I'm confused. Can you really eat too little?

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kerimanuel
kerimanuel Posts: 17 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I've been reading all this stuff on here that says you have to eat your minimum calories set by MFP or your body will hold on to what you do eat. I just read the Step by Step guide to losing weight with MFP and it doesn't mention that at all.
I'm 5'4, 47y/o, female. I started this beginning of the year at 132lbs. My goal is 115lbs. MFP says my calorie limit is 1200. I usually eat less than that. 800-1000 range. I work out 5 times a week.
My confusion is why do I have to eat 1200 if I'm satisfied eating less and will my body really hold on to it because it thinks I'm "starving"? I'm certainly not starving. Also I thought losing weight was just eating less calories than you use, period!
Can someone enlighten me? Do I really need to eat more? I feel like I won't lose at all if I eat more. Thanks in advance for your help.
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Replies

  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
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    Your fat reserves might be able to supply say 600 cals a day, so if you use 2000 and eat 800 there's a deficiency which may be met by something slowing down. That may be OK for a day or two but probably not a month.

    The 1200 minimum is supposed to ensure adequate nutrition, not just energy (calories) ie 1200 cals of varied food is likely to meet your needs.
  • trianglevision
    trianglevision Posts: 28 Member
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    I'm pretty sure it's physiologically impossible to gain or retain weight if you are eating at a calorie defecit...maybe at first but eventually it will give in and start metabolising itself for energy.

  • jkal1979
    jkal1979 Posts: 1,896 Member
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    Your calorie goal already has a deficit built in. If you ate the 1200 and didn't exercise you would still lose.

    Starvation mode is a myth, but by eating a small amount and exercising may cause other damage in the long run, such as more muscle loss, bone density loss, hair loss, brittle nails and fatigue. You need to be eating more to make sure that your body is getting the fuel that it needs to run and get the nutrients that it needs.
  • NoelFigart1
    NoelFigart1 Posts: 1,276 Member
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    Okay...

    If you are dieting to lose fat, technically you are starving. The whole POINT of fat reserves is to have something to keep you alive during times of little food. Whether that little food is coming by choice or famine is something your body doesn't understand.

    That said, is your health in danger if you eat fewer than 1200 calories? The jury is very much out on that one. It is EXTREMELY difficult to get appropriate nutrition on fewer, true, but it is possible. At your height 115lbs is at the low end of slender.

    If you're not hungry, you're not hungry. Though, I wonder, what's your hurry? Are you an actor training for a role?
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,576 Member
    edited January 2015
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    http://authoritynutrition.com/starvation-mode/

    This article has a good description of the dangers of eating too few calories.
  • Sinistrous
    Sinistrous Posts: 5,589 Member
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    To bluntly put it, google pictures of "Starving children" and then google why their bodies end up looking the way they do, then answer that for yourself.

    Yes, you can eat too little. Do not do it.
    Good luck!
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
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    Yes, you can eat too little. It isn't safe to eat less than 1200 for more than a few days. Since you are also working out, you should also be eating to fuel your workouts as well. That might put you at an even higher number, depending on length and intensity of your workouts.

    However, eating less than 1200 will not cause your body to retain weight because it is trying hold onto it. The only way for the body to retain weight when you are eating at a deficit is for it to die, and even then it doesn't retain it very well.
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,293 Member
    edited January 2015
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    essentially it is difficult to get the min protein, fat, vitamins and minerals on a diet less than 1200 cals. Even at 1200 cals there is very little wiggle room for non nutrient dense foods to hit these nutrients.

    So not getting enough of some or all of the above can lead to a larger % of your loss coming from lean muscle, not fat; malnutrition, weak nails, bad skin, loss of hair, poor functioning digestive system, etc.
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
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    First of all, with only 13 pounds to lose a 1/2 pound per week goal is probably appropriate ... and that is less likely to produce a 1200 calorie daily goal (quick math puts it at around 1300 NET calories to lose that amount per week). Without an open diary, all we can do is guess at what you really eat in terms of calories and macronutrients along with how much you're burning through exercise.

    Based on your current settings, MFP is recommending 1200 NET calories per day. You eat 800ish .... so 400 below what most national health services in the western world recommend as a minimum intake for women to get basic nutrients before factoring in any exercise. You're then working out 5 days per week ... widening that deficit and making it less likely that you're providing your body with the basic nutrients it needs for healthy survival.

