1200 Calories Too Little?
CMNVA
Posts: 733 Member
Hi! I'm a 52 y/o woman who started MFP just about 2 weeks ago. I am 5'7" and weighed 156lbs. I have a fairly small frame, so while 156 lbs doesn't sound awful, it's WAY too much flab for me. Due to menopause, I was getting very thick through the middle and then my legs were starting to get big too.
So, I decided, enough is enough. I did some research and it appears that due to my age/sendentary lifestyle/current weight, I need to go down to 1200 to see weight loss. Now I have monitored my eating in the past and always tried to be at about 1600-1800 calories to slim down. That used to work. Now when I try that, it might be 6 weeks before I see a pound come off.
Two weeks ago, I started the 1200 calories. OMG, the first few days were miserable. I was so cranky and short-tempered. But I made it through. Here I am 2 weeks later though and I am down 6 lbs. I think 2 lbs of that was just water/bloating, so probably not a full true 6 lb weight loss.
Here's the problem. I'm tired a lot now. I never used to be tired and had pretty good energy. By 2PM, I feel like I'm going to fall asleep at work. Then, if I have an active day, such as on the weekends, I'm beat. Last week, after being on my feet a lot all day, I took the dog for a walk and was so exhausted I couldn't go around the block so we came home early. Who knew that all my gratuitous eating (and a lot of it junk) gave me so much stamina!!
So, while I'm pleased with the weight loss so far, I'm not sure 1200 is smart. I can't even imagine that I'm getting enough nutrition though I'm trying to make good choices. I know that maybe I should increase my food, but that's always been a slippery slope for me and I'm afraid I'll just go overboard. I don't have a lot of control with food so regimentation actually works well for me.
Whaddya think?
So, I decided, enough is enough. I did some research and it appears that due to my age/sendentary lifestyle/current weight, I need to go down to 1200 to see weight loss. Now I have monitored my eating in the past and always tried to be at about 1600-1800 calories to slim down. That used to work. Now when I try that, it might be 6 weeks before I see a pound come off.
Two weeks ago, I started the 1200 calories. OMG, the first few days were miserable. I was so cranky and short-tempered. But I made it through. Here I am 2 weeks later though and I am down 6 lbs. I think 2 lbs of that was just water/bloating, so probably not a full true 6 lb weight loss.
Here's the problem. I'm tired a lot now. I never used to be tired and had pretty good energy. By 2PM, I feel like I'm going to fall asleep at work. Then, if I have an active day, such as on the weekends, I'm beat. Last week, after being on my feet a lot all day, I took the dog for a walk and was so exhausted I couldn't go around the block so we came home early. Who knew that all my gratuitous eating (and a lot of it junk) gave me so much stamina!!
So, while I'm pleased with the weight loss so far, I'm not sure 1200 is smart. I can't even imagine that I'm getting enough nutrition though I'm trying to make good choices. I know that maybe I should increase my food, but that's always been a slippery slope for me and I'm afraid I'll just go overboard. I don't have a lot of control with food so regimentation actually works well for me.
Whaddya think?
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Replies
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You need to find a workable calorie intake amount for you. 1200 doesn't seem to be it. Any deficit will result in eventual weight loss. There's no hurry.
One pound every six weeks is still a loss.
I like 1350. I do make sure that I get enough protein and fat to aid with satiation.2 -
What weight goal did you put in your settings?
If you chose 2 pounds a week, change it for a pound or 0.5 pound a week.
It will take more time to lose the weight but it will give you more calories.
You need a diet that is sustainable in the long run.1 -
Well, you're only needing to lose a few pounds, right? I mean I'm 5'7". 156 is a bit too high for my liking, but 1200 is too low for my liking, too.
I'm a little older than you and I'm currently not working, so I chose the Sedentary setting and "Lose 1/2 pound per week." It gives me 1330. I don't like that a whole lot, either, so I take an hour walk every day and eat 1600-1800 and still lose...slowly, but I'm at my healthy weight of 144 right now. The 1600-1800 worked for that last ten pounds as long as I got in that one hour of moderate exercise five days a week.4 -
1800-1200 is a huge drop, there's no need to change things that dramatically. Pick a less aggressive goal. You're quite tall so 1200 is probably not even close to enough and this is evident from how you feel.
