein, 30-35% carbs, 20% fat, and that has been working for me, although I am raising the protein since I started lifting, I am at or over my body weight in grams this week.I can get everything I need in less than 1000 calories with a multivitamin. But it's a serious feat of meal engineering. And if this is the concern, then I'd be willing to bet my last dollar that the majority of people on this forum and in this country in general are not meeting all of the required minimums even when they're eating 3000 calories a day.
Honestly, I didn't feel great eating so little even though I was eating well, my brain needs more food to function properly. Also if you work out as I did all along, you just can't keep doing that to your body witthout paying a price, which will undoubtedly be the loss of muscle mass. You might not care about your muscle, but I sure as heck care about mine.
I have a friend who is a healthy weight and likes to dress skimpy in the summer and show off her body, but she is soft, she has a lot of fat, it jiggles when she walks, I look at her and think, when I finish losing my weight, that is NOT what I want to look like.
Your doctor definitely has a larger food budget than I do. To be honest, even if I had a million dollars a week to spend on groceries I don't want to think about how rough it would be to get everything just from food. But I'm new to trying to get all my nutrients, I had no clue how tough it was. Potassium is driving me nuts, and that isn't in multivitamins, except a token %3.
As for jiggling fat, that is a matter of genetics, age, previous highest weight, exercise (which I get none because I have asthma and joint issues).
Although if you tell me getting all my required vitamins and minerals every day and eat healthy I'll look like a fitness model, I'll try my hardest to believe you, because I'd really love for it to be true. :happy:
Potassium...low sodium V8 juice has 900mg for 50 calories....brussel sprouts has 342mg for 38 calories.
Potassium is not difficult if you do your research and make a point of eating those foods.
Bananas...potatoes...even coffee has potassium.
As far as not exercising...I used health issues for a long time in order to be sedentary. I have joint issues...I have lower abdominal hernias...yesterday I went hiking...I do strength training (though not heavy)...I walk to most places within 2-3 miles of me. It can be done even with health issues...if you take the time to research what you can do and then start small and work your way up.
I know that weather affects asthma...but there are plenty of exercises to do inside....that is what I started with. Walking videos...chair exercises...resistance bands. Was it always easy...NO...I just kept at it. In 8 months I went from barely being able to walk around the block to a four mile hike through a wilderness reserve. Oh...and a long steep hill on my way home that I thought I would pass out on...I made it.0 -
I'm gonna be the one wheel on the shopping cart that pulls in the other direction...
this is what worked for the OP- and she has a point, only because she lost the 30lbs..
NOTHING works for EVERYONE!
It all breaks down to the vast generalizations, for Most people 1200 is too low.....
.
.
for this particular woman it worked...
I have to agree with you. I am 5'7" and I eat 1200-1300 calories a day and never eat back my exercise calories. This is what worked for me. I am very healthy and feel great.
..
I am 5 ft 6 for me 1350 and eating back nothing works . but I have particular issues that make it what I need0 -
You do not know me or my body, but my Dr. does and no I am not losing any vitamins or nutrients, in fact I am very healthy (I would love to see your medical degree since you seem to know it all).....I am not starving! I am just stunned that you act like a know it all about me!
where did I say you were starving? no where...
As I said GP's are not qualified to give out nutrional advice, only current registered dieticans are...
Am I a doctor nope I don't need to be to have logic and common sense.
1200 is recommended for sedentary 2-4 year old little girls...
The reference woman is 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 126 pounds per this website
http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/publications/usdafoodpatterns/estimatedcalorieneedsperdaytable.pdf
Where women between the ages of 8-45 are given between 1400-1800 calories a day who are sedentary...
Wanna tell me again how you are getting in all your nutrients, macro and micro and not losing muscle?
No don't bother.....be stunned but remember this conversation later when you are older and suffering because of you insistence that your way was "good and healthy"...0 -
All you people disagreeing with the OP using logic. Pfffft.