    When you fail to give your body what it needs, it then looks internally for the vitamins and minerals you aren't eating. You'll see it affect your hair, nails, and skin. What you won't see is it affecting your bones and internal organs. The risk here isn't that you'll eat too little and your body will somehow store energy that it isn't receiving in the first place. It is that you'll eat too little and your body will have to damage itself to keep the most vital organs running properly.
  • KombuchaCat
    KombuchaCat Posts: 834 Member
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    For your age, height and weight I honestly don't think you need to be trying to lose weight at all. This might sound harsh but I think what you really need it to reassess your body image and be realistic about goals. Maybe see a nutritionist or counsellor. I just don't know where to start with what you wrote...
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    edited January 2015
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    Ultimately, goals will determine this. If you body comp goals (body vat vs lean body mass/muscle), then yes... eating too little is something to think about. If you only care about scale weight, then no, not really. At least not over reasonably short periods of time. If you tried to sustain yourself on 500 cals for months and years, then you may run into issues. But doing it for a few weeks to a few months to lose some weight isn't a big deal.

    Note: we're only talking about calories here, not nutrition, though the 2 do go hand in hand to some degree.


    As far as not losing if you eat more... that might be purely psychological. Inaccurate logging/estimating might also play a role... as could patience, or a lack there of.

    Ultimately, to lose weight you need to provide your body fewer calories than it needs. As long as you do that, you'll lose weight. The greater the discrepancy, the faster you'll lose, but you'll still lose.
  • kerimanuel
    kerimanuel Posts: 17 Member
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    yarwell wrote: »
    Your fat reserves might be able to supply say 600 cals a day, so if you use 2000 and eat 800 there's a deficiency which may be met by something slowing down. That may be OK for a day or two but probably not a month.

    The 1200 minimum is supposed to ensure adequate nutrition, not just energy (calories) ie 1200 cals of varied food is likely to meet your needs.

  • NoelFigart1
    NoelFigart1 Posts: 1,276 Member
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    Naw, 115 still within an appropriate range running by just the BMI scale. Dancer-thin, yes. Personal preference? No. But within an appropriately healthy range.

    (Not that I like BMI over body fat percentage, but it was the only measurement I could use based on the info given)
  • kerimanuel
    kerimanuel Posts: 17 Member
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    So, is it possible to meet your nutrition requirements by eating the "right foods" and still being in a calorie deficit?
  • kerimanuel
    kerimanuel Posts: 17 Member
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    trianglevision wrote: »
    I'm pretty sure it's physiologically impossible to gain or retain weight if you are eating at a calorie defecit...maybe at first but eventually it will give in and start metabolising itself for energy.

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    Eating too little is just generally not healthy. It puts a lot of stress on the body and raises cortisol levels (which hinders weightloss). Eating too little for a long time also has a negative impact on your metabolism. You also lose a greater ratio of muscle and other lean mass to fat than you otherwise would.

    It's not so much that you're going to hold onto everything you eat because you're "starving" yourself...it's just that you're jacking up your hormones and metabolism and actually making it more difficult to lose. Not to mention, it's just not necessary.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    kerimanuel wrote: »
    So, is it possible to meet your nutrition requirements by eating the "right foods" and still being in a calorie deficit?

    Certainly. The size of the deficit may play a role, but speaking generally it's absolutely possible.
  • kerimanuel
    kerimanuel Posts: 17 Member
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    This is what I thought too, but I'm hearing others say it's unhealthy. I don't want to be unhealthy. I want to be thin, fit, toned and healthy.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    the problem is that thin, fit, toned and healthy mean different things to different people. IMO, you'll never get there on 500 cals per day. But what you think of as fit and toned and healthy may be very different than what I think of.

    There's also a very clear mentality on MFP that there's only 1 right way to do things, and low cal diets definitely DO NOT fall into that mentality, so you'll get a lot of blind kickback for that reason alone.
  • brianpperkins
    brianpperkins Posts: 6,124 Member
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    jacksonpt wrote: »
    the problem is that thin, fit, toned and healthy mean different things to different people. IMO, you'll never get there on 500 cals per day. But what you think of as fit and toned and healthy may be very different than what I think of.

    There's also a very clear mentality on MFP that there's only 1 right way to do things, and low cal diets definitely DO NOT fall into that mentality, so you'll get a lot of blind kickback for that reason alone.

    500 calories falls into the VLCD range ... an area that should only be approached on medical orders with medical supervision.

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