1200 calories food intake - no weight loss

Is your logging accurate - weighed foods etc - so you can be sure of your calorie intake ? If you aren't tall your medical issues and age work against you to reduce metabolic rate. Reducing calories may be required, or you could try specifically targeting carbohydrates.

An open diary would help - settings, bottom left, Public

A few questions:

1. How long have you been eating 1200 calories?
2. How do you know you're generally eating 1200 calories per day? Do you weigh your food on a scale, use measuring cups, or just make estimates?
3. The days you go over 1200, how much are you going over by?
4. Do you log your dog walking as exercise? If so, how do you estimate your calorie burn? Do you eat your exercise calories back?

Also, making your diary public temporarily would help anyone viewing this thread gain insight to your daily habits.

You have some legitimate barriers to your weight loss that I can't give any advice about. Here are some things to ask yourself, though:

1. Are you weighing all semi-solids and solids and measuring all liquids? You may be eating more than you think.
2. Are you logging every single thing that you put in your mouth? Some people think they don't have to log fruits and vegetables, for example, but it all adds up.
3. On those two days a week you go over, how much do you go over? I can easily eat several thousand calories in a day I'm not actively trying to be in a deficit; maybe you can too. It doesn't even seem like that much food if it's calorie dense.
4. Based on the numbers you've given us, you have your goal set to a 1,000 calorie deficit per day. If that is too restrictive, that could lead to overeating some days. If you log the days you go over, how many calories do you end up over, if any, in a single week?
5. Do you actually have a 1,000 calorie deficit? I ask because MFP won't give you a goal lower than 1200. For example, for me to lose 1lb/week, I would have to eat 1050 calories/day. MFP will still tell me 1200. I actually eat 1300-1400 and I lose about half a pound a week, which is a good pace for me. Perhaps because MFP is trying to protect your health by not letting you set your goal under 1200, you have inflated expectations. If your TDEE is less than 2200, you won't lose 10 pounds in five weeks on a 1200 calorie diet. And that's fine. Honestly, I think you should eat a bit more once you get your logging under control (pending your answers to 1, 2, and 3). Maybe try for one pound of loss a week, which would be a deficit of 500 calories/day and might help you feel more satisfied so you won't feel the need to go over your calorie limit a couple times a week.

My advice:
1. Find a TDEE calculator and get your TDEE number.
2. Manually set your MFP calorie goal to your TDEE - 500 for 1lb/week or TDEE - 250 for 1/2lb/week.
3. Eat to that calorie goal (including at least half your calories earned from exercise -- I eat them all. If your *only* exercise is a relatively short walk with the dogs and you otherwise sit most of the day, then you may skip logging that, probably) every single day for a month. Log carefully and as exactly as you can get using a scale.
4. Weigh yourself regularly (I do it daily; it's really up to you, but remember to do it around the same time of day and not to worry about fluctuations).
5. Bring all the data you collect -- your food diary and your tracked weight -- to your doctor. If you're losing, great! If not, you'll need to make changes, but with your thyroid issues, it's best for your doctor to guide you there.

My advice is just what I would do in your situation. I hope you find it helpful.

The estimates for café food are probably way too low. See if you can eat more food that you prepare yourself at home; give accurate logging a few weeks of consistency and see if that doesn't solve the problem.

I was on a 1200 calorie diet a few years back and it got to the point where I did stop losing weight despite eating only 1200 per day and working out like crazy Monday-Friday. The problem for me was it really was a Monday-Friday thing. Come the weekend, I would quite literally binge on anything I could find. I would have 2 massive bowls of sugary cereal, maybe some cookies and a few slices of toast smothered in butter JUST for my breakfast. Don't get me started on my lunch and dinner..! Monday morning I was back to being strict on my 1200 and exercise. I'm quite lucky in the fact that I didn't gain as much as I probably should have due to my very strict weekdays but I CERTAINLY was not losing.

It is SO important to track your food and don't go wildly off track. The odd treat here and there is perfectly okay but everything in moderation. It really is surprising how many calories is in food and it does all add up very very quickly.

Food scale is a must. No eye balling or guesstimating (in the beginning).
If that doesn't work, search youtube for reverse dieting

pianoplayer61 wrote: »

Well, you guys were right. I didn't think a little here or there would matter, but it does. I lost 2.5 lbs this week! Thanks for your encouragement. It really does help when you think its a lost cause and start giving up.

I'm glad that it's working for you! Thanks for coming back to let us know

I am glad to see that using MFP accurately is truly helping you- calories in/ calories out-

pianoplayer61 wrote: »

Well, you guys were right. I didn't think a little here or there would matter, but it does. I lost 2.5 lbs this week! Thanks for your encouragement. It really does help when you think its a lost cause and start giving up.

Hooray! Thanks for the update

Someone should keep track of all these threads where posters tightened up their logging and lost weight. @diannethegeek - I nominate you