Should I go against my doctors suggestion... Please help!!

Personally I would not go less than 1200 cals a day and more if exercising!

Drs are not nutritionist and unless they are certified to do so should not be giving out such information.


I would seek our WHY she is recommending such a low calorie diet.. possibly by just flat out asking her... and go from there.

Also maybe she can refer you to a nurtitionist that can give you proper guidance if she feels you are not doing well.

But it seems to me your doing well on your own.

I am not a nutritionist or a dietition, but it sounds like you should visit one. 800 seems like waaaay too low. You must be so hungry! I would make an appointment with someone who specilizes in nutrition and work out a better number, especially since you are getting in some exercise too.

PS. I'm Naomi too

I am no Dr. by any means but am a Paramedic with enough medical knowledge and training to know that 800 calories is not enough for anyone! That is crazy! Your body needs a certain amount of calories to function. I cannot believe that your Dr. would even suggest this. By doing this you will basically be starving yourself, your metabolisim will drop and your body will go into starvation mode, storing everything and potentially causing you lots of medical problems. If your Dr. is concerned about your sodium, there are ways to control that and at the same time will help you drop weight as well but if I were you, I would not take your Dr.s advice regarding the calories and get a second opionion from a qualified nutritionist, not a doc in the box.

If you look up some information on dieting for people who are morbidly obese... it does tend to say that they can go with less calories because they have a bigger store. But if you feel deprived up your input! you know what your body is asking you for! And make your opinion known to your doctor!

if you are following the mfp suggestions and losing the weight and making better choices then you shouldn't have to go to an 800 cal diet losing weight and all that has proven that.

Sodium is a hard thing to over come, but you know it comes from pre packaged so now you can track that and eliminate some of it by making better choices. I have struggled with sodium I have really good days and some bad days but more good then bad. If ya need more ideas or anything I'm willing to share what I've learned.

Your body needs more then 800 calories a day to survive! I would stay around 1200 a day or even 1600... You will still lose weight and it will come off faster as you learn to lower your sodium and up your water intake...

I had a friend that had to have a hip replacement but because he was so overweight they couldn't do anything untill he dropped the weight and he needed to do it fast. His doctor sent him to Lindora and they had him on a 600 cal diet a day. He dropped the weight and they have slowly moved him back up to a "normal" calorie intake...Maybe your doctor wants you to drop the weight fast but from what I understand when you are on a low calories diet like that you should be also seeing someone a few days a week to make sure your body is reacting to it ok..I would def talk to the doctor and express your concerns and make him/her explain why so low. Good luck to you!!! Either way your making a difference in you and your going to succeed! Congrats on your 3lb weight loss!! That is Fantastic!

Without wanting to act like I know more than a doctor... in this case I do!
800 calories is not only extremely unrealistic, it is also setting you up to fail, because you are so hungry that you end up binging anyway. Also it is unlikely that you are getting all of the nutrients you need on an 800cal diet.
I woud stick to the standard recommended minimum of 1200 & maybe exercise more if you feel like your not losing enough weight. Also reducing your sodium will surprisingly help you on your weight loss journey. Good luck!

Please get a second opinion, or see a nutritionist. If your body is asking for food, that's because it needs it.

I was doing Medifast with my doctor for awhile and that is a liquid diet of 500 calories a day, BUT I also saw him every week so he could examine me and make sure I was tolerating it ok. I did just fine on it and dropped a lot of weight, but I also gained it all back and then some because I never learned the right behaviors it took to keep it off. I too would make another appointment with your doctor to discuss her reasons behind 800 calories and then I would tell her that you'll only go that low if she sees you every week to make sure your body is ok with it. Otherwise I agree with everyone else and I'd see a nutritionist to get you on the right track. :0)

Okay, I'm a nutritionist and studying to be an RD. Before I would follow the recommendations of a doctor on nutrition, I would want to know their nutrition education. In helping a friend of mine plan her pre-req classes for medical school, I've seen the coursework that doctors go through and there is generally only 1 nutrition class and it is a basic class that I took as a pre-req for my nutrition minor. That one, basic nutrition class doesn't qualify them to prescribe a diet in my opinion. That being said, some doctors do specialize and take more coursework in nutrition. Generally, those doctors also go through more advanced courses in how to combine nutrition with pharmacology to help with rapid weight loss for the morbidly obese. Without knowing the full plan your doctor has you on (meds and such to go along with the diet and exercise) and your specific needs, I couldn't say if it is a good idea to follow her advice or not.

That being said, I can also say that in my 15 years in the fitness industry, 5 of which I've been a certified nutritionist, and especially since learning more in my nutrition program at college, I would never recommend a calorie intake that low, especially for someone who is exercising. I base calorie needs on the individual and I can honestly say there have only been a handful of people I've ever recommended less then 1200 calories for, but those people were literally only 90 pounds of lean body mass and very sedentary and even still it was no less then 1100. If you are more then that lean body weight or activity level, then you need more food to safely lose weight without slowing your metabolism. Doctors can prescribe less because they are also giving medications that can help prevent some of the metabolism slowdown (Yes, prescription diet pills are generally stimulants that help keep metabolism increased.) where I'm not licensed to prescribe medications. If your doctor is just telling you to eat that little but not giving you anything to help with your metabolism, I wouldn't follow the diet recommendations, personally. Especially if you were seeing results with the MFP recommendations and were feeling better about your eating.The number one thing I'm learning in my dietetics classes is that the changes we recommend have to be things that are doable for the patient and realistic for the long term. We can prescribe eating an apple a day, for example, but if the patient doesn't like apples, they won't stick with the plan and therefore our plan hasn't helped them at all. If your doctor isn't willing to recommend changes that you can do long term that won't cause you to feel like they are things you can't stick with, then you need to find a nutritionist or dietitian that can work with you and give you recommendations you can stick with. Or since the MFP recommendations were working for you, then you can stick with those. But above all else, don't beat yourself up emotionally because you "can't stick to the doctors plan" because the doctor should be tailoring the plan to you not you tailoring your life to the doctors plan.

I would go 1200 - 1400 calories and you will get all of your nutriants. and walk any amount at first and only eat good wholesome food!!!! Good Luck and God Bless You!!! You can do this!!!

Are you going to a MD for Medifast or HCG shots? If not 800 is too low. Start with 1200 and eat all and only fresh unprocessed foods. Low glycemic index fruits only ; You may be a good candidate for the HCG diet. Many of my clients have lost 30 pounds in 30 days. Homeopathic drops only. Check it out and read Dr Simeons book online: ":POUNDS AND INCHES" good luck in your journey