1200 calories a day will be the end of me
Suly09
Posts: 88 Member
No matter how many pounds I tell FitnessPal I want to lose per week, I still end up getting 1200 calories a day. Ok fine, but I seriously feel hungry at the end of the day. I work out but because I don't have a fancy watch or fancy workout equipment, Idk how many calories I am losing so I don't know if and how many I should eat back. Help!
I am 5ft and 151 pounds.
I am 5ft and 151 pounds.
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Replies
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are you logging your exercise and eating back those exercise calories?
ETA:
Just pick something from MFP's exercise database that sounds similar and log that. Try those calories for a while.
Also: how much are you currently losing per week?
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No I am not because as silly as I sound, I don't know all the proper terms for the exercises I am doing. Also to be honest, I do a few sets of different exercises and I guess I am too lazy to input each one individually.
Just started back up about two weeks ago. Lost about .5 this past week.2 -
Maybe use "calisthenics" then? Or "circuit training"?8
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I usually have it set to lose 0.25kg a week (roughly half a pound), on either lightly active or active. That should get your threshold set above 1200. Then see if you lose on that amount.
I don't have an activity tracker either. You can use the exercise diary database to enter your exercise manually. It works just like the food diary. So, for example, you can put in "jump-rope, moderate", step-ups, walking and so on. That will add exercise calories onto your day for you.3 -
It seems like you ought to get more than that at your size, at 0.5 pounds/week rate, even if sedentary, though I guess you'd know.
Regardless, hunger pangs are partly about how much we eat, but can be heavily influenced by what we eat, and on what schedule.
Different people find different things satiating. Common things are being satiated by protein or fats or high volume (like lots of high-fiber veggies), but some people need carbs (especially complex carbs like potatoes or grains). Some people find specific foods very satiating (meat, potatoes, oatmeal, whatever). Some people find less processed foods more satiating than very processed foods. Poor overall nutrition can also be a source of appetite or hunger. There's no way to know without experimenting.
Also, different people find different eating routines most satiating, anything from OMAD (one meal a day) intermittent fasting, to all-day small-snacks grazing. Again, there's no way to know without experimenting.
In terms of experiments, your diary can be a help. Notice days when you feel more hungry or less hungry, and try to figure out what. Use that knowledge to experiment with a new routine for a couple of days at a time.
Also consider whether other things affect your hunger level: Common ones are insufficient sleep, stress, boredom, emotions, insufficient hydration, social triggers, exercise (or lack thereof), habitual triggers (circumstances where you're accustomed to eating), and more. If something other than food or food needs is triggering your hunger, food is not the true solution.
It's sort of normal to have an adaptation period to a new way of eating, where one is hungry, but it should only be a week or two for most people. Also, some women find themselves ultra-hungry for a few days at some point in their menstrual cycle, and adapt by eating at maintenance on those days.
Best wishes!15 -
What activity level did you choose - sedentary? Does that describe your typical day to day activity - do you work at a desk for example, and/or do you average less than 6,000 steps/day?
The reason you keep getting 1200 calories is that MFP must think your current maintenance cals, excluding exercise, are around 1450 or less. That's based on your height, weight, age, and the activity level you chose. That means that with a 0.5 lb/week rate of loss, a deficit of 250 cals will get you 1200 cals for your goal. A 1 lb/week rate of loss should be a 500 cal deficit, but the MFP minimum is 1200 so it won't set you below that, no matter what you choose.
Regarding your exercise - what is it? Cardio in nature? Is it a particular video or program? Circuit training under cardio is what I pick for a lot of the basic exercise routines where it would be light strength training and some steady movement. If it is using a particular machine or type of activity you may be able to find that as well.
By not logging any exercise, when you are exercising, that is the only choice that is definitively wrong. You are exercising, so you are burning more than zero calories, yet that's the one you've chosen to go with?
Have you read the stickied most helpful forum posts?10 -
No I am not because as silly as I sound, I don't know all the proper terms for the exercises I am doing. Also to be honest, I do a few sets of different exercises and I guess I am too lazy to input each one individually.
Just started back up about two weeks ago. Lost about .5 this past week.
You may be better off figuring out your deficit from a TDEE calculator which takes into consideration your exercise as well as non exercise activity. You subtract calories from that number and, manually input your goal into MFP and eat that amount whether you exercise or not that day. That way, you dont have to log exercise but still get to enjoy those extra calories.3 -
Thank you all very much for taking your time out of the day to help me. Many people charge for exactly this.
