Do I HAVE to eat 1200 cal..

Hey guys!

This is my first post on here and I have a question!

I'm kind of a noob to the whole fitness lifestyle in terms of realizing there's more to it than just eating a salad and going for a run.

It says to eat 1,200 calories a day but to me that number sounds so high and I can't bring myself to eat that many. On cheat days, I'm sure I do but on days where I'm very aware of what I'm eating/burning off and logging everything, it sounds like such a high amount.

What will happen if I burn off more calories than I consume in a day?
I usually burn about 350-500 doing cardio, and these days it's more in the 400-650 range.
I thought in order to lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you intake, and if I were to eat 1,200cal/day, that would be 8,400/week and that sounds insanely high. If I burned off 500 cal/day, I would only be burning 3,500/week and it just doesn't make sense to me.

I see no mention of an eating disorder in this post??????

Hey guys!

This is my first post on here and I have a question!

I'm kind of a noob to the whole fitness lifestyle in terms of realizing there's more to it than just eating a salad and going for a run.

It says to eat 1,200 calories a day but to me that number sounds so high and I can't bring myself to eat that many. On cheat days, I'm sure I do but on days where I'm very aware of what I'm eating/burning off and logging everything, it sounds like such a high amount.

What will happen if I burn off more calories than I consume in a day?
I usually burn about 350-500 doing cardio, and these days it's more in the 400-650 range.
I thought in order to lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you intake, and if I were to eat 1,200cal/day, that would be 8,400/week and that sounds insanely high. If I burned off 500 cal/day, I would only be burning 3,500/week and it just doesn't make sense to me.

I see no mention of an eating disorder in this post??????

Read through the posts. Its called being thorough. We are not all having a group hallucination that you missed out on.

Okay thanks for the help guys. I didn't really understand the whole "net calorie" thing, and wasn't aware that we burn THAT many calories throughout the day (I thought maybe 200 at best). I guess I probably should have wrote in my post that I used to have an eating disorder a few years ago so that number just seemed high because I was used to counting calories a lot. This is the first time I've gotten really serious about losing weight through both diet and exercise instead of an unhealthy way but clearly what I'm doing is still unhealthy. Definitely going to research it more and try to hit 1200 a day.

Does this help?

Wow, so many negative posts. I have the same issue, it's hard for me to hit 1200/day when I'm choosing healthy meals. I think this is because not only are they lower calorie, but they keep you full longer. I'd say just eat healthy, count your calories, but eat if you are hungry! Don't force yourself to eat just to hit the 1200 calorie mark, as long as you are feeling well. Everyone's metabolism and body are different, your body may not require as many calories as anyone else's.

since OP has already admitted she has previously had an eating disorder, it's not a good idea to give her encouragement to avoid eating more calories. Unless you are an extremely small woman, it's very unlikely that 1200 calories is the healthy amount needed for you to sustain your lean muscle mass and appropriate brain and organ function. Just because you feel full does not mean your body is receiving all the calories it needs to function optimally.

Who said they had an eating disorder? Huh? How do you know this?????

My comments above are based on personal experience and the advice of doctors. It is not unhealthy to eat less than 1200 calories a day... as long as you someone who is supposed to be losing weight...and on that topic... if you're not needing to lose weight why are you here??

Okay thanks for the help guys. I didn't really understand the whole "net calorie" thing, and wasn't aware that we burn THAT many calories throughout the day (I thought maybe 200 at best). I guess I probably should have wrote in my post that I used to have an eating disorder a few years ago so that number just seemed high because I was used to counting calories a lot. This is the first time I've gotten really serious about losing weight through both diet and exercise instead of an unhealthy way but clearly what I'm doing is still unhealthy. Definitely going to research it more and try to hit 1200 a day.

The OP said she had an eating disorder. It may be unhealthy to eat under 1200 if you have an eating disorder.
Therefore it is best to not encourage her to eat less than 1200. Mkthx :flowerforyou:

P.S. some people are on here trying to fix their eating habits, maintain weight, or even gain weight.

Wow, so many negative posts. I have the same issue, it's hard for me to hit 1200/day when I'm choosing healthy meals. I think this is because not only are they lower calorie, but they keep you full longer. I'd say just eat healthy, count your calories, but eat if you are hungry! Don't force yourself to eat just to hit the 1200 calorie mark, as long as you are feeling well. Everyone's metabolism and body are different, your body may not require as many calories as anyone else's.

since OP has already admitted she has previously had an eating disorder, it's not a good idea to give her encouragement to avoid eating more calories. Unless you are an extremely small woman, it's very unlikely that 1200 calories is the healthy amount needed for you to sustain your lean muscle mass and appropriate brain and organ function. Just because you feel full does not mean your body is receiving all the calories it needs to function optimally.

Who said they had an eating disorder? Huh? How do you know this?????

My comments above are based on personal experience and the advice of doctors. It is not unhealthy to eat less than 1200 calories a day... as long as you someone who is supposed to be losing weight...and on that topic... if you're not needing to lose weight why are you here??

The site is called My FITNESS Pal......some people are here to gain weight. Others do body recomposition.......lower body fat but keep weight the same. Others may need to log food for medical issues (diabetics and such). Lots of reasons.

So, why do we stall. Why do we stop loosing if we are having less than 1200?

Plateaus are normal......weight loss is not linear. As you become a smaller person the calories to maintain your new "smallness" are less. This means a) you lose more slowly because the deficit is actually smaller than before OR b) you keep the same deficit by eating even less (bad idea if you want to keep lean muscle while losing fat).

Plateaus are not normal for people who are eating less than 1200 calories per day.

completely incorrect. It depends on your weight, height and structure. Smaller/petite people require less calories just as smaller/petite people burn less calories than larger/heavier people. There's no ONE rule that fits everyone. There are many factors to consider.

I had gastric bypass 44 days ago. I am following my dors orders. He order 1200 cal. have a protein shake for breakfast a cup of salad with chicken for luch and maybe a can of tuna for dinner that its about 900 cal

If you just had a gastric bypass just over a month ago, be patient and give it time. Your body is still healing...

Okay thanks for the help guys. I didn't really understand the whole "net calorie" thing, and wasn't aware that we burn THAT many calories throughout the day (I thought maybe 200 at best). I guess I probably should have wrote in my post that I used to have an eating disorder a few years ago so that number just seemed high because I was used to counting calories a lot. This is the first time I've gotten really serious about losing weight through both diet and exercise instead of an unhealthy way but clearly what I'm doing is still unhealthy. Definitely going to research it more and try to hit 1200 a day.

^^^^ This is where she said she had an ED in the past

it is very important to ALL posts before adding your 2 cents!

Ya'll are so nice and friendly here. LOVE YOU!!

People with eating disorders should not be asking about losing weight. Period. People should also not jump all over someone who with all good intention provides advice based on personal experience and the advice of doctors.

And no I typically don't read the first full page of people's comments because as we can all see everyone is so loving and kind here. Excuse me for not actively looking for someone who is underweight or with an ED on a forum full of fat people like myself.... how strange.

Unless they're overweight from an ED like binge eating disorder .. or something .. then they should be asking about losing weight.

If you have trouble eating 1200 calories you wouldn't be overweight in the first place. These posts get on my last nerve!

Great point!

Ya'll are so nice and friendly here. LOVE YOU!!

People with eating disorders should not be asking about losing weight. Period. People should also not jump all over someone who with all good intention provides advice based on personal experience and the advice of doctors.

And no I typically don't read the first full page of people's comments because as we can all see everyone is so loving and kind here. Excuse me for not actively looking for someone who is underweight or with an ED on a forum full of fat people like myself.... how strange.

You are making assumptions about why people are on here. People are here for any number of reasons. You're here because you're fat. Great. (Your words, not mine) other people are here because they are in recovery from an ED, want to gain weight, lose weight, etc.

Ya'll are so nice and friendly here. LOVE YOU!!

People with eating disorders should not be asking about losing weight. Period. People should also not jump all over someone who with all good intention provides advice based on personal experience and the advice of doctors.

And no I typically don't read the first full page of people's comments because as we can all see everyone is so loving and kind here. Excuse me for not actively looking for someone who is underweight or with an ED on a forum full of fat people like myself.... how strange.

LOL you're a character.

Let me tell/write you something. Going that low on calories and running 10 miles every day type of diet are useless and you are doing more harm to your body and YOU WILL get your weight back. You have to think long term, change your life habits, food habits ( no you do not have to eat some ultra low calorie vegetable all day every day, just cut calories from crap). How do I know all this? Because I have been there!!! My student way of living ( study, watch tv and eat s*h*i*t) what made me gain weight. There is no short term diet ( I mean there is, but you will get weight back). Diet is about changing your daily routine ( like go for a walk every day, you do not have to run 20 miles every day), cut out bread, cut out sugar. This does not mean you will have to have strict diet all life and you can go to McDonalnd time to time, but you do not have to go in extremes ( you are not professional bodybuilder or athlete) and you will not keep those strict diets for long time. If 1200 calories is to much or you than you are like 4 feet tall with 70 pounds, otherwise you are not counting your calories right. Get a mini scale to weigh all your food are read labels.

This post is under "General Diet and Weight Loss Help" .... sorry for not realizing I wasn't supposed to talk about weight loss in response. WOW.

I wish that there was a like button for this post! Well explained

Eat lots of veg and drink lots of water and stay active and you'll be amazed at how easy it is to avoid calories. But it will take some habit changing to get there so don't expect to do it all in a weekend. Nuts, I've been doing this for two years and it's not over yet. Not sure it ever will be.

OP's trying to eat more calories.

Skip the veg and replace with cheese.

LOL.....I thought he was lost