I'm reaaaally really really stuck.

Suzay
Suzay Posts: 60
edited September 30 in Health and Weight Loss
Like, totally confused. Everything that goes into my mind about calories, fat, weight loss, exercising I look up on Yahoo! Answers.

I'm 117lb, 5'1 and 18 years old. I'm doing a 1200 calorie a day diet, but on Yahoo Answers people say this will slow my metabolism and I won't lose weight and all this. Is this true?

I'm actually finding it hard JUST to get to 1200 calories in a day - I snack on fruit even when I'm not hungry just to get upto the calories, so I'm healthy. I don't feel the need to eat all that much in the day so I'm finding it quite tricky. It's 7.30pm over here and so far I've consumed around 1100 calories.

Will this really work? I burn 300-400 calories a day on my elliptical leaving me with around 800-900 for my body to burn the rest of. I know it burns a lot more than that off throughout a general day. I just don't know if this will definitely work.

I'm considering doing toning and strength workouts along with my usual cardio. I feel because my weight is already considered "healthy" or "low" I probably need to tone up a bit to make my body look better. I'm going to start doing 3 sets of 15 lunges and squats each. I'll begin to do crunches once I know how to do a proper one - I think I do it wrong.

Okay so what I like and feel FULL to eat through the day is:
Breakfast cereal (bran flakes)
Wholewheat bread
Chicken
Salad
Apples and grapes
Vegetables
Ham with wholegrain crackers
Cupasoup or lentil soup

I don't starve myself at all. This is just what I enjoy to eat, I just want to know if I'm doing it right to eventually lose weight and shed some pounds.

This is my body image, I'm sorry if this is unacceptable to post or anything - http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/577/dfjfijdwi.jpg/

Thank you for all your help! Hopefully someones reply will change my life with tips. xxx

Replies

  • megrrt
    megrrt Posts: 115 Member
    how about adding some nuts or PButter? that will increase cal with out being to much food.
    It is really important to have a NET of 1200..no less.
    Good luck on your journey.
  • Rae6503
    Rae6503 Posts: 6,294 Member
    I'm not an expert but I really think you'll see better results if you eat MORE. 800 calories a day is NOT enough for your body to run. Go to your goals page and set your goal to maintenance. That will tell you how many calories (approximately) you need to maintain your weight. I would then change your goal to 0.5lbs per week (people with less weight to lose tend to do better at this rate). Then try to NET this new goal meaning eat your exercise calories. Also adding weight training will help you reach your goals.

    Try to add some more real food. Have a couple of scrambled eggs for breakfast. Have a chicken breast, or a piece of fish, rice and veggies for dinner, maybe with a glass of milk. It's not hard to eat 1600-2000 calories and still be healthy if you stay away from the really low calorie "diet foods".

    You are young. You don't want to damage your metabolism this early in life. You are already at a pretty healthy weight and in decent shape but I understand the desire to be better, and you can be IF you do it right. Be healthy should be first and foremost of your goals. Looking good is second. I know it's hard to not be happy with your body. I wasn't at 18 either (and looking back now, It was pretty damn good).
  • darconnor
    darconnor Posts: 49
    You are seriously not eating enough. At your age your metabolism is much faster AND you are exercising. If you want an accurate gauge...a medical professional can let you know what your BMR (basal metabolism rate) is and you can work from that. At this point you need NO LESS than 1200 calories including any extra you "earn" through exercise as a bare minimum. So you should NEVER have a net of 800 calories. Your metabolism will totally stop and screw you for the rest of your life (in my experience; been there, done that). My real suggestion would be to take your calories up to about 1500 and eat most (if not all) of any exercise calories. To get up the calories eat some good proteins (which your list seems to be missing) - nuts, nut butters, avocado, low fat yogurt - not non fat, cheese, quinoa, cottage cheese, etc. Even indulge in a couple of peices of good dark chocolate. Best wishes!
  • gregthegroove
    gregthegroove Posts: 98
    For your weight IMO I think you are doing fine. At your weight, it is going to be hard and slow to lose fat. Thats the problem with people that only need to lose 5-10lbs for example. You dont have the kind of room in your caloric deficit to get in a 1000 calorie deficit. So with that being said your should be able to get a 500 calorie deficit per day especially if you burn 300-400 cals working out.

    You will do just fine, its just going to come of at around 1 lb a week IF THAT. Sometimes it might be more difficult but I would shoot at looking to lose 5 lbs in about 4-5 weeks. 1000 - 1200 cals a day for your size is just about right. It also depends on how you feel. If your weak or hungry you need to adjust. GOOD LUCK =)
  • jayb0ne
    jayb0ne Posts: 644 Member
    Controversial subject the whole 'starvation mode' thing. Split opinion on whether it exists or whether you should eat your exercise calories etc. But I'll give my opinion from the research I've done into it..

    Eating a reasonable caloric deficit makes your body burn it's fat reserves. Eating too few calories makes your body burn muscle to survive. You will lose a whole bunch of weight through both fat and muscle loss but you're turning your body into a timebomb just waiting for anything over the tiny amount you've been getting to explode. As soon as there's a spike in your caloric intake (even up to just 1200, even for a day), your body will grab every last bit it can get and replace the muscle it's burned with fat as a reserve for when daily intake dips back to a tiny amount. You can't keep that low forever (without health issues arising) so eventually you're going to lose lean body mass and gain fat. I'd say on that basis that eating too few calories is an easy route to getting fat....

    Aanyway.. I'd recommend you to up your calories for sure. Make sure to have a proper meal for dinner. A sandwich is a lunch item, if you're having a piece of bread and a slice of lean turkey or nothing but a small bowl of porridge for your tea, that's not really a proper meal. Much better to cook a proper meal and leave half of it because you're full than make something ultra light and eat it all - you'll find you've eaten more calories without thinking about it.

    Good luck! :)
  • SeaChele77
    SeaChele77 Posts: 1,103 Member
    You need to eat more. Throw in some all nutural peanut butter w/ apples or celery, nuts, avacado, olive oil or protien bars to up your calories! You need to hit 1200. I too have a difficult time getting up to 1200, but I do feel better on days I reach or surpass it and the weight comes off easier. If I net 1200 or below I may lose .5lb IF that. :( Eat more!!!
  • gregthegroove
    gregthegroove Posts: 98
    I agree with jaybone, but I still think its OK as a temporary diet plan. 1000 or 1100 calories for a girl her size isnt that bad IMO for a diet weight loss plan. Im not a health expert, just my opinion.

    Also on a side note. Caloric spikes or different amounts daily through the week has shown to be a good thing as well. I have read and heard tons of people, especially people that workout 5-6 times per week swear by it. I wouldnt jump the gun on suggesting the body will act negatively by storing excess calories as fat. Eating the RIGHT types of calories helps too. Fruits and veggies will never steer you wrong as well as some lean meats and possibly a protein shake or 2 that has zero sugar or very low carbs will aid.
  • christine24t
    christine24t Posts: 6,063 Member
    I think you look pretty good, I would just start toning!
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