Confused about the 1200 base. Too little!

I agree that for any normal person 1200 is very low, but for anyone who has had RNY gastric bypass surgery, 1200 is on the high side of the recommended daily intake. Maybe this lower limit is taking that into consideration.

I too find it really low so no matter what I'm doing or what the day is like I always try to get some exercise in so I can eat more If you still find it too low than you can adjust your goals to lose 1/2 lbs a week instead of 1 lb.

Your base should be 500 below your TDEE, not your BMR.

It sounds like for you, 1200 is far too low. Increase those cals!

well sometimes....most times i end up going over my calories but I make up for it in exercising for the day which balances me out...so I'd say to at least burn enough calories that'd take away from one of your meals for the day. that may work.

It is a base, but I find it to be WAY too low. I never go below 1500-1600. For me, that is my low base. Try and figure out what works best for you.

It is all based on how much you weigh, how much you lose and how active you are in general. The heavier you are or more active you are, the less likely, 1200 calories will be enough. And Remember, if you exercise at all, the calories you take in should always be over 1200 or you will go into starvation mode. I lost 45 pounds before coming to this site by eating 1600 calories a day and exercising 4 times per week. Now, I need to eat less than that in order to continue losing.

I think it depends on your activity level too. I have mine set at 1200 but I feel like anything between 1200-1500 is a good day. and I may eat more than 1500 on a heavy exercise day.

For people with large fat stores (in the obese category or the upper ranges of overweight), the target of 1200 isn't too low because there is not really the same danger of starvation mode and 1200 is sufficient to get adequate nutrients from the food you do eat. I think that it is key to listen to our bodies, and if your body is telling you that it's not enough, then it probably isn't enough.

As for your 1500 minimum, if you selected the maximum 2 pounds a week, then that is the 1000 calorie deficit that MFP should have calculated from the 2500 TDEE. Did MFP give you the 1200 number, or did you just try it out on your own?

7 weeks to lose 8lbs??? Girl cut all starches, breads, rice etc... And you'll lose those pounds in about 3-4 weeks!

I only have 1200 and to be honest i have not lost a thing, like you the minute i eat a little over i gain! How can this be when that is what i should be eating to maintain. I'm 31, surely my metabolism hasn't given up already! I do have PCOS and IBS so whether these affect it i dont know.

I have 7 weeks to lose 8lb, at this rate im never going to lose it! :-(

7 weeks to lose 8lbs??? Girl cut all starches, breads, rice etc... And you'll lose those pounds in about 3-4 weeks!

I have my daily calorie goal set between 1700-1800. Now that I have switched over to eating nutrient-dense foods (whole and plant-based), I find that I often get full at around 1200 calories and some days, I cannot even fit that many in. I eat a LOT of food, but I try to make it mostly veggies, fruits and whole grains with no added fats. It is very satisfying and my weight loss rate is much faster than it was when I was just using moderation and portion control. Now I believe that WHAT you eat is the most important factor in healthy eating and weight loss.

There are many ways to lose the weight, but I cannot imagine a more pleasant and painless way than just eating healthy foods.

I only have 1200 and to be honest i have not lost a thing, like you the minute i eat a little over i gain! How can this be when that is what i should be eating to maintain. I'm 31, surely my metabolism hasn't given up already! I do have PCOS and IBS so whether these affect it i dont know.

I have 7 weeks to lose 8lb, at this rate im never going to lose it! :-(

Yes. One of the symptoms of PCOS is "unexplained weight gain". It is due to insulin resistance from the PCOS. If you haven't already adjusted your Carb/Fat/Protein ratio, that is the place to start. You might want to check with your doctor for your recommended ratio. My endocrinologist recommended reducing the carbs in general and sticking with complex carbs for the ones I do eat. The MFP defaults on the ratio are too high in carbs for someone with PCOS.

With the PCOS, because i have 2 children the doctors here in the UK do nothing to help me with my symptoms. I have fought hard over the years not to gain weight that i may have not eaten enough. Which i think is why the 1200 limit doesnt work for me. I do always seem to go over on the sugar part of the carbs. I do have a sweet tooth that doesn't help. The minute i do eat what my husband calls properly i gain.

I recently saw a nutritionist at the boot camp i attend and he said i wasnt eating enough on some days, so i increased my intake and hey presto! 5lb gain! now i cant shift it. What ratio do you think i should stick to?

My daily diet is usually the same for breakfast and lunch. Porridge with 100ml 1% milk and 100ml water with some drained sliced peaches. I have either a banana, apple or some strawberries mid morning. At lunch i have a homemade soup, either Butternut squash and red pepper or Tomato and Basil.

Dinner could be Jacket Potato with cottage cheese and beans / chicken, veg and a few new potatoes / bolognese with gluten free pasta.

I do have a intolerance to yeast products so i avoid bread except Rye Bread, beer etc.

Any advise your MFP friends can give would be appreciated.

I have been wondering the same thing, so after reading this I did a little calculating and discovered that yes, for me 1200 is quite a bit low. A happy surprise! I have now changed my daily goals. We'll see what happens. My fingers are crossed.