Yes, I work at an office and sit all day. I am very sedentary but I do try to get at least 30 minutes of exercise 5 days a week.
I do weight training with small 8 pound weights, or HIIT threadmill, or elliptical and sometimes also circuit training.
I do all this at home.
I find myself most hungry when I do the weight training exercises which I assume means I am losing more calories with those workouts.
I guess I just hoped that maybe 1200 calories a day was in fact too little and wrong.
Also this is very true. Thank you for confirming what I always thought but wasn't sure was true: "Also, some women find themselves ultra-hungry for a few days at some point in their menstrual cycle, and adapt by eating at maintenance on those days."4 -
Thank you all very much for taking your time out of the day to help me. Many people charge for exactly this.
Yes, I work at an office and sit all day. I am very sedentary but I do try to get at least 30 minutes of exercise 5 days a week.
I do weight training with small 8 pound weights, or HIIT threadmill, or elliptical and sometimes also circuit training.
I do all this at home.
I find myself most hungry when I do the weight training exercises which I assume means I am losing more calories with those workouts.
I guess I just hoped that maybe 1200 calories a day was in fact too little and wrong.
Also this is very true. Thank you for confirming what I always thought but wasn't sure was true: "Also, some women find themselves ultra-hungry for a few days at some point in their menstrual cycle, and adapt by eating at maintenance on those days."
Weight training actually burns fewer calories than cardio. I will say that very, very few women actually require 1200 calories to lose weight, and if you do decide to eat that little you absolutely should be eating back exercise calories. Not doing so will leave you hungry and continuously coming in at less than 1200 net calories can have many other adverse side effects.5 -
It's tough being a small woman in a world where portions are geared towards much bigger people. How filling those 1200 calories are will depend on what they're made of. 1200 calories of good protein, lots of veg, complex carbs and including some fats will be more satisfying than muller lights, mugshots, smoothies and ryvitas, for example.
For steps, you can get a good approximation with the step counter built into your phone. You can get inexpensive watches like the Mi band but it doesn't sync directly with mfp. For specific exercises, if you've done 15 minutes of a shred type workout, then log it as aerobics, or similar. If the name of an exercise is unfamiliar to you, then Google it.
It can be a steep learning curve if you're not confident, but you will get the hang of it.
I'm 4" taller than you but the exact same weight and at "lightly active" which is a slow day for me - I almost always gain a few calories - I'm allocated just shy of 1600 kcal to lose 0.5lb per week.2 -
Just started back up about two weeks ago. Lost about .5 this past week.
Just a quick hint to add here. With a modest deficit, the bolded statement may or may not be true in terms of fat. I say that because you could do the exact same thing this coming week and be +0.5. Beware of the small data window. Because of fluctuations, it can fool you. You probably didn't think much of this because the number was "in the right direction". But there will be weeks when the number won't tell the whole truth.
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"Weight training actually burns fewer calories than cardio" I really did not know this. I thought for sure weight training burned more calories since I have always heard that it keeps your heart rate up even well after youre done working out. I will incorporate more cardio now.
I do have the step counter on my iphone but I do not always carry my iphone so it isnt too accurate.
Should I be eating all my exercise calories back or just some?0 -
"Weight training actually burns fewer calories than cardio" I really did not know this. I thought for sure weight training burned more calories since I have always heard that it keeps your heart rate up even well after youre done working out. I will incorporate more cardio now.
I do have the step counter on my iphone but I do not always carry my iphone so it isnt too accurate.
Should I be eating all my exercise calories back or just some?
Strength training is still good and highly recommended in a deficit to preserve muscle. Many people only eat back a portion, 50-75 percent as estimators are often overinflated.5 -
"Weight training actually burns fewer calories than cardio" I really did not know this. I thought for sure weight training burned more calories since I have always heard that it keeps your heart rate up even well after youre done working out. I will incorporate more cardio now.
I do have the step counter on my iphone but I do not always carry my iphone so it isnt too accurate.
Should I be eating all my exercise calories back or just some?
Minute for minute, weight training burns fewer calories than most cardio. It may burn a higher percentage of calories post-workout, but in the sense of being a bit higher percentage of the workout calories . . . a bigger percentage of a smaller number can be a smaller absolute number than a smaller percentage of a bigger number.
Weight training is still worth doing: It will help you retain as much existing muscle as possible while you lose weight, which is very worthwhile, and it will burn a few calories.
Heart rate doesn't directly determine calorie burn, by the way: If it did, people would burn extra calories watching scary movies. Sadly, they don't.
