Is my calorie in take too Low??
Elizabethg2394
Posts: 4 Member
Hey,
Quick question. I usually eat 1000-1200 calories per day, sometimes less, and I noticed that I'm losing weight at a very slow rate. Would eating more calories help me lose weight faster?
Quick question. I usually eat 1000-1200 calories per day, sometimes less, and I noticed that I'm losing weight at a very slow rate. Would eating more calories help me lose weight faster?
3
Replies
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No. The answer to not losing weight is never eat more. But 1000 is too low.10
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Eating more calories would do the opposite of you want, but you really shouldn't be under 1200 calories anyway. How fast are you losing right now?6
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Are you weighing everything you eat and are tracking accurately? I'm going to guess no, because you'd have to be very short and very old to lose weight slowly eating that little. You shouldn't be going under 1200 anyway.8
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1200 is a bare minimum, you should never eat below that or you're going to do more harm than good. Honestly, I think less than 1500 is being unfair to yourself.
Eat more. You shouldn't be trying to lose weight so quickly that your body fails to keep itself running/8 -
Elizabethg2394 wrote: »Hey,
Quick question. I usually eat 1000-1200 calories per day, sometimes less, and I noticed that I'm losing weight at a very slow rate. Would eating more calories help me lose weight faster?
What is your current height and weight? Are you using a food scale? How many lbs are you losing per week and how long have you been eating that amount of cals?3 -
How do you determine your calories? Do you weigh all solids and measure all liquid?4
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You're probably eating more than that, which is good.5
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100_PROOF_ wrote: »How do you determine your calories? Do you weigh all solids and measure all liquid?
...Actually, I just look at the nutrition facts and log what I eat in the fitness pal app.2 -
What do you mean by very slow?1
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Elizabethg2394 wrote: »100_PROOF_ wrote: »How do you determine your calories? Do you weigh all solids and measure all liquid?
...Actually, I just look at the nutrition facts and log what I eat in the fitness pal app.
Then you’re likely eating more than you think. Buy a food scale, weigh all of your foods on it, and aim for 1200 minimum.7 -
Elizabethg2394 wrote: »100_PROOF_ wrote: »How do you determine your calories? Do you weigh all solids and measure all liquid?
...Actually, I just look at the nutrition facts and log what I eat in the fitness pal app.
Then you’re likely eating more than you think. Buy a food scale, weigh all of your foods on it, and aim for 1200 minimum.
Yep. That^^0 -
What is your current height and weight? Are you using a food scale? How many lbs are you losing per week and how long have you been eating that amount of cals?[/quote]
5' 8", 170lbs. No, not using a food scale and I'm only losing like 2 lbs every 4 weeks, if that.
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Elizabethg2394 wrote: »
What is your current height and weight? Are you using a food scale? How many lbs are you losing per week and how long have you been eating that amount of cals?
5' 8", 170lbs. No, not using a food scale and I'm only losing like 2 lbs every 4 weeks, if that.
[/quote]
lol your just being impatient then3 -
100_PROOF_ wrote: »How do you determine your calories? Do you weigh all solids and measure all liquid?
Actually, I just look at the nutriotion facts and log everything I eat into the fitness pal app.
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Might be like me. I almost always under estimate my intake and over estimate my output.
Also, a "very slow rate" is a bad value. Is 60 pounds a week too slow? 1 pound? 2? Half a pound? 1 pound a week for someone 95 pounds would be super fast while 2 pounds a week for a 900 pound man would be a little slow.1 -
Elizabethg2394 wrote: »100_PROOF_ wrote: »How do you determine your calories? Do you weigh all solids and measure all liquid?
Actually, I just look at the nutriotion facts and log everything I eat into the fitness pal app.
If you aren't weighing your portions to be sure you are really eating the amount you think you are, you ae probably eating more than you think.
A realistic rate of loss would be 1 lb per week. Make sure your goal is set to that, get a food scale and use it to measure all solids as often as possible, double check that the entries you are using in the database are accurate (many are user entered and not correct), and eat the calories MFP gives you. With your stats, it would not be healthy to eat less than 1200 cals, but if you are losing half a lb per week, you are definitely eating more than that.5 -
If you aren't weighing your portions to be sure you are really eating the amount you think you are, you ae probably eating more than you think.
My biggest surprise was the fact most boxed cereals are 50% more calories when you measure the serving size weight as opposed to the serving size volume.3 -
If you are feeling low on energy then you are eating too little .. your body wont be able to out put the same amount of energy as it would if you were properly fueling yourself. 1200 is the minimum and depending on your weight and height it might be too low. Make sure you are acurately measuring and accounting for everything you put in your body. And try to aim for the ratios of nutrients that is reccomended . If youre eating 1200 calories but they are all carbs, its probably not going to give you the results you want. Good luck !3
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Elizabethg2394 wrote: »
What is your current height and weight? Are you using a food scale? How many lbs are you losing per week and how long have you been eating that amount of cals?
5' 8", 170lbs. No, not using a food scale and I'm only losing like 2 lbs every 4 weeks, if that.
[/quote]
Well you're very nearly at a healthy weight so
1. .5 lb per week is a good rate
2. 1200 calories is too low, but you're not eating that, since you're not weighing your food.
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Check out this thread, @Elizabethg2394. It shows why a food scale is such a powerful tool for weight loss.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10634517/you-dont-use-a-food-scale/p11 -
Well, I am 5’9” and at 180 pounds and eating 1200 calories/day, 6 intense workouts/week I wasn’t losing weight (had reduced from 205 lbs at that point). I posted the exact same question on this forum and took the advice to add calories and cut back a bit on the exercise. Added 300 calories and reduced to 5 workouts/week and the pounds rolled off. My resting metabolic rate was reduced to the point that my resting heart rate was as low as 48bpm during that plateau. I was reasonably fit, but there’s no way I was THAT fit. It rebounded to a healthier 60 bpm on a more reasonable diet. So, given your height and weight it’s very possible that you’re not eating enough. Tighten up the measuring and weighing for a couple of weeks. If that doesn’t work, and you’re satisfied you’re actually eating 1200 calories/day, you may want to consider adding a couple hundred calories/day and see if that’s helpful.3
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I was eating 1500 cal per day. I recently upped it to 1800. I am very active and upping my calories has enabled me to workout harder and longer. I feel soooooo much better and my body shape is changing for the positive. I am 5'6" and think I weigh 136. I put my body weight scale away and haven't weighed in for nearly three weeks so I don't know what my body weight is. I have really started paying attention to my macros and feel so much better and like my body composition better so the number on the scale is irrelevant to me.2
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Maybe it's just me but 1200 seems rather low for someone at 5' 8"...I'm the same height, when I put in 2lbs a week loss I still get 1320 cals (far too low for me so I'm flirting between 1lb - .5lbs a week)0
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You're losing 1lb a week so perhaps its just your expectations you need to adjust.
If you were truly eating as little as you say you are, your loss would be more. For your height your calorie allowance is low, but then you are actually eating more than that, so that works ok.
Until you start weighing your food you will continue to take in more calories than you think you do.
Aim for 0.5-1lb loss per week.
as an example, I'm petite and would lose eating 1750-1800 cals.1
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