"Hello Folks,

So often people personal message me asking me if I think their calories are correct. It seems that people think there is some magical formula that only a very few can figure out. I see so many people on here just popping in numbers and following them heedless of what the numbers mean. I feel it's ULTRA important to know why MFP (and me, and a few others) gives you certain numbers. To that end I will try to empower YOU to be able to understand the basics about calories, calorie deficits, and why we recommend eating exercise calories. With this knowledge you should be able to easily figure out what your calories should be at for reasonable, healthy weight loss. So without further ado, lets get started.

1st things first, a few givens must be stated:

-Everyone's body is slightly different. ALWAYS keep in mind your numbers may not be exactly what MFP thinks simply because everyone's bodies all burn energy at a different rate. Tweaking may be needed.

- MFP's goals wizard is a "dumb" tool. That means it doesn't care whether a specific goal is healthy and/or right for you, it just subtracts the goal deficit from projected maintenance calories. This means that even if you shouldn't be trying for a 2 lb a week loss, MFP won't care, it will still try to help you get there.

-1200 calories is a generic number. It's not right for everyone. It's a baseline minimum given out as a floor by MFP based on prior research by the medical community. NOT everyone will need a minimum of 1200, very small people can go under, and bigger people need more.


OK with those facts firmly set in your mind (please go back and re-read the givens until you have them firmly planted in your skull!), we can continue. Figuring out your perfect deficit isn't magic, it's a few simple formula's base on some basic, worldwide standards, and generally with slight modefication, will work for just about anyone who (besides weight) is generally healthy.

Here's what you need:
Height, weight, age, activity level, sex

NOTE: activity level isn't as mysterious as it sounds. If you have a desk job, and do very little walking throughout the day and don't really perform any sports or physical activities, then you are sedentary, if you do some walking every day (or at least 4 days a week) or other light activity for at least 30 minutes cumulative at least 4 times a week, you are lightly active. If you do 60 minutes of light activity 5 days a week or do some kind of sport that requires walking or light jogging (say swimming or mailman or warehouse employee) then you are active, If you do a physically demanding activity (one that makes you sweat) for 4 days a week or more and for more than 1 hour a day, you are very active (like a coach that runs drills or you play volleyball). When in doubt, go down 1 level, you'd rather burn more than you think than less.

With all these numbers you can generate your BMI. Now I realize BMI is flawed, but for what we're doing it's good enough. After years on here, and doing lots and lots of research, I've been able to associate general BMI ranges with approximate goal levels. This works for about 80 to 85% of people out there (there's always a few that are outside the curve).

So now we can figure out where your goal should be.
Go to the tools section and figure out your BMI:

Generally someone with a BMI over 32 can do a 1000 calorie a day (2 lbs a week) deficit
With a BMI of 30 to 32 a deficit of 750 calories is generally correct (about 1.5 lbs a week)
With a BMI of 28 to 30 a deficit of 500 calories is about right (about 1 lb a week)
With a BMI of 26 to 28 a deficit of about 300 calories is perfect (about 1/2 lb a week)
and below 26... well this is where we get fuzzy. See now you're no longer talking about being overweight, so while it's still ok to have a small deficit, you really should shift your focus more towards muscle building, and reducing fat. This means it is EXTRA important to eat your exercise calories as your body needs to KNOW it's ok to burn fat stores, and the only way it will know is if you keep giving it the calories it needs to not enter the famine response (starvation mode).

With this quick guide you can figure out your goal rather easily. I know many people will say "I can't eat my exercise calories, I gain weight when I do". Well I have news for you, that's not correct. I submit this, if you eat your exercise calories and gain weight 1 of 3 things happened:
1 you were previously in starvation mode, and you upped your calories, and had an immediate weight gain, that's normal, to be expected, and necessary to get your body on track. Give it a month, that will stop, and you, once again, will begin to lose, but this time, in a healthy manner.
2 you incorrectly calculated something, either your exercise calories, your calorie intake, or you put in to large of a goal. Go back and check all your numbers.
3 you haven't given it enough time to work. This site promotes HEALTHY weight loss people. Healthy weight loss doesn't happen in days or weeks, it takes months and years. Each change you make in how you eat needs a month or more to work, be patient, give it time. It will happen.

And to everyone who has a trainer that doesn't agree with eating your exercise calories. I also submit this: In 90% of the cases (and I have talked to a LOT of trainers about this exact topic) they actually DO agree with this method, you just explained it wrong.
Just saying to a trainer "should I eat my exercise calories?" isn't enough, you have to explain to them that MFP already generates a deficit prior to any exercise, therefore the deficit will remain whether you exercise or not. Once you give them that idea, and you are relatively sure they understand the concept then I'll bet they change their tune.

I hope this helps, it's pretty straight forward if you've been here a while, and to you new guys, I recommend going to the message boards link, clicking on the "general diet and weight loss" area, and clicking on those first few posts that have the little mouse trap next to them, they are sticky and will always be there, and are a wealth of knowledge about this site, exercise calories, starvation mode...etc.

regards,

-Banks "