0 -
Also, I sincerely hope that everyone spouting numbers (on either side of the argument) consistently weigh and measure their food so that they're working with reasonable estimates. Bad data/logging helps no one.0
-
OP, whatever you are doing seems to be working good for you. Nobody is going to get sick and die eating 1100 or 1200 calories per day. Nobody on here is an expert even though many seem to think they are. Keep doing what works for you. Why change it when you have had success with it.0
-
My Doctor always says get your vitamins from food, but yeah I have been on vitamins since I started my eating program and I take some other vitamins as well, like I always take extra vitamin B and D in the winter. But I definitely do not expect something out of a bottle to ensure I get proper nutrition. My plan has 45--50% protein, 30-35% carbs, 20% fat, and that has been working for me, although I am raising the protein since I started lifting, I am at or over my body weight in grams this week.I can get everything I need in less than 1000 calories with a multivitamin. But it's a serious feat of meal engineering. And if this is the concern, then I'd be willing to bet my last dollar that the majority of people on this forum and in this country in general are not meeting all of the required minimums even when they're eating 3000 calories a day.
Honestly, I didn't feel great eating so little even though I was eating well, my brain needs more food to function properly. Also if you work out as I did all along, you just can't keep doing that to your body witthout paying a price, which will undoubtedly be the loss of muscle mass. You might not care about your muscle, but I sure as heck care about mine.
I have a friend who is a healthy weight and likes to dress skimpy in the summer and show off her body, but she is soft, she has a lot of fat, it jiggles when she walks, I look at her and think, when I finish losing my weight, that is NOT what I want to look like.
Your doctor definitely has a larger food budget than I do. To be honest, even if I had a million dollars a week to spend on groceries I don't want to think about how rough it would be to get everything just from food. But I'm new to trying to get all my nutrients, I had no clue how tough it was. Potassium is driving me nuts, and that isn't in multivitamins, except a token %3.
As for jiggling fat, that is a matter of genetics, age, previous highest weight, exercise (which I get none because I have asthma and joint issues).
Although if you tell me getting all my required vitamins and minerals every day and eat healthy I'll look like a fitness model, I'll try my hardest to believe you, because I'd really love for it to be true. :happy:
Potassium...low sodium V8 juice has 900mg for 50 calories....brussel sprouts has 342mg for 38 calories.
Potassium is not difficult if you do your research and make a point of eating those foods.
Bananas...potatoes...even coffee has potassium.
As far as not exercising...I used health issues for a long time in order to be sedentary. I have joint issues...I have lower abdominal hernias...yesterday I went hiking...I do strength training (though not heavy)...I walk to most places within 2-3 miles of me. It can be done even with health issues...if you take the time to research what you can do and then start small and work your way up.
I know that weather affects asthma...but there are plenty of exercises to do inside....that is what I started with. Walking videos...chair exercises...resistance bands. Was it always easy...NO...I just kept at it. In 8 months I went from barely being able to walk around the block to a four mile hike through a wilderness reserve. Oh...and a long steep hill on my way home that I thought I would pass out on...I made it.
Our indoor air quality is no better than our outdoor quality. I do go walk the mall sometimes. In any case, I know you're trying to help, but I've given up on exercise. I feel worse after I do it than I do when I sit around all day. Vertigo, wheezing, pain, it's pointless. I just need to relocate to a less hostile environment. Meanwhile, I do perfectly fine on between 1200 and 1300 calories. I'm even starting to get my sweet tooth under control. Which, if I can do that, will do more for my overall health than any exercise I could ever do. Except perhaps running away from a mountain lion.
I am on a nutrient rampage, though, especially about potassium. I'm determined to average out everything to RDA standards per week if it kills me!0 -
0/10 would not make a sticky0
-
OP so you say you got all your nutritional needs under 1200... now your logging is very inaccurate but it shows your protein is extremely low, your fats are low. The other issue with your calories so low you really shouldn't be using those precious calories for soda and chocolate when you aren't reaching your bare minimum nutritional needs. Keeping my calories at 1700 or so a day I can get all my nutrition and plenty of room left over for sweets, but protein comes first.
