staying under my calorie goal is bad?

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Jessilynmorgan
Jessilynmorgan Posts: 12 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm new to this app, so I'm still trying to get the hang of it, but I just learned how to total everything daily. Almost everyday, it says I'm under my goal and putting my body in starvation mode. The days it doesn't say that, it adjusted my calorie goal higher without my doing anything! I'm really confused, I understand about nutrition and not starving yourself for prolonged periods, but this is not making sense to me. Am I supposed to eat more to make the goal?

Replies

  • SlimLittleMrs
    SlimLittleMrs Posts: 127
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    You will do yourself a favor by sticking to the proper amount of calories.
  • for_a_mittengrl
    for_a_mittengrl Posts: 93 Member
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    Your NET Calories should not drop below 1200.
  • schaapj2
    schaapj2 Posts: 320 Member
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    You should be eating at least 1200 calories a day to not put yourself into starvation mode. This is already a deficit of 800 calories from the 2,000 your body needs as maintenance.
  • jennyfair24
    jennyfair24 Posts: 273 Member
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    Whatever your goal is for daily calories is what you need to be at or near. For instance mine is 1420 so without taking any exercise in to consideration I should try to be at or near the 1420. If you eat to few calories throughout the day your body can go into starvation mode which will make it hard to lose weight. Hope that helps :smile:
  • Jessilynmorgan
    Jessilynmorgan Posts: 12 Member
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    Wow, thanks for all the responses! So I should eat even if I'm not hungry, or when I work off the calories exercising? I know I will hit a wall eventually and if I do the first part too fast I'll just gain it back. It just seems counterintuitive to eat more to lose more... Thanks for the support, this site is great!
  • countrymom75
    countrymom75 Posts: 32 Member
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    I AM NEW AT THIS TOO. I AM WATCHING WHAT I EAT. I KNOW THAT MY INTAKE HAS CHANGED. I AM ALWAYS LOWER THAN WHAT MY GOAL SAYS I SHOULD BE BUT I DO GET HUNGRY SOMETIMES BUT FOR THE MOST PART I DON'T FEEL LIKE I AM STARVING. I DON'T WNT TO HURT MY BODY OR MESS MY SELF UP AND STOP LOSING WEIGHT. I GUESS AS I TAKE EACH DAY I WILL LEARN WHAT TO EAT AND WHEN AND GET BETTER AT THIS WHOLE LIVING HEALTHIER LIFE STYLE.
  • jenbusick
    jenbusick Posts: 528 Member
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    I AM NEW AT THIS TOO. I AM WATCHING WHAT I EAT. I KNOW THAT MY INTAKE HAS CHANGED. I AM ALWAYS LOWER THAN WHAT MY GOAL SAYS I SHOULD BE BUT I DO GET HUNGRY SOMETIMES BUT FOR THE MOST PART I DON'T FEEL LIKE I AM STARVING. I DON'T WNT TO HURT MY BODY OR MESS MY SELF UP AND STOP LOSING WEIGHT. I GUESS AS I TAKE EACH DAY I WILL LEARN WHAT TO EAT AND WHEN AND GET BETTER AT THIS WHOLE LIVING HEALTHIER LIFE STYLE.

    The thing about "starvation mode" is that you won't necessarily feel like you're starving.
  • purrteetea
    purrteetea Posts: 24
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    I personally don't think going under recommended amount will do any harm as long as u don't go under 1200...my recommended amount IS 1200 so I try my best to meet that amount to avoid my body going into starvation mode...so far so good :smile:
  • jkestens63
    jkestens63 Posts: 1,164 Member
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    Need to eat close too your calorie goal although I will leave a 200 to 300 calorie deficit because I think the gym machine & mfp calories burnned may run a little high.

    If I find myself with a huge calorie deficit at the end of the day and I am not hungry, I will have a high calorie but healthy snack like nuts, peanut butter, or a protien shake.
  • jennyfair24
    jennyfair24 Posts: 273 Member
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    Wow, thanks for all the responses! So I should eat even if I'm not hungry, or when I work off the calories exercising? I know I will hit a wall eventually and if I do the first part too fast I'll just gain it back. It just seems counterintuitive to eat more to lose more... Thanks for the support, this site is great!

    It does seem that way at first but you'll find eating 3 meals and 2-3 snacks spaced out throughout the day will actually help your body stay energized and run more efficiently, therefor helping you to lose weight :smile:
  • melodyg
    melodyg Posts: 1,423 Member
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    If you marked that you wanted to lose 2 pounds a week (or even 1 if you don't have a lot to lose) MFP probably calculated your calorie goal at 1200 calories. Anytime that you go under 1200 calories (regardless of your calorie goal) it will give you the starvation mode warning. That is because 1200 calories is generally accepted as the minimum amount of calories women need.
    There are threads all over MFP debating that fact... I'll just say that I do think that you should strive for 1200 net calories as the absolute minimum. I've found that I have better weight loss if I eat more than that (I eat my BMR calories plus most of the calories i gain through exercise).

    The reason your calories changed without you doing anything was probably because you logged exercise that day. If you log exercise, you are given extra calories to eat to replace those that you burned while working out.

    Hope that helps! Welcome to MFP! Hope it helps you as much as it has helped me!
  • ladyhawk00
    ladyhawk00 Posts: 2,457 Member
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    Everyone pretty much covered it...But just wanted to add - Here's a great thread that explains how MFP calculates your goals and why it's a good idea to try to reach them. Good luck to you!

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits
  • shanamalena
    shanamalena Posts: 58
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    Check out this website that I had looked at about the starvation mode......I was wondering too...


    http://fattyfightsback.blogspot.com/2009/03/mtyhbusters-starvation-mode.html

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