1200 cal! Could this be true?

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corona304
corona304 Posts: 8
in Introduce Yourself
I am 5'1 and lost 40 lbs before I joined. I have been eating less than 1000 cals and exercising about 3 times a week. I have been off the wagon for about two month and the weight is starting to creep back on. I would like to lose 50lbs more lbs. Can I really lose 2lbs a week on 1200 cals? That doesn't seem possible. There is so much to learn. I could use some pals to share weight loss journey.

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  • zxmarekxz
    zxmarekxz Posts: 17 Member
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    makes sense to me. 3500cals = 1lb, so if you're on a 1k deficiency daily x 7days would put you at 2-lb.
  • aWashCloth
    aWashCloth Posts: 198 Member
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    1200 calories is the average minimum a body requires to just do what it needs to do without including exercise (building new muscle etc) The more you work out you will need a few more calories than that since your body needs energy in order to keep it functioning. A car with no gas does not go very far! You can lose 50lbs no problem with 1200 calories just be prepared to put the added work in to get it off and keep it off =)
  • Leia81
    Leia81 Posts: 26
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    everybody is different. i have to eat 800 to lose weight...
  • tauny78
    tauny78 Posts: 180 Member
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    I'm 5'4" and started at 200 lbs. I've been on the 1200 calories/day and I have lost an average of 1.5 lbs. a week. Not quite the 2 lbs I would like to average, but I'm very happy with it. Good luck!
  • TamsHealth
    TamsHealth Posts: 3
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    Yes indeed AND you don't miss your favorite foods. For me, it's about food moderation. Tracking your caloric intake daily is educational and make it easy for you to bypass some of your favorites you enjoyed. No more Hooter wings for me!!
  • driaxx
    driaxx Posts: 314 Member
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    1200 is the minimum that myfitnesspal will recommend. I'm 5"2 and tried 1000 for a while + exercise but didn't loose anything. Now I'm on 800 and loosing.
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
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    At 5'1, depending on your weight, you might not lose 2 pounds per week. MFP just uses 1200 as the lowest number it will suggest. You can set it yourself to less if you like in order to create a larger deficit. (I'm just under five feet and I barely lose anything by eating 1200 calories a day, so usually I stick to around 1,000. Everyone is different though.)
  • MIMITIME
    MIMITIME Posts: 405 Member
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    Based on my experience so far, if you follow what MyFitnessPal lays out for you, you will lose weight. It will also caution you when you are eating too few calories which may put your body in starvation mode which messes up your metabolism and you either don't lose or may gain.
  • cathdrew2
    cathdrew2 Posts: 136 Member
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    All depends on your resting metabolism (what you burn just sitting around), your current weight, and the amount of exercise. I am 5' 1 1/2" (don't forget that 1/2!) with about 10 to lose and 1200 plus eating all my exercise calories back has gotten me a very steady 1/2-3/4 pound loss a week. I think that's great for the last 10 pounds. My metabolism is pretty strong (I have some muscle