Can someone please help. I’m so confused
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jenniferanderson3888
Posts: 53 Member
Ok. I currently weigh 191 at 5 foot and my age is 44. If I eat 1200 calories now how in the world am I gonna continue to lose weight at the same 1200 to get to 145? As we get smaller I know we need less food but I can not go below 1200. I’m just too hungry. Has anyone continued to lose weight till goal as they get smaller or did you have to go below 1200 to continue losing?
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jenniferanderson3888 wrote: »Ok. I currently weigh 191 at 5 foot and my age is 44. If I eat 1200 calories now how in the world am I gonna continue to lose weight at the same 1200 to get to 145? As we get smaller I know we need less food but I can not go below 1200. I’m just too hungry. Has anyone continued to lose weight till goal as they get smaller or did you have to go below 1200 to continue losing?
If 1200 is appropriate to start with then you can stay at that amount because your deficit gets smaller as you lose weight.6 -
It's extremely unlikely that you are maintaining at 1200 while weighing 191. I ran your numbers through a couple of online calculators and your basal metabolic rate, the number of calories you would need to keep your organs functioning if you were immobile in a coma, is about 1500. Unless you are completely bedridden you need more than this just to maintain.
If you believe you are eating 1200 and not losing, the first thing to do is tighten up your logging. Weigh everything, especially high calorie foods like dressings, butter, and peanut butter. No little things that don't get logged such as the oil to cook your food or your condiments. If you really are eating that little, and it's been several weeks, have your thyroid checked. But it's overwhelmingly more common that people who think they can't lose on 1200 are not eating 1200.14 -
Did you pick the “2pounds per week” entry?
Change it to one pound per week. It gives more food per day.11 -
It gives me 1300. But my question is when I drop to 1200 which is soon how can I stay at 1200 till goal if we have to eat less as we get smaller. I can’t eat less than that I have 45 pounds to goal. I think I get 1200 at 1703
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jenniferanderson3888 wrote: »It gives me 1300. But my question is when I drop to 1200 which is soon how can I stay at 1200 till goal if we have to eat less as we get smaller. I can’t eat less than that I have 45 pounds to goal. I think I get 1200 at 170
Because your deficit should also get smaller as you get smaller10 -
Put your stats into MFP to maintain your goal weight. How many calories does that give you?4
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As you get closer to goal you should aim for less than a 2 lb loss per week. The general rule for maximum safe rate of loss is about 1% of bodyweight per week, which means you're right on the edge of 2 lbs being too much now. Drop it to 1.5 lbs when you hit 170 and you should be fine.8
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As you get smaller, you will lose weight more slowly, but you’ll still lose. You should not be going below 1200. Make sure you’re weighing all your food with a food scale. Errors in logging can add up quickly to erase a small deficit.6
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good question!! I see what you mean.. it gives you no where to go. Maybe some small members who are you height and desired weight could help answer your question.0
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jenniferanderson3888 wrote: »Ok. I currently weigh 191 at 5 foot and my age is 44. If I eat 1200 calories now how in the world am I gonna continue to lose weight at the same 1200 to get to 145? As we get smaller I know we need less food but I can not go below 1200. I’m just too hungry. Has anyone continued to lose weight till goal as they get smaller or did you have to go below 1200 to continue losing?
A TDEE calculator estimates that even if you're sedentary, your gross calorie burn at 145 pounds would be around 1500-1600 calories. That means that you'd still lose weight at 1200 at 145.
I'm a little taller than you (5'5"), but started out around the same weight (I was 183), and older (59 at the time). I lost way too fast at 1200, and got weak and fatigued. I'd suggest you eat more than 1200, if you're too hungry at 1200. At 135, I'd still lose weight at 1200 gross calories (though I'm maintaining right now at 135, age 63).
Also, this:JeromeBarry1 wrote: »
Read that article. Really.
And finally, why borrow trouble from the future? Find a sensible calorie level to lose weight now, at a moderate and sustainable rate. See what happens in the future, and deal with it then. There are options to earn more calories from either added exercise, or increased NEAT (daily non-exercise activity).
