Calorie Goal dropped to 1200

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smlamb33
smlamb33 Posts: 342 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Ok, everytime I lose 10 pounds, MFP asks me to reset my goals but even when I don't change my goals, it still drops some of my daily calorie intake. I started at 1580 and then it was dropped down to 1250 and now it's 1200 calories. What will happen when my body gets used to eating 1200 calories, will I still continue to lose or will my weight loss stop? I exercise 3x a week, so I get more calories on those days but, not on my off days. I'm worried that I will have no where to go before I reach my goal. Does anyone know if I will continue to lose at 1200 calories, since this is the lowest I am supposed to go for my body, so I don't go into starvation mode? I don't want to stop losing.

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  • mandie26
    mandie26 Posts: 59
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    You will continue to lose weight at 1200 calories. 1200 calories is the medically-recommended minimum of calories that women should be eating when trying to lose weight. The only catch is, the smaller you you become, the slower your weightloss will (probably) become....unless you exercise like crazy.

    But slow and steady wins the race!
  • absie107
    absie107 Posts: 290
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    okay... don't go that low... what also matters is the quality of what you're eating. do you eat a lot of sugary things? milk and grains? if you eat more vegetables and lean protein and drink a lot of water... that will probably help a lot. are you working out or at least walking and recording that?
  • epj78
    epj78 Posts: 643 Member
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    Is your "ticker" correct and am I reading it right that have right at about 100 pounds to lose? If so, I think 1200 is probably too low. Do you have your settings at "lose 2 pounds" or "lose 1 pound"? I'm trying to do some math in my head and I suppose it is possible at lose 2, you could be at 1200 (although your goal weight would have to be pretty low). I'd probably change your settings to lose 1 or lose 1.5 and see what happens.
  • Jeepinmom4
    Jeepinmom4 Posts: 298 Member
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    I'm bettin your trying to lose 1.8 lbs a week! I JUST changed mine thismorning from 1.8 lbs a week to 1lb a week. I went from 1200 calories to 1590 a day! I think 1200 is way to little. I'm pretty sure I was starving my body! I'm also,as of today, making Bette choices on what I'm eating! And I agree "slow and steady wins the race"!Good luck Hun!
  • melizerd
    melizerd Posts: 870 Member
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    MFP won't drop you below 1200 calories no matter what.

    What I found out was that *I* did not function well at 1200 calories (even with no exercise) and of course the more you exercise the more you NEED to eat. You should NET 1200 calories a day. So I found that when I exercise and eat back about half my exercise calories that makes me a happy person AND I still lose weight. I'm much more comfortable at about 1400 calories a day. I did have to change my goal from 2lbs a week to just 1lbs a week but have continued to average more than 1lbs a week. Today was day 305 and I'm down 63lbs ;)

    So it's okay to play with your food intake to see what works for you. It's going to be different for everyone and your body, mind and soul need to be happy :D
  • julielynnc
    julielynnc Posts: 14
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    When I got dropped to 1300, it was too low. Weirdly, I was just fine at 1400, but mentally something happened and losing that extra 100 calories screwed me UP. I just couldn't do it.

    So I manually changed back to 1400. And it's working out just fine. I am still losing without making myself crazy.
  • smlamb33
    smlamb33 Posts: 342 Member
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    Thanks everyone for all of the great advice! Yes, you read the ticker right, I do have 100 pounds more left to lose and I do have my goals set for 2.0 pounds a week. I exercise 3 times a week so that I have a few extra days of exercise I can add if I hit a plateau. I am eating lots of healthy foods, with a splurge every now and then. The only thing I have noticed, is that if I only eat 1200 calories sometimes I feel sluggish the next day. Maybe I do need to change my goal to 1.5 pounds a week instead of 2 pounds a week. Thanks again everyone! Your advice really helps! You all ROCK!

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