can you still eat under 1200 calories a day and loose weight

vbradl1234
vbradl1234 Posts: 8
edited September 28 in Fitness and Exercise
Does it actually matter if you eat healthy? can you still eat under 1200 calories a day and loose weight if its unhealthy food eg Mcdonalds? Just wondering as although i am still eating rubbish as long as i keep the calories under and am loosing weight?


look forward to responses!

Replies

  • codexavellum
    codexavellum Posts: 112
    Yeah but it's not very healthy on two aspects. You aren't eating enough and what you are eating has no nutritional value to it.
  • Msaip
    Msaip Posts: 482 Member
    Ideally yes you can still lose weight. But here we are all about doing it healthy and making it a lifestyle. I believe there was a study that a guy ate nothing but junk but stayed under calorie goal and still lost the weight. Thing is these foods are okay in moderation but eatin healthier drinking more water will help you lose weight also but it will also keep you fuller longer...This is just what I've found. As much as I love wendy's cheeseburgers I'd rather get the chicken sandwich and I don't feel as crummy later. Your body needs at the least 1200 cals a day to function......it's never safe to go below unless you have tons of weight to lose
  • TheKitsune6
    TheKitsune6 Posts: 5,798 Member
    Yes, you absolutely can lose weight (Anorexia and people in third world countries with not enough food are a prime example). However it's incredibly unhealthy, impractical and (more often than not) unsustainable (this excludes, of course, if you genuinely don't have enough food or have a severe eating disorder). The best thing you can do is eat how you would want to eat for the rest of your life :)
  • donbet69
    donbet69 Posts: 133
    NO.

    Your body will breakdown that rubbish faster than a healthy meal and store it as fat quicker than a more nutritional one.
  • kieva626
    kieva626 Posts: 191 Member
    to be honest, I have just not like an everyday thing. but it also depends on your body and how it reacts, everyone is different. me and my best friend eat under 1200 calories a day and have done it with unhealthy food, did the same workouts and i will lose weight and she wont. but im no expert just speaking from experience. I eat out though for basically every meal of everyday and work out at least 4-5 times a week and still lose weight
  • 2bFitNTrim
    2bFitNTrim Posts: 1,209 Member
    The short answer is yes. It's just not very healthy. Years ago I was a tiny little nothing, but I didn't eat well. I paid for it when I fainted at work and knocked my head HARD on a table going down. :frown: I was extremely anemic. My best advice is to eat well, and maybe take a multi-vitamin.

    Good luck! :flowerforyou:
  • cloggsy71
    cloggsy71 Posts: 2,208 Member
    I think you need to be very careful. If your body goes into 'starvation mode' it will hold onto everything, so you won't lose weight...

    You'll have to monitor it and see!
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    You can but it won't be very good for you. If you were to eat McDonalds like once a day or once a week but eat healthy the rest of the time it would prob. be fine.

    Honestly, don't worry too much about the 1200 mark. You won't go into starvation mode or anything. I have a hard time hitting the 1200 calorie mark most days and I've never ever hit a platu or gone into starvation mode. It's about whats best for your body and what amount of calories works for you.
  • kirkemorgan
    kirkemorgan Posts: 88 Member
    NO.

    Your body will breakdown that rubbish faster than a healthy meal and store it as fat quicker than a more nutritional one.

    I'll add to that, It depends on your size of coarse, are you 105lbs? no then 1200kcals long term will result in a metabolic drop, your body temp will lower and you will burn less calories than that 1200, that will suck, and yes you program your body to store as much fuel as possible, thats why people with eating disorders don't look like bodybuilders. BBers get rid of all thier BF (well, down to 5%ish anyways) A body in starvation can't do that. When I write diets, I cycle carbs in and out . 1200 cal day then 1600 cal day, works better like that.
  • SeasideOasis
    SeasideOasis Posts: 1,057 Member
    NO.

    Your body will breakdown that rubbish faster than a healthy meal and store it as fat quicker than a more nutritional one.

    I'll add to that, It depends on your size of coarse, are you 105lbs? no then 1200kcals long term will result in a metabolic drop, your body temp will lower and you will burn less calories than that 1200, that will suck, and yes you program your body to store as much fuel as possible, thats why people with eating disorders don't look like bodybuilders. BBers get rid of all thier BF (well, down to 5%ish anyways) A body in starvation can't do that. When I write diets, I cycle carbs in and out . 1200 cal day then 1600 cal day, works better like that.

    I think I want to try the line at the bottom there.... 1200 then 1600 (which Im assuming is a cycle). Thanks for posting on this and posting that part specifically.
  • vbradl1234
    vbradl1234 Posts: 8
    thank you!

    i have been eating healthy as well but i cant find anything healthy that will fill me up for as long as a mcdonalds would... i have tried a variety but nothing does the trick...
  • kirkemorgan
    kirkemorgan Posts: 88 Member
    NO.

    Your body will breakdown that rubbish faster than a healthy meal and store it as fat quicker than a more nutritional one.

    I'll add to that, It depends on your size of coarse, are you 105lbs? no then 1200kcals long term will result in a metabolic drop, your body temp will lower and you will burn less calories than that 1200, that will suck, and yes you program your body to store as much fuel as possible, thats why people with eating disorders don't look like bodybuilders. BBers get rid of all thier BF (well, down to 5%ish anyways) A body in starvation can't do that. When I write diets, I cycle carbs in and out . 1200 cal day then 1600 cal day, works better like that.

    I think I want to try the line at the bottom there.... 1200 then 1600 (which Im assuming is a cycle). Thanks for posting on this and posting that part specifically.

    Good luck
  • pverbarg
    pverbarg Posts: 490 Member
    it will make a difference in how you look and feel. My husband has lost about the same amount of weight as I have but is not eating healthy all the time - he's traveling and will eat what he wants and skips meals and is not working out. he commented this week that while the scale shows the loss and his pants are looser, he can tell a much more dramatic change in how I look with the same loss (and have lost lots more overall inches). Not to mention that I feel good and have much more energy while eating healthier and working out!
  • Lets_Do_It
    Lets_Do_It Posts: 202
    Yeah.... I tried that for a while.. I ate about 800 cal for a straight week... I will NEVER do that again!!! I felt weak, light-headed and didn't want to even move! I had a low blood sugar attack last night actually (still recovering) and I had heart palps, shortness of breath, and kept sufficating when trying to sleep. I was shaking and almost fell down the stairs. I drank 4 kool-aid jammers (loaded with sugar) and I had one this morning with a cup of diced peaches. I'm okay now, but still out of it.
  • Lets_Do_It
    Lets_Do_It Posts: 202
    Yeah.... I tried that for a while.. I ate about 800 cal for a straight week... I will NEVER do that again!!! I felt weak, light-headed and didn't want to even move! I had a low blood sugar attack last night actually (still recovering) and I had heart palps, shortness of breath, and kept sufficating when trying to sleep. I was shaking and almost fell down the stairs. I drank 4 kool-aid jammers (loaded with sugar) and I had one this morning with a cup of diced peaches. I'm okay now, but still out of it.

    My diet that week was- skipping breakfast and lunch and pigging out during dinner (about a 700 cal dinner a night) then a snack around 11 pm or so. I have no idea how people can live like that. I also noticed my body is used to doing that now... which frightens me. The average person burns around 2000 cals during the day (walking at work, lifting things etc) so I burned 1200 cals a day, 1 pound every 2 days almost- extremely unhealthy...
  • vbradl1234
    vbradl1234 Posts: 8
    I did the 500 calorie diet for 1 weeks and have never felt better than i did then i had so much energy andmy skin was really good and alothough I did feel hungry i had teh best results also !


    i think i need to find what suits my body best! its just annoying how long its taking me, i look at people whohave lost 20, 30 lbs and think how can they do it!!!!!

    i need more motivation!
  • realme56
    realme56 Posts: 1,093 Member
    Yes you can but you can maintain hypertension, kidney disease and high cholesterol which can be eliminated or control better with a healthy diet. i had a tall skinny blond friend who's lipid panel is off the charts high. It is what you eat!
  • ChantalGG
    ChantalGG Posts: 2,404 Member
    thank you!

    i have been eating healthy as well but i cant find anything healthy that will fill me up for as long as a mcdonalds would... i have tried a variety but nothing does the trick...

    Take what you had at mcdonalds and make the healthy version at home. I make a tasty burger that is under 300 calories all the time at home that we all love and crave. my 6 year old asks for it twice a week. Actually i went to wendys the other week got the chicken breast sandwich with out the sauce and made it a combo. i ate half the fries and got a diet coke. it was under 500 calories. It felt good to be able to eat out at a fast food place and not feel too badly.
  • Losing2Live69
    Losing2Live69 Posts: 743 Member
    It is not very likely to lose weight eating that way. You are taking in fat, cholesterol, tons of sodium...not to mention all the chemicals they add to their foods. Even if you lose some, that is no way to treat your body! I could eat pure lard and stay under my calorie goal...but is that good for me? No! I would not *LOSE* weight doing that.
  • k8edge
    k8edge Posts: 380
    Ideally yes you can still lose weight. But here we are all about doing it healthy and making it a lifestyle. I believe there was a study that a guy ate nothing but junk but stayed under calorie goal and still lost the weight. Thing is these foods are okay in moderation but eatin healthier drinking more water will help you lose weight also but it will also keep you fuller longer...This is just what I've found. As much as I love wendy's cheeseburgers I'd rather get the chicken sandwich and I don't feel as crummy later. Your body needs at the least 1200 cals a day to function......it's never safe to go below unless you have tons of weight to lose

    DOUBLE LIKE!!!!
    Well said.
  • LorinaLynn
    LorinaLynn Posts: 13,247 Member
    I enjoy the hell out of my junk food every now and then, like my weekly (sometimes bi-weekly) pizza. I'm not much into fast foods, though. They just don't satisfy me. A home-grilled burger, though... I can tear that up!

    That said, while you'll lose weight, what you ideally want to do is lose FAT. That takes exercise and healthy eating.
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