But it's also got lots of inaccuracies and inconsistent logging so would go with you were eating more than you think anyway.
Yeah the op's diary told a completely different story from what I expected after reading her first post.0 -
OP, whatever you are doing seems to be working good for you. Nobody is going to get sick and die eating 1100 or 1200 calories per day. Nobody on here is an expert even though many seem to think they are. Keep doing what works for you. Why change it when you have had success with it.
Why change? Because she actually could be damaging her metabolism.0 -
OP, whatever you are doing seems to be working good for you. Nobody is going to get sick and die eating 1100 or 1200 calories per day. Nobody on here is an expert even though many seem to think they are. Keep doing what works for you. Why change it when you have had success with it.
Flawless logic....except no.
I can have "success" with her method too. But that comes at the cost of my muscle, my metabolism, and all my family huddled in a corner asking why mommy is so hangry. Just because it "works" doesn't make it the right way0 -
I've given up on exercise. I feel worse after I do it than I do when I sit around all day. Vertigo, wheezing, pain, it's pointless... Meanwhile, I do perfectly fine on between 1200 and 1300 calories.
*Raises hand, and waves it enthusiasticaly*
Ooo! Ooo! teacher! Teacher! Pick me! I know why this person is having trouble exercising! Pick me!
(1) If you get vertigo, wheezing and pain when you walk, see your doctor
(2) If you get vertigo, wheezing and pain when you walk, and aren't diagnosed with COPD or asthma or something, you probably aren't eating enough0 -
Hungry? That is what exercise is for. If you exercise for an hour a day, you can add a few hundred extra calories and have an extra meal! Also, the weight loss part of your new lifestyle doesn't last forever: when you get to maintenance and/or increase your activity level, you can eat more. Weight loss doesn't last forever... unless YOU ARE SHORT AND EATING OVER 1200 CALORIES!
WAT? This is an incredibly unhealthy way to look at exercise and weight loss in general. I seriously hope no one chooses to listen to you.
Actually this not an unhealthy way to look at exercise. It is exactly how MFP works. You exercise, it gives you more calories, therefore you can eat more food. MFP set you up at a deficit without exercise - the more you exercise the more you can eat. It's fueling your body. I agree that exercise should be done for healthy reasons, but eating more is a benefit :happy: .0 -
Hungry? That is what exercise is for. If you exercise for an hour a day, you can add a few hundred extra calories and have an extra meal! Also, the weight loss part of your new lifestyle doesn't last forever: when you get to maintenance and/or increase your activity level, you can eat more. Weight loss doesn't last forever... unless YOU ARE SHORT AND EATING OVER 1200 CALORIES!
WAT? This is an incredibly unhealthy way to look at exercise and weight loss in general. I seriously hope no one chooses to listen to you.
Actually this not an unhealthy way to look at exercise. It is exactly how MFP works. You exercise, it gives you more calories, therefore you can eat more food. MFP set you up at a deficit without exercise - the more you exercise the more you can eat. It's fueling your body. I agree that exercise should be done for healthy reasons, but eating more is a benefit :happy: .
The built in deficit by mfp is supposed to be based on your daily activities. Here I am, short...If I don't exercise I STILL lose at 1650..explain me this. If you get into a mindset that "I can't eat very much because I didn't exercise.", that is a dark path. If you feel food is a reward for exercise, that's not a good way to look at it. You should be fueling your body, irregardless.0 -
You do not know me or my body, but my Dr. does and no I am not losing any vitamins or nutrients, in fact I am very healthy (I would love to see your medical degree since you seem to know it all).....I am not starving! I am just stunned that you act like a know it all about me! Carry on with your judgmental self......carry on......THANK YOU OP!!!! I am 5 feet tall and YES, I eat between 1000 and 1200 daily and workout. I am NOT starving and my weight loss numbers prove I know what I am doing! I eat when I am hungry NOT when the clock says its time! What I do works for me...it does not work for everybody. Some people are very judgmental if you don't do it their way. Well, I tried their way and I gained! My way works for me. This is an individual process. I have gone from wearing a 20wp to a 4/6p.
