When to reset my days?

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ReBootBecca
ReBootBecca Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am on a 1200 calorie diet and attempt to stay as low carb as I can. I am looking to overall lose over 200lbs as i go on. I am at 402 right now.

Due to my life schedule I do not sleep at normal times. My usual sleep period is from 4am to 11 or 12pm.

Some days I have to flip schedules and I am awake during regular hours.

I attempt on all days to eat my meals at the same time each day if I can. Normal breakfast for me is about 330AM and I wait five or so hours again before lunch or a snack.

Will this affect my weight loss? Some nights I will have my dinner around 5 and not ear again until 330 but be awake that whole time. So, does the long fast still affect me the same as if I were asleep?

I am just worried how this schedule could affect my weight loss but I dont have the current means to change it.

Replies

  • Rodney_Mckay
    Rodney_Mckay Posts: 32 Member
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    It only maters how many calories you eat / 24hrs vs. the calories you burn. In this regard it is irrelevant wether you sleep regular hours or no. Although It would be advised to have a proper sleep schedule :)
  • Projectjustme
    Projectjustme Posts: 47 Member
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    I can only echo the last two posters - please go for as high a calorie goal as possible whilst still losing weight - you can adjust as you go on and if you are eating low carb, you will find that you have a nice boost from water weight in the first couple of weeks. Use the opportunity to retrain your eating habits and go for steady and sustainable loss - good luck and enjoy
  • asochable
    asochable Posts: 43 Member
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    Like others have said, I wouldn’t worry about your schedule (it’s not worth the stress). Plenty of people live healthy lives on weird schedules. Be as consistent as you can with whatever schedule you have and work on hitting your goals that MFP gives you for calories, macros, etc. and you will absolutely lose the weight! Slow and steady wins the race!

    Also, I agree about eating whatever MFP thinks you should eat to lose 2 lbs per week and no less than that! Which probably means more than 1200 calories :)
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,939 Member
    edited March 2019
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    NovusDies wrote: »
    Just because you can does not mean you should.

    It is very important that you are as happy as possible because otherwise the likelihood of failing is much greater.

    Every diet I ever started with the idea of losing as fast as I could failed. It practically took an anvil landing on my head to finally realize that it is better to lose slower and have a process that I could sustain.

    Please reconsider the 1200.

    QFT

    The support for 1%, frankly up to 1.5% when good levels of energy reserves are present, exists but it mostly has to do with loss of lean mass. It does not address, at all, multiple other problems that affect people who lose too fast.

    Personally I advocate a 0.5% to 1% with the limiting factor being a 25% deficit off TDEE. This being a situation where at least for a while there might be benefits to even exceeding 25% of TDEE in terms of a deficit. However slightly exceeding a 25% deficit does not mean going ahead and creating a 60%+ deficit! :frowning:

    In any case, the OP will have to balance the desire for going fast with both mental and physiological sustainability and I do hope that they will find a happy medium for the years they will have to spend reworking how they interact with food and activity.

    And a happy medium is highly unlikely to be found at 1200 or in making things too hard/harder than they have to be for themselves.

    A reasonable deficit over a long enough time will do wonders!
  • njitaliana
    njitaliana Posts: 814 Member
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    I have less to lose than you do, and I am disabled so I don't move much. And I still eat so much more than you--and I lose weight! I eat 1600 calories each day. You could probably do 1700 or 1800 calories each day and still lose. I have 67 pounds off in 8 months eating 1600 calories a day. Please reconsider your calories.

    Once before when I tried to lose, I did 1200 calories each day. After I lost a certain amount, I couldn't lose any more because 1200 is the lowest a person can safely eat. I stayed the same for an entire year.

    So, I checked how much I should be eating according to my weight and height and activity level, and I saw a dietitian, and it turned out I was supposed to be eating 1600 calories a day, not 1200. Now If I ever stall, I can safely go lower. But, in 8 months, I haven't had to go lower.

    An average-weight person needs 2,000 calories a day just to maintain their current weight. So, if you ate 1700 or 1800, you'd still be eating less than an average-weight person needs just to maintain. And an overweight person needs more to eat.

    Go to this page to see how many calories you should be eating: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/how-many-calories-per-day. Enter your weight and height into MFP and see how many calories it tells you to eat. It will be way more than you are eating now.

    Your schedule is fine. It's the calories that aren't good.
  • Maxxitt
    Maxxitt Posts: 1,281 Member
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    I personally end my MFP diary "day" when I go to sleep, usually at 2AM and then I'm up for the day at 9:30 AM, but sometimes it's flipped a bit and I apply the same rules. Sometimes I eat three meals a day and sometimes 2, sometimes I have a snack and sometimes I don't. Food scheduling doesn't matter. Nutrition does matter. Getting adequate sleep also matters.
  • ReBootBecca
    ReBootBecca Posts: 3 Member
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    Hey guys, thanks for the responses!
    I started at 2300 calories a day. Then moved to 2100, 1900, and just recently went to 1300. I dont plan to stay forever at this spot. As of right now I am eating my full 1300 and have not had any issues with cravings or feeling hungry. I eat my three meals and that holds me well.

    I got to be this size during college when I was constantly drinking energy drinks and eating fast food because I was on the go for 16 hours a day seven days a week. I am not addicted to food and actually am not a fan of sweets that much (I do love salty flavors though) I just am taking a more conscious effort to be healthy again and measure portion sizes.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    ReBootBecca wrote: »
    Hey guys, thanks for the responses!
    I started at 2300 calories a day. Then moved to 2100, 1900, and just recently went to 1300. I dont plan to stay forever at this spot. As of right now I am eating my full 1300 and have not had any issues with cravings or feeling hungry. I eat my three meals and that holds me well.

    I got to be this size during college when I was constantly drinking energy drinks and eating fast food because I was on the go for 16 hours a day seven days a week. I am not addicted to food and actually am not a fan of sweets that much (I do love salty flavors though) I just am taking a more conscious effort to be healthy again and measure portion sizes.

    What does MFP give you to lose 2lbs per week?
  • ReBootBecca
    ReBootBecca Posts: 3 Member
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    It started me at 2300.
    I am working on a zigzag method.
    I bottom out at 1300 and top out around 2100.
    Tomorrow I am going to a wedding so its gna be a high day.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
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    I think you should dump the zigzag business because it is unnecessary and keep your plan as simple as possible. The only advantage of starting with a fair amount of weight to lose is that you get to eat more food. You don't have to change that much and the weight will come off without much of a struggle. The other thing is you can adjust to new habits at a slower pace which makes it more comfortable and thus more sustainable. When I started my journey I was still using full calorie salad dressings because I could. As I lost weight and my TDEE began dropping I began prioritizing calories more and I have dropped to lower calorie options but I still ate an entire pizza today because I could.

    There is no reason to jump ahead and eat like a person who has a lot less to lose. Keep your plan as simple as you can, as enjoyable as you can, and change only as needed.

  • fitoverfortymom
    fitoverfortymom Posts: 3,452 Member
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    Another vote for more calories. 1200 is just asking for failure. You have a lot of wiggle room, so eat as many calories as you can and still lose. Unless you are in a doctor-suoervised calorie amount, 1200 will become u sustainable.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    Since MFP gives you 2300, that's what you should eat to lose 2 lb per week. Sure, some days can be lower and others higher than 2300, but 2300 should be your average..

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