When they say no less than 1200 calories a day, are day including exercise ?

mylaizai
mylaizai Posts: 13 Member
edited December 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Let's say I get 1200 calories a day from food, and burn 200 exercising. Is that healthy ?

Replies

  • TonyB0588
    TonyB0588 Posts: 9,520 Member
    mylaizai wrote: »
    Let's say I get 1200 calories a day from food, and burn 200 exercising. Is that healthy ?

    On a day like that, you should probably eat back the 200 calories in extra food. Those of us on numbers much higher than 1200, are told to eat back half the calories we burn through exercise.
  • alyssagb1
    alyssagb1 Posts: 353 Member
    Generally speaking, your 1,200 should be your net. So yes, eat back those calories, or a portion of them. However, I don't think a 1,000 calorie net will hurt you - unless of course you net 1,000 or less for an extended period of time.
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
    We can't answer that 100% without more information like ht/wt/age and what you have your goal set to (2lbs per week)?
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,488 Member
    MFP calculates your deficit using NEAT- (non exercise activity thermogenesis).
    This means one is expected to eat back exercise calories.
    However, calorie burns are hard to estimate so it is best to eat back 50-75% of your burn, monitor over a month or so, then adjust that number up or down so you are losing at your goal weight.

    One may feel fine initially not eating them back, but quite often it can lead to lethargy in everyday life- couch potato so you can do your work out, and/or fatigue during exercise- can't go as far, fast, or lift as heavy as you thought you should be able to ( lack of progression).

    Off site TDEE calculators include exercise.

    Cheers, h.
  • fr33sia12
    fr33sia12 Posts: 1,258 Member
    I net under 1200 calories most days and don't see anything wrong with that as long as I eat over 1200. Today my net calories are 982 but I ate 1363, so as far as I'm concerned and MFP is concerned as I get no warning for under eating I've eaten over 1200 calories and that's good. I don't feel hungry or fatigued and am getting plenty of nutrition too.
  • Psychgrrl
    Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
    fr33sia12 wrote: »
    I net under 1200 calories most days and don't see anything wrong with that as long as I eat over 1200. Today my net calories are 982 but I ate 1363, so as far as I'm concerned and MFP is concerned as I get no warning for under eating I've eaten over 1200 calories and that's good. I don't feel hungry or fatigued and am getting plenty of nutrition too.

    Consistently eating under your BMR (what your body needs to maintain itself if you were in a coma) and most people's is over that, will cause a much greater degree of lean body mass loss. And strength training won't minimize that.

    You may be getting adequate nutrition, but you're not giving your body adequate fuel (calories).
  • Vegplotter
    Vegplotter Posts: 265 Member
    Psychgrrl wrote: »
    fr33sia12 wrote: »
    I net under 1200 calories most days and don't see anything wrong with that as long as I eat over 1200. Today my net calories are 982 but I ate 1363, so as far as I'm concerned and MFP is concerned as I get no warning for under eating I've eaten over 1200 calories and that's good. I don't feel hungry or fatigued and am getting plenty of nutrition too.

    Consistently eating under your BMR (what your body needs to maintain itself if you were in a coma) and most people's is over that, will cause a much greater degree of lean body mass loss. And strength training won't minimize that.

    You may be getting adequate nutrition, but you're not giving your body adequate fuel (calories).

    This is a dieting myth. The 'fuel' will come from fat stores, not muscle. The reason why dieting websites worry about calories is because anorexics try to eat as few calories as possible. They don't have fat stores and it eventually kills them, depleting brain, organs, muscle and bones.
    The normally fat can eat below their BMR because the body uses up fat stores first.
    If you're doctor puts you on a diet because you are obese or morbidly obese, the calorie count will be much less.
    But beware; it's quite difficult to eat a balanced diet with this type of regime. It needs added vitamins and medical supervision , to check iron levels etc.
    The lower you go the better your nutrition has to be and the shorter time you need to be there. 8-12weeks is the normal medical recommendation.
    The other problem with eating so little is coming off the diet. I think that's why loads of dieters, cutting back to lose those final few pounds, succumb to binging during maintenance.
    It's okay to start low, but better to raise your calorie level as you approach maintenance.
    I'd advise the OP that if you are overweight now 1200 or 1400 should be fine, but as you get thinner consider increasing activity levels and gradually increasing calorie intake as well. You need to come gently into land.
    Good luck.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    I eat usually over 1400 calories and usually under 1500 calories daily. I log "standing at desk, working" as an exercise that burns 51 calories per hour. 8 hours of that is 408 calories. I log shopping at Wal-Mart as 1 hour of walking, 2.0 mph, which claims about 240 calories. I even log my treadmill cardio exercising and get 350 calories for that. I can easily net below 1000 calories. I see my doctor quarterly and she has applauded my weight loss. Last week was my annual physical. She saw that my total blood protein was 6.3 (normal range is 6.0-8.4) and she wanted me to eat more protein. Dr. did not say "more calories", but said "more protein" without specifying a number of grams. My previous target for protein had been 100 g, now I've raised it to 125 g. I'm 54, 5'10" 202.6 lb.

    I've been on this journey since January 25, and this is the first time she has expressed concern with this trend.

    Therefore, you may be able to get an idea of what an "extended time" is in which concerns shall arise with your low net intake. I strongly recommend that you reset your weight loss goal to 1lb per week or 0.5 lb per week so that you can net above 1200 calories daily.
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