Eat more, make peace with slower losses. I have about 20lbs to go and for three months am trending 2lbs per month because I just feel like I'd rather eat more than lose a bit faster! It's also a nice way to ease me into maintenance.4 -
And at 1200, you may very well be losing muscle mass at a much faster pace than if you had a smaller deficit, as your body is very clearly telling you it need more nutrients. If you don't like the soft look now, you may be setting yourself up for more even if you do get your weight down where you want it.3
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Thanks so much for your responses.
So, yeah, I really would be very happy to be at 145 lbs. In actuality, I think the weight that is absolute best for me and how I feel and how my clothes fit is 140. I have found it hard over the years to even get near 140, but I was easily that in my 30s and early 40s.
So prior to me going on the 1200 calorie thing, I was probably eating twice that much in a day (hence the weight gain), so it was a drastic drop for me. And while I knew in my head that 1200 calories was probably too low, I've had problems over the last few years doing 1500-1800 and not losing *anything* for a weeks and then getting pissed off and giving up. I thought that a little shake up and early weight loss would psyche me up (and indeed it has), but the loss of energy is getting to me. I have to say, it was FABULOUS getting back into some clothing this week that had just been off limits because this extra weight has pushed me out of most of my clothing.
I think maybe I should go up to the 1350 per day and see if I then have energy to move. Right now, it's unrealistic for me to set any exercise goals. I'm a financial person and we're at the end of the fiscal year. Fun times. I am working over time on top of a full day and a commute. There's just no time for more than 20 minutes of something.1 -
Hi, yeah I agree with a less aggressive approach. I'm 60 and 5'3" with slightly less than 20 pounds left to lose. I recently switched my MFP goal to half pound a week and I am allowed 1500 calories. Most days I don't quite hit that, more like 1250-1350 ish. As you have less weight to lose, it takes longer but honestly even at my age I'm flabbergasted at how well simply counting calories is working. Keep the faith, log honestly and you'll do fine:)3
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And at 1200, you may very well be losing muscle mass at a much faster pace than if you had a smaller deficit, as your body is very clearly telling you it need more nutrients. If you don't like the soft look now, you may be setting yourself up for more even if you do get your weight down where you want it.
This^
At 1200 you might end up smaller, but still softer than you want. I don't want jiggly (over 50 also) so I eat more.3 -
Thanks so much for your responses.
So, yeah, I really would be very happy to be at 145 lbs. In actuality, I think the weight that is absolute best for me and how I feel and how my clothes fit is 140. I have found it hard over the years to even get near 140, but I was easily that in my 30s and early 40s.
So prior to me going on the 1200 calorie thing, I was probably eating twice that much in a day (hence the weight gain), so it was a drastic drop for me. And while I knew in my head that 1200 calories was probably too low, I've had problems over the last few years doing 1500-1800 and not losing *anything* for a weeks and then getting pissed off and giving up. I thought that a little shake up and early weight loss would psyche me up (and indeed it has), but the loss of energy is getting to me. I have to say, it was FABULOUS getting back into some clothing this week that had just been off limits because this extra weight has pushed me out of most of my clothing.
I think maybe I should go up to the 1350 per day and see if I then have energy to move. Right now, it's unrealistic for me to set any exercise goals. I'm a financial person and we're at the end of the fiscal year. Fun times. I am working over time on top of a full day and a commute. There's just no time for more than 20 minutes of something.
Well, another thing to consider is that stress hormones (specifically Cortisol) works against you for losing weight. It is stressful to under eat, and it is stressful to be in financials in October and it is stressful to get no exercise and (I'm presuming) not enough sleep.
I think just the fact that you have a job should afford you a couple hundred more calories a day than 1200. 1200 is for flat-out Sedentary. I'm sure you are showering, doing laundry, walking around your office. Why not compromise with 1400-1500.
Log your food accurately. Are you preparing all your own meals? Do you use a digital food scale to measure all solids? I found that the last ten pounds required extremely disciplined logging - every day for nine months.
If you are tired/fatigued - eat! Even those 200-300 calories will mean a lot to you.