How many exercise calories to eat back, at the start, is a function of your confidence in the accuracy of your estimates. MFP means for you to eat back every (actual) exercise calorie, but all we have is estimated calories. I estimated mine carefully, and usually ate all of them while losing weight (certainly do, now, in maintenance). Some people aren't very confident of their exercise calorie estimates, so eat back 50% or some such thing to start.
The "at the start" thing is important: We are supposed to take MFP's estimate of calorie needs as a starting point, estimate/eat the exercise calories in a consistent way (be it 100%, 50% or something else), then monitor our actual results while logging carefully for 4-6 weeks. After that point, we can look back at our average weekly loss rate, and adjust as necessary. The initial estimates just provide the starting point.
That said, if someone appears to be losing weight very fast in that first 4-6 weeks, and begins to feel otherwise unexplained fatigue or weakness, I'd strongly encourage them to eat more. That's a sign that calorie needs are underestimated, or exercise eat-backs are too lowball. Since too-fast weight loss is unhealthy, it makes sense to be conservative in that scenario. If one is losing "too slowly" at first, I'd still suggest hanging in there for the 4-6 weeks . . . sometimes water weight is weird, at the start, particularly if exercise changed.
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Agreeing with above. I've lost 4lb in 3 first 3 weeks of being back to being set at 1/2lb per week and I've been horribly hungry and a bit light headed, this week. As a result, I'm happy to eat at maintenance 2-3 times a week.
In my case, I'm only logging steps and don't do any specific exercises due to some physical issues but I'm constantly pottering and fidgeting so probably do a lot that doesn't register.0 -
Thank you, learned a lot in this small thread. I wish losing calories while watching scary movies was a thing though, lol.
I have heard that plenty of times (losing weight too fast is both unhealthy and unsustainable) so I want to do this the right way. I will start by slowly eating a small portion of my exercise calories and add more depending on how I am feeling and how much I am losing.7 -
Agreeing with above. I've lost 4lb in 3 first 3 weeks of being back to being set at 1/2lb per week and I've been horribly hungry and a bit light headed, this week. As a result, I'm happy to eat at maintenance 2-3 times a week.
In my case, I'm only logging steps and don't do any specific exercises due to some physical issues but I'm constantly pottering and fidgeting so probably do a lot that doesn't register.
I fidget a lot too! and am constantly shaking my leg (idk why)... but hey your'e right, I guess those are a bit of extra calories one doesn't consider.0 -
Agreeing with above. I've lost 4lb in 3 first 3 weeks of being back to being set at 1/2lb per week and I've been horribly hungry and a bit light headed, this week. As a result, I'm happy to eat at maintenance 2-3 times a week.
In my case, I'm only logging steps and don't do any specific exercises due to some physical issues but I'm constantly pottering and fidgeting so probably do a lot that doesn't register.
I fidget a lot too! and am constantly shaking my leg (idk why)... but hey your'e right, I guess those are a bit of extra calories one doesn't consider.
Your fitness tracker may not "see" or count those calories, but your body absolutely counts them.
More ideas here:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10610953/neat-improvement-strategies-to-improve-weight-loss2 -
I'm a little taller (5'2) and a little lighter (133), and I can't live with 1200 calories per day. The last time I calculated it out (based on my food logged and weight loss over a period of months) my TDEE was a little over 1800. This is with an office job and not a lot of intentional exercise. That puts me in the 'lightly active' (plus a little) bracket of MFP activity levels. I lose slowly on 1500, which is far better than starving on 1200, IMO. It's also more sustainable.
Just because you're small doesn't mean you must, or even should, eat 1200 calories per day to lose weight! Commit to eating a set portion of your exercise calories and log your food faithfully for several weeks. After you have a decent amount of data, you should be able to see what is most appropriate for you.2 -
I calculated mine on the IIFYM website and put it into MFP custom....you input your activity levels age height etc so it already factors in your exercise. I find this way easier...it has me at about 1550 cal1
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Just to add to the great info you've already gotten, look at your food log for the past 2 weeks and see if you're typically low on any of protein, fat, and fiber. One or more of these 3 tend to be filling for most people. Bringing any stragglers up could help. Definitely log your exercise in the cardio section, just something close if exactly what you're doing isn't in thete, and eat back at least half of those cals. I had to find ways to add more steady state cardio into every day to buy more cals - basically a 20 minute walk here, jogging in place while watching the news, stuff like that. An extra 100 cals built up during the day really can help. Hang in there!6
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I'm a little taller (5'2) and a little lighter (133), and I can't live with 1200 calories per day. The last time I calculated it out (based on my food logged and weight loss over a period of months) my TDEE was a little over 1800. This is with an office job and not a lot of intentional exercise. That puts me in the 'lightly active' (plus a little) bracket of MFP activity levels. I lose slowly on 1500, which is far better than starving on 1200, IMO. It's also more sustainable.