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10610953/neat-improvement-strategies-to-improve-weight-loss3 -
I am 5’1 and down to 145ish after starting at over 170. Being older and sedentary at work, myfitnesspal gave me 1200 as my calorie target. I wear a Fitbit and am intentional about getting movement. I eat exercise calories back when hungry which averages me to 1400-1500 calories per day. I was listening to a podcast interview yesterday with Lyle McDonald. He said something along the lines of smaller women may need to adjust their deficit to be a percentage of total maintenance calories rather than cutting sharply. He seemed to be advocating very slow weight loss in an effort to retain muscle mass and in some cases bone density. 1200 is the lowest myfitnesspal goes for female when losing weight. But playing with the settings will help you get a better idea what maintenance calories are for you so that you can choose any calorie goal lower than maintenance that you prefer. I keep mine set at 1200 but I don’t stress about going over.4
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When you are shorter, you do get less calories to work with and may need to lose a bit slower. Look back at your log and see if you are typically coming up short in protein, fat, or fiber. Bringing any stragglers up to goal may help with appetite. Can you become a bit more active? I found I had to fit in some extra walks and workouts to buy myself an extra hundred cals or so to eat.15
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I weigh 131 at 5'6" and lose weight (.5 lb per week) eating 1500. the closer you get to your goal, the less you should aim to lose per week, so don't worry. you will continue to lose until you reach your goal, even if you stick to 1300 cals.4
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I'm 5ft aged 70 and I lost 51lbs, from 161lbs to 110lbs on 1200 calories from start to finish, so don't fret about it and don't think you have to go any lower than 1200, you don't. Of course you can eat more than1200 if you do some exercise. I did exercise bike and walking.
The downside is I gave up smoking [hurrah!!] and put a lot of the darn weight back on but hey I'm losing it again now at guess what 1200 daily calories.8 -
As a fellow shorty, I can say that you will still lose staying at 1200 calories a day. It will just be very slow towards the end where 1 pound a month will be a more realistic figure.
You also need to accept that to maintain a healthy weight you need less food than those that are not vertically challenged. At a healthy weight, you will probably find that your maintenance calories are somewhere around 1300-1500 calories although some find it to be less and some more. This is why exercise is great. It gives us more chances to eat those treats while still meeting basic nutritional needs.5 -
If you are losing at expected rate on what you are eating (regardless of whether that is accurately 1200 or not) then continue doing so (aiming at same time for a reasonably balanced diet and perhaps play around with foods and macros to see which combination is more satiating for you)
as you get closer to goal you can continue eating same amount - I did that, I didnt lower my calories as I went.
It just may mean your last leg of journey is slower weight loss - but that doesnt matter, you get there all the same.7 -
I weigh 131 at 5'6" and lose weight (.5 lb per week) eating 1500. the closer you get to your goal, the less you should aim to lose per week, so don't worry. you will continue to lose until you reach your goal, even if you stick to 1300 cals.
You would but someone that is 6 inches shorter may not. You would have to be really short to not lose at 1200 calories though.0 -
I’m 5’0” and started my weight loss journey at 190. 1200-1300 is my calorie range on a day with no exercise. I lost faster at the start, averaging about 2 lbs a week. Now I’ve lost 47 lbs and have 23 to go I’m still eating 1200-1300 calories on a day with no exercise and my weight loss has slowed to about 1 lb a week. I never eat below 1200 and I’ve never stalled or plateaued in my weight loss. I also started exercising more so I could have more food! On most days I workout I actually eat around 1500 - 1600 calories and still lose weight.5
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Another shorty weighing in.
I am also 5 feet tall. I NEVER ate less than 1500 calories. In fact, I most typically eat around 1650 to drop weight. Your weight and NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis - meaning how much you move around in the day) are going to be big contributors to how much you can eat. I am fairly active. I am on my feet a lot and have a higher NEAT.
As you go from 191 to 145 I would suspect that you will not see that much of a weight loss slow down. If you decide to go from 145-125 you will probably start to see your weight loss slow down.
How long have you been eating 1200 calories? What has your average weekly weight loss been?2
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