Does anyone here just do the eating plan (and NOT do much ex

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  • welly5
    welly5 Posts: 293 Member
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    Due to a back injury the only workouts I can do are really gentle and just about stabilizing my back, not about burning calories. So until I can get it back to normal I'm just counting calories and it's working out great. I eat more fiber than they suggest but other than that I pretty much follow their guide.

    Cannot wait till I can hit the gym again!!!
  • meggonkgonk
    meggonkgonk Posts: 2,066 Member
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    jammyone - thanks for your reply.

    However as a woman at just 5ft 1in I really do not think 1200 calories is too low for me - many, many healthy eating plans will allow you 1200 calories per day (depending on certain factors of course)

    The fact that I am short, not vastly overweight, lead a sedantry lifestyle etc mean that for me 1200 cals will work.

    If I was more active in general (and indeed when I do undertake regular exercise) then my cals will go up.... I have no intention to fall below 1200.

    Obviously being a bloke and wating to put on weight means your goals and objectives are different :-)

    He's really not wrong tho- at 1200 calories you really need to meet your calorie goals.

    I'm a relatively small woman as well (5'2") and I can tell you that if you don't eat enough you are in fact slowing down your metabolism and working against yourself. When I was in the 150s, with about 15-20 lbs to lose, I was still trying to lose 1lb a week, (500 calorie deficit/day) and my cal goal was 1220, and my loss slowed significantly. I manually bumped my calories up to 1350, so my deficit was only 400 and it projected .8lbs per week but I have lost 1lb-1.5lbs per week.

    I know everyone is different but I really think that 1200 is too low if you are getting in any other exercise at all (even moderate walks).

    But yes you can stick to your cal goals, not exercise, and still lose weight. And if you do exercise, you should most likely be eating more than 1200 cals a day.
  • lessertess
    lessertess Posts: 855 Member
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    From a weight loss point of view it is not necessary to exercise. Weight loss is primarily a function of a caloric deficit. There are many people who lose weight simply through cutting calories and do not exercise.

    I don't recommend it. Any time you lose weight you lose some fat and some muscle. Since muscle is more metabolically active than fat, you want to minimize your loss as much as possible. Exercise will help you retain muscle. However, it is nearly impossible to gain muscle when you are in a caloric deficit. The idea that working out is going to cause you to bulk up in muscle, if you're a woman, is mostly a myth. Exercise has other health benefits and will also help you look more toned after you've lost weight.

    1200 calories is not unreasonable for a petite woman leading a sedentary lifestyle. However, I do recommend that you add additional calories if you are going to exercise. You need to fuel your body and creating to high a caloric deficit can cause your metabolism to become sluggish.
  • carolyne2
    carolyne2 Posts: 109
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    From what I understand 1200 calories is fine for about 2 weeks to kick start weight loss but in order to keep your metabolism working at its most efficient you should increase it to around 1500cals and include some exercise.
  • Martha_VH
    Martha_VH Posts: 386 Member
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    I don't exercise a lot, especially during the winter. I went cross country skiing this weekend, and I do enjoy getting outside and getting exercise that way. but I really only work out 1 or 2 times a week unless we have a family activity planned. I am doing okay.

    I think if you want to work out, it would be good to up your calories to in 14-1500 range.
    My calorie range is 15-1600 right now, and although I don't work out a lot I think I'm doing okay. Although I do have a semi active job, because I'm on my feet a lot. For myself, I find that eating less then 1300 calories, I get cranky. I know that if I'm getting hungry and cranky, I can't be doing good work, and I can't be fun for my husband to hang out with. I know that it will take me a bit longer to reach my goal at this range, but for me its well worth having energy and being pleasant.

    Just listen to your body. If you feel like you're okay with just eating 1200 then do that. But if your getting really hungry, allow yourself a little room for an extra snack.
  • CARNAT22
    CARNAT22 Posts: 764 Member
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    Thanks everyone - you have given me a lot to think about.

    I don't want to mess my metobolism up at all so I will log all my walking and make sure I eat the calories back (it's only an extra 100 per day BUT I can see why I need to eat them)

    I have been working out but other comittments mean that this week I will manage just 3 times x30 min cardio (I have been doing x5 30 min work-outs since I started on 1st Feb!)

    I guess I just need to eat the right amount for what exercise I do on any given day and not put pressure on myself to exercise 7 days a a week!!
  • Skeeve
    Skeeve Posts: 1 Member
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    This is pretty much my strategy; I suppose time will tell whether or not it works, since I've only been on it a few weeks. I'm basically on the laziest exercise program in the world (outlined here: http://www.fourmilab.ch/hackdiet/e4/exercise.html ) and although I can already tell it's making a difference in how I feel, I think that controlling my intake is doing a lot more in terms of actual weight loss.
  • AutimnRose
    AutimnRose Posts: 22
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    I personaly right now am just counting calories on my food, not even my drink, and occasionaly doing some sit ups or stretching. I have managed to loose 3 pounds in two weeks, so for now as long as I keep showing some progress I will keep on doing what Im doing. But my personal goal isn't to loose that much actual weight as it is just to get back in shape and feel better after having my second child 18 months ago. So I guess it all depends on what your personal goal is.
  • meggonkgonk
    meggonkgonk Posts: 2,066 Member
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    I guess I just need to eat the right amount for what exercise I do on any given day and not put pressure on myself to exercise 7 days a a week!!

    I think that is an excellent goal and a great mindset! Good luck!

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