Just because you're small doesn't mean you must, or even should, eat 1200 calories per day to lose weight! Commit to eating a set portion of your exercise calories and log your food faithfully for several weeks. After you have a decent amount of data, you should be able to see what is most appropriate for you.
Yes. You can choose your calorie intake. Sey it to 1500 and see where you are in March.0 -
Teabythesea_ wrote: »No I am not because as silly as I sound, I don't know all the proper terms for the exercises I am doing. Also to be honest, I do a few sets of different exercises and I guess I am too lazy to input each one individually.
Just started back up about two weeks ago. Lost about .5 this past week.
You may be better off figuring out your deficit from a TDEE calculator which takes into consideration your exercise as well as non exercise activity. You subtract calories from that number and, manually input your goal into MFP and eat that amount whether you exercise or not that day. That way, you dont have to log exercise but still get to enjoy those extra calories.
This is what I was going to suggest too. I don't use the MFP numbers, I calculate using tdeecalculator.net and I don't bother to log exercise calories (I call all my exercise "1 calorie").
It gives me more than 1200 and i'm not starving.
Also, as mentioned above, what you actually eat can make a difference in your satiety levels, however you shouldn't be feeling starving. A bit peckish like you could eat more, but controllable peckish.
I get like that after dinner - like I could eat another plate full. So i have a frozen juice tube at 35 calories - suck it really slowly and it takes that edge off and is like a dessert.
Give TDEE a go. Might work better for you. And you can ignore all your exercise calories.1 -
Consider eating the calories for maintenance at sedentary level for two weeks with your same level and intensity of exercise; if you have a loss each week, that would be your approximate deficit.4
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It may just require some experimentation on your part. I'm 5'1" and lose with significantly more calories per day, but I did have to collect my own data to figure out my calorie needs. Before I had a fitness tracker (fitbit) I didn't know what my activity level really was (it was higher than I expected) and MFP underestimated my calorie needs in general. I tried to balance things out and slow my rate of loss by eating at or above maintenance a couple of days a week. Once I bought an activity tracker and used that for a couple of months, I was better able to manually adjust my calories on MFP. I suggest picking a number slightly higher than where you are now, say 1400-1500, and try that for 4 to 6 weeks and see where you are then.2
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I have mine at 1000 calories . And I even tried putting It lower & It let me. Also what foods are you eating for 1200 calories ? If ur eating calorie dense foods you should be fine. It’s all about what you’re eating , are you also working out?33
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Cartagenita wrote: »I have mine at 1000 calories . And I even tried putting It lower & It let me. Also what foods are you eating for 1200 calories ? If ur eating calorie dense foods you should be fine. It’s all about what you’re eating , are you also working out?
Why are you eating so low?5 -
Cartagenita wrote: »I have mine at 1000 calories . And I even tried putting It lower & It let me. Also what foods are you eating for 1200 calories ? If ur eating calorie dense foods you should be fine. It’s all about what you’re eating , are you also working out?
The OP was already starving on 1200. Why would she set it even lower?
Also, why in the world are you eating so little? Long term, that's not healthy at all!13 -
ladyreva78 wrote: »Cartagenita wrote: »I have mine at 1000 calories . And I even tried putting It lower & It let me. Also what foods are you eating for 1200 calories ? If ur eating calorie dense foods you should be fine. It’s all about what you’re eating , are you also working out?
The OP was already starving on 1200. Why would she set it even lower?
Also, why in the world are you eating so little? Long term, that's not healthy at all!
Many at that height find that their NEAT is only around 1400 calories, if not less. 1200 for weight loss with those that are vertically challenged and sedentary is sadly a normal thing, and even then weight loss is slow.11 -
Cartagenita wrote: »I have mine at 1000 calories . And I even tried putting It lower & It let me. Also what foods are you eating for 1200 calories ? If ur eating calorie dense foods you should be fine. It’s all about what you’re eating , are you also working out?
If your profile pic is current, you don't have have much to lose.. but no matter how much you have to lose eating 1000 calories and trying to set that lower is promoting VLCD.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10569458/why-eating-too-little-calories-is-a-bad-idea/p1
Hoping you meant nutrient dense foods. Calorie dense means higher calorie and can be not so filling, experiment with foods that provide satiety and helps feel fuller longer.7
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