I can't eat more!!

Just listen to your body- if you really can't eat anymore than I believe you are fine. Some people will tell you otherwise, but if you are eating healthy and getting enough nutrients then who cares! Sometimes I eat only 1200 and workout hard and I feel just fine and not hungry. I think it depends on the person...

I PERSONALLY do not eat back the calories I burn - I zigzag my eating between the 1200 and 1600 calories but do not eat back the calories I burn through exercise. I follow this belief, quote "You should not consume less than 1200 calories per day if you are dieting for extended periods. Diets which are less than 1200 calories per day are not nutritionally adequate and over a period of time, you may not be getting enough of certain nutrients." I AM consuming at least 1200 calories a day, I AM eating enough nutrutionally and am getting the certain nutrients needed - I am just choosing to burn them off AFTER the goodness has been absorbed by my body as a pose to sitting around. Like someone else said - listen to your own body rather than everyone's opinion. After all, we are all individual and the same rule isnt going to work for everyone

I PERSONALLY do not eat back the calories I burn - I zigzag my eating between the 1200 and 1600 calories but do not eat back the calories I burn through exercise. I follow this belief, quote "You should not consume less than 1200 calories per day if you are dieting for extended periods. Diets which are less than 1200 calories per day are not nutritionally adequate and over a period of time, you may not be getting enough of certain nutrients." I AM consuming at least 1200 calories a day, I AM eating enough nutrutionally and am getting the certain nutrients needed - I am just choosing to burn them off AFTER the goodness has been absorbed by my body as a pose to sitting around. Like someone else said - listen to your own body rather than everyone's opinion. After all, we are all individual and the same rule isnt going to work for everyone

I think I have seen you post this before... and while the saying is correct... you are interpreting it wrong... it is to eat no less than 1200 NET calories...

Nope, I don't go on NET, I go on what I consume. But it is how I PERSONALLY do it, not what I am saying everyone should do.

A body in starvation mode can lose weight, but it will not necessarily be healthy weight. That is, muscle will be catabolized as well as fat. Cells cannot burn fat effectively without adequate carbs available, so if you're not taking in enough calories, your body may turn to burning muscle instead of fat. Look at the Uruguayan rugby team that crashed in the Andes back in the 70s...the survivors were in genuine starvation mode for months. They lost huge amounts of weight and were in terrible health in the aftermath.

Diets for weight loss -- and fat camps qualify here -- are about extreme measures to lose as much weight as quickly as possible. This is not healthy and it sets you up for the post-diet regain of pounds because it entails temporarily entering into a dietary lifestyle that the body cannot sustain without training your body and mind to be healthy.

I'll use myself as an example. I started in April at 240 lbs. I'm six feet tall and could not do a single push up or walk more than a half mile without getting winded. I average a gross calorie intake of nearly 2300 calories a day while averaging over 500 calories of exercise. (That's with one OFF day a week included in the exercise average!) I net on average 1750 calories a day and have lost an average of 1.9 pounds per week. As of today that's 27 lbs. down in just over three months. I'm running a 5K in 32 days. I'll be biking 15 miles this morning on hills and will be disappointed if my average speed is under 15 mph. I can do 13 push ups now and began a program yesterday to work towards 100 push ups and 200 sit ups.

I understand the psychological hurdle that the dieting culture creates against eating. But look at any big loser on this site and you'll see the same thing. Starvation does not work long term. Long term success requires a lifestyle change that will become permanent.

One more note abut eating more...I've been on medication for hypertension for over a year. My avg. BP yesterday was 117/76. This is a normal, healthy BP and that mean's I'm on the road to leaving my medication. You are smaller than I am, so you should eat less. But I have lost weight, added muscle, improved fitness, and improved BP while EATING. Fight through that psychological hurdle and you'll see real long-term success. You can do it!

Physically, yes. Psychologically, no. I net about 300-500 calories daily because I workout. HARD. I burn around 1000 calories by exercising and I eat 1400 calories. I know people say that technically I'm starving myself. This is my first week on mfp, so on Friday I'll be weighing myself. Am I setting myself up for failure? I just CAN'T eat more. I feel like I'll gain weight.

Also, I went to weight loss camp and we ate around 1500 calories a day while working out ALL day. So does that mean according to mfp, we were in starvation mode? We lost about 4 lbs each week!

Since you have 60 lbs to lose, you probably won't notice it at first. But while you may initially lose 4 lbs per week, it's only coming partially from fat. The rest is coming from muscle, etc. Eventually you will stall - What that means is, in the long run, your have ruined your metabolism (meaning it's going to slow WAY down) and you'll end up losing less weight. And then, you'll be back here asking why you aren't losing weight.

Here's a hint... look at how long people have been here and how much weight they have lost. Then, do what they've done. You'll find that most of them work out AND eat their exercise calories. This is about a LIFESTYLE change, not a diet. If you don't make changes you can do forever, you WILL end up gaining your weight back. I can guarantee you... deprivation leads to cheating which leads to quitting. Don't deprive yourself.

It seems to be contrary to everything we've ever heard - but I learned the hard way. Until I was eating at least 1400 - 1500 NET calories a day, I didn't start losing weight. That means, there are days I eat over 2000 calories - in order to LOSE.

Your choice - eat 1000 calories a day and workout like a maniac (and destroy your metabolism in the process) OR eat MORE, lose more weight AND keep it off.

You dont always have to eat back but make sure the stuff you are eating is good fuel for your body. If you are looking for inches lost and not really caring about building muscle then this will probably do it. You can add calories with nuts and olive oil easily. Really if you a are burning that much you dont need a restricted diet then. Just eat healthy.

I know exactly what you mean. I joined MFP only last week and was stunned when the site told me to eat more. I'd always been an acolyte of the "eat less, exercise more" club, even to the point where I took that idea to the extreme. Turns out, your body can cling desperately to any and all fat stores it can if you don't give it enough energy to function. That was my big mistake. Now, after eating more, not only do I feel better but I believe I look better too (now I just have to get up the courage to check with the scale).

First of all, be sure to listen to your body. It knows what it needs more than us. But also listen to the advice from this site, it's got some pretty solid information.

The whole "eat your exercise calories back" thing was a new concept to me when I joined MFP. It seemed counterintuitive. But guess what? Here I am about to turn 50 and I'm seriously overweight, despite a lifetime of trying what seemed intuitive in terms of weight loss. So I'm trying it the MFP way, and my body is responding to it. I am feeling more energetic. I wake up refreshed. The weight is coming off at a good clip. My thoughts? Give your body the fuel it needs to sustain those heavy-duty workouts over the long haul.

I really think it depends on if you feel hungry or not. I hate when people say "eat breakfast even if you aren't hungry! Net calories under 1200? Eat, eat, eat!" If you TRULY aren't hungry, and have eaten your goal intake, regardless of how much you've excercised, then don't eat! Your stomach signals your brain when it wants food. If it's not receiving that signal, it's OKAY to not meet 1200 net calories. But if your body is crying out in hunger, then by all means - eat more.

Most people over think how much they are supposed to eat when they should really tune into their bodies. Listening to your body is just as important as counting calories and excercising. Your body is smart, it knows what it wants and it isn't afraid to tell you so.