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at 5'7" and your current weight 1200 is way too aggressive of a deficit. Change that to .5 or 1 pound a week and try to move more and yes exercise if you can (just find 10 minutes here or there if you can). If you do this the weight will come off, you just need to be on consistent amount of calories per day that is not below your BMR (this is bad), do that for a min 4 weeks and trend your loss.. you will also feel so much better.3
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Plus, as you do lose there's not a lot of room to go down any if necessary. I also worry about my bones and general strength now. I work with a woman who's about my age that keeps her weight down by eating almost nothing some days. Recently she literally broke a bone in her foot getting out of bed. I'd love for it to be quicker, believe me, but I keep telling myself slow and steady is better....And at 1200, you may very well be losing muscle mass at a much faster pace than if you had a smaller deficit, as your body is very clearly telling you it need more nutrients. If you don't like the soft look now, you may be setting yourself up for more even if you do get your weight down where you want it.
This^
At 1200 you might end up smaller, but still softer than you want. I don't want jiggly (over 50 also) so I eat more.
4 -
Hi! I'm a 52 y/o woman who started MFP just about 2 weeks ago. I am 5'7" and weighed 156lbs. I have a fairly small frame, so while 156 lbs doesn't sound awful, it's WAY too much flab for me. Due to menopause, I was getting very thick through the middle and then my legs were starting to get big too.
So, I decided, enough is enough. I did some research and it appears that due to my age/sendentary lifestyle/current weight, I need to go down to 1200 to see weight loss. Now I have monitored my eating in the past and always tried to be at about 1600-1800 calories to slim down. That used to work. Now when I try that, it might be 6 weeks before I see a pound come off.
Two weeks ago, I started the 1200 calories. OMG, the first few days were miserable. I was so cranky and short-tempered. But I made it through. Here I am 2 weeks later though and I am down 6 lbs. I think 2 lbs of that was just water/bloating, so probably not a full true 6 lb weight loss.
Here's the problem. I'm tired a lot now. I never used to be tired and had pretty good energy. By 2PM, I feel like I'm going to fall asleep at work. Then, if I have an active day, such as on the weekends, I'm beat. Last week, after being on my feet a lot all day, I took the dog for a walk and was so exhausted I couldn't go around the block so we came home early. Who knew that all my gratuitous eating (and a lot of it junk) gave me so much stamina!!
So, while I'm pleased with the weight loss so far, I'm not sure 1200 is smart. I can't even imagine that I'm getting enough nutrition though I'm trying to make good choices. I know that maybe I should increase my food, but that's always been a slippery slope for me and I'm afraid I'll just go overboard. I don't have a lot of control with food so regimentation actually works well for me.
Whaddya think?
Why not try 1600 or 1400 calories per day for a couple of weeks and see if weight comes down. As you said at 1200 calories you were miserable and this will likely result you falling back into bad habits (maybe binge eating also).2 -
Well, the work stress starts next week!!! So, the last few haven't been too bad at all. I don't sleep as well as I should do to the hot flash thing that happens at night to me. I would like to go out and walk or get on my treadmill but know it's probably too much with the 1200 calories.cmriverside wrote: »
Well, another thing to consider is that stress hormones (specifically Cortisol) works against you for losing weight. It is stressful to under eat, and it is stressful to be in financials in October and it is stressful to get no exercise and (I'm presuming) not enough sleep.
I think just the fact that you have a job should afford you a couple hundred more calories a day than 1200. 1200 is for flat-out Sedentary. I'm sure you are showering, doing laundry, walking around your office. Why not compromise with 1400-1500.
Log your food accurately. Are you preparing all your own meals? Do you use a digital food scale to measure all solids? I found that the last ten pounds required extremely disciplined logging - every day for nine months.
As for logging/tracking: I am using a scale for everything I can weigh. If it can be weighed, it is. I prepare most of my meals but sometimes if there are no leftovers (my husband is a big eater and also needs lunch) I will take in an Evol frozen meal or a Luvo meal to work. Once a week, I go out to Panera and have a salad and chili.
I think you all have convinced me to add a little more food back in. I'm just going to be bummed if I get a stall in the weight loss or even an increase. I probably don't have the healthiest relationship with food. For most of my life, I never had to worry and I ate whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. Ice cream every night, cakes, brownies, large portions of healthy food. You name it. I had these habits for more than 30 years so it's very hard to even have a small portion of any of that because I tend to lose control with it. So I'm really careful about what I eat. Basically I have to avoid any triggers totally. Adding food back in usually means I feel free to add triggers. I just need to be really careful.
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I'm 59 and 5'5". I've been at about 1200 for the last six months and find it works well for me. Now that I'm down to 153 (I started at 245), my loss rate has slowed to about 5 lbs. a month, which seems reasonable to me. I exercise, but not heroically. Still, you have to do what leaves you feeling well and able to keep it up long-term.1
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I'm 52 and 5'7 and still lose well on 1400 a day. Not tired at all. Tinker with what you eat and the calories until you find a good balance that worths for you. It's best to think more long term and sustainable. At 1200 I would not be able to stick with it long term but everyone is different.1
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I found 1400-1450 to be the best range for me when I was losing (41, 5'5") as long as I kept my protein fairly high (minimum of 90g) and carbs on the lowish side (100-130g). My energy stayed fairly consistent during and I didn't have any issues with being hungry all the time.1
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If you're not eating enough to have the energy to take your dog for a walk, that's counterproductive. Try booting it up to 1400 for a couple of weeks, and see what the effects are on your energy and weight loss.3
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It might also be helpful to try different types of foods to see what gives you the most "bang for your buck" in terms of fullness and energy compared to calories. I love spinach-based salads, and you can have a nice big one for relatively few calories. (I also like how easy they are to prepare, because I'm lazy and impatient! *g*)0
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I'm 5'4 and mfp has me set at 1370. Any less, and I'd probably give up. I think 1200 for 5'7 os WAY too little
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I agree with some of the prior comments, if I am understanding your post correctly. Going from 1800 right to 1200 is a large drop and a shock to your body. It is extremely challenging to calculate macros for someone without a really indepth look at many topics, like how you workout, your past eating habits, etc.
As far as your kcals, your body will eventually adapt to that level of eating and you will have to decrease kcals or burn more to keep the caloric gap. This is why making small adjustments work better, because then you have more to "cut" from later on it the diet.0 -
You weigh 150 now and want to be 145? With only five pounds to lose, do set your weekly weight loss goal to a half pound per week. A bigger calorie deficit is too aggressive for your current weight.
Since we're only talking 5 pounds, you may not see that half pound loss every week, which is normal and fine. When people are this close to goal, they often lose weight in whooshes, especially if they are stressed, which causes us to retain water. See http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html/1 -
kshama2001 wrote: »You weigh 150 now and want to be 145? With only five pounds to lose, do set your weekly weight loss goal to a half pound per week. A bigger calorie deficit is too aggressive for your current weight.
Since we're only talking 5 pounds, you may not see that half pound loss every week, which is normal and fine. When people are this close to goal, they often lose weight in whooshes, especially if they are stressed, which causes us to retain water. See http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/of-whooshes-and-squishy-fat.html/
Well, I started at 156 so I really had at least 11 lbs to lose (but more if I really wanted to try to get to my ideal weight).
What I was going for was to get SOME result after a week or two, even if it's a half pound. Historically, if I set my caloric intake at 1600 cals, I see NOTHING for 4-6 weeks. It's very demotivating. So I thought I'd start out very austere. Well, that worked. But yeah, I feel lethargic. I'm doing no exercise at this point but now am going to try to ease back into some calories and hope to start walking by the end the week.0 -
Use a TDEE (total daily energy expenditure) calculator to figure out what you should be eating to maintain your current size.
This link is a good one.
http://www.iifym.com/tdee-calculator/
It calculates your TDEE at 1555 calories. I used the info you provided in the initial post, sedentary lifestyle, no exercise, light intensity when you do exercise. Any tweaks to that will change (and probably increase) that number.
You would want to eat less than that to lose weight, which might be why eating 1600 calories isn't working for you. Try 1500 and see where it gets you.
As you are learning, starving yourself is not an effective long term weight loss strategy
Also keep in mind that just losing fat might not give you the look you want, you might need to be adding muscle as well.
Good luck!1
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