Do I need to increase my calories?

Blooperss
Blooperss Posts: 42 Member
edited December 2024 in Food and Nutrition
I'm 3 weeks into doing 1200/cals a day and I've already lost 12 pounds. I hover between 1200-1300 cals everyday. Started at 167 and today I'm 155. I don't feel like I'm depriving myself at all and I actually feel pretty satisfied day in and day out. I know a lot of this is probably water weight but I feel like the rate is too fast? I'm not complaining, just don't want it to burn me later on. An additional note - I'm also doing intermittent fasting unintentionally because I'm not big on breakfast to begin with. Any input is appreciated!

Myfitnesspal recommended 1200 cals a day, btw. If I'm hungry, I definitely don't hold back on going a little over.

Replies

  • wilson10102018
    wilson10102018 Posts: 1,306 Member
    12 pounds is a 42000 calorie deficit. 21 days, 42000 calories. You do the math. If your deficit is 2000 calories per day its too much. But, probably half of it is water and elimination.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,892 Member
    Sounds too fast, to me, if it's real. If you feel OK, and you're a premenopausal female, it's probably OK to wait until you have enough time in to see a full menstrual cycle, and compare the same point in two cycles. If, at that point, you see the first week or two as a noticeably faster loss rate than the rest, and still feel fine, wait another week or two so you can ignore those unusual weeks when calculating an average per week. Four weeks should be long enough for someone who doesn't have a potential monthly hormonal cycle fluctuation pattern.

    The problem as I see it (and as I personally experienced it) with eating too little is that one can feel fine, not all that hungry . . . until suddenly, you don't feel good at all. That's what happened to me. I lost too fast at first, because MFP underestimated my calorie needs, even with correct entries in my profile. (This is statistically pretty unusual, but it can happen.)

    So, suddenly, I was weak and fatigued. I corrected as soon as I realized there was a problem, but it still took several weeks to recover normal strength and energy level. Nobody wants that, right? :)

    It's not unusual to lose extra fast for the first week or two of a new way of eating (though it's not universal). You're still in a time range where that could be happening for you. If it's a temporary thing (i.e., attributable to water weight reductions plus less average food in digestive transit), then it's fine. If it keeps going, it's probably not a great idea.

    Best wishes!
  • PrismaticPhoenix
    PrismaticPhoenix Posts: 65 Member
    I'd be cautious with eating only 1200 calories (because 1200 seems like fewer calories than I would be comfortable with), but the weight loss that you're experiencing may not inherently be an indicator of a problem. In my first 3 weeks, I lost 12 pounds of weight (pretty much what you lost) and in the last 3 weeks, I've lost 4 pounds (i.e. my weight loss slowed down a lot, probably because a lot of what I lost in those first few weeks was water). So I'm going to second what @AnnPT77 said and advise you to carefully observe how you're feeling and reevaluate if it doesn't slow down.
  • Luke_rabbit
    Luke_rabbit Posts: 1,031 Member
    I find it helpful to make a new minimum calories when my loss is faster than I like. For example, you may want to start by saying 1250 calories is your minimum each day. If your loss is still higher than you want in a few weeks, make 1300 calories your new minimum.

    One time, I had about a month with no loss after doing this, but then the weight came off all at once and my weight loss was still on track. Other times, my weight loss just continued as expected (which includes lots of normal weight fluctuations on the scale).
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