Yup you lost weight......fat and muscle good for you....you punished yourself for being overweight by eating so little food that your body didn't have a choice but to use muscle for fuel...great job... /sarcasm
You don't gain if you are in a deficet period...if you gained you were eating more than you thought...and the fact you have lost over 100lbs proves to me you could have lost weight eating a whole lot more because the BMR of an obese person is always higher than a slim person because of the weight they have to move around.
I NEVER PUNISHED MYSELF FOR BEING FAT BY NOT EATING!!! YOU ARE SO JUDGMENTAL!! You do not know me so therefore DO NOT judge me!!! I did this my way and IT WORKS! I eat when I am hungry NOT because a clock says its time for OH, MY I have calories available!!! I do cardio and lifting and these muscles that YOU say I have lost...well they look damn good.....CARRY ON being Judgmental....
oh I touched a nerve I see...
not being judgemental just calling it like I see it...
Your way works yes for weight loss not muscle retention, good nutrition or keeping yourself healthy.
Hunger is not the best indicator of what the body needs...did you not read the part where if you are at too low calories your body releases hormones to stifle the hunger signals so you aren't always feeling hungry...by it doing that it's telling you "hey woman your damaging me...so I have to adapt".
You have lost muscle...just because you have gotten to a low weight and you can see muscle doesn't mean you didn't lose a lot...
How do I know that because when you feed yourself so llittle there isn't enough fuel to adequately feed your body so it wow starts feeding on fat and muscle stores esp if you are at too low of a deficet and not getting in enough protien...
Those are not judgments those are the facts and if you don't like it...not my problem.
Oh and stop yelling at me..I am a stranger on the internet and that is rude...would you yell at a complete stranger in a bar because they said something you didn't like??? me thinks not...
And yes I do say this irl to anyone who tells me they are on a VLCD...
I don't see where you are being judged at all. Facts are being stated. The truth is doctors do not know a lot about nutrition. My doctor is monitoring my weight loss and she actually asks me questions about nutrition. And she tells me not to lose more than 1 lb per week and prefers me to lose 1/2 lb per week. When I have questions about how much to eat she refers me to a registered dietician, which unfortunately I cannot afford. There are some very knowledgeable people on this site whom I've learned a lot from by reading forums like this. Nobody is telling you to change, they are just stating facts that show what you are doing is not necessary or healthy.0 -
I've given up on exercise. I feel worse after I do it than I do when I sit around all day. Vertigo, wheezing, pain, it's pointless... Meanwhile, I do perfectly fine on between 1200 and 1300 calories.
*Raises hand, and waves it enthusiasticaly*
Ooo! Ooo! teacher! Teacher! Pick me! I know why this person is having trouble exercising! Pick me!
(1) If you get vertigo, wheezing and pain when you walk, see your doctor
(2) If you get vertigo, wheezing and pain when you walk, and aren't diagnosed with COPD or asthma or something, you probably aren't eating enough
1. Yeah, with what money or health insurance?
2. It's a seasonal allergy thing.0 -
OP so you say you got all your nutritional needs under 1200... now your logging is very inaccurate but it shows your protein is extremely low, your fats are low. The other issue with your calories so low you really shouldn't be using those precious calories for soda and chocolate when you aren't reaching your bare minimum nutritional needs. Keeping my calories at 1700 or so a day I can get all my nutrition and plenty of room left over for sweets, but protein comes first.
But it's also got lots of inaccuracies and inconsistent logging so would go with you were eating more than you think anyway.
This.0
This discussion has been closed.
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 392.1K Introduce Yourself
- 43.6K Getting Started
- 259.9K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.7K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 403 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.8K Motivation and Support
- 7.9K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.4K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 999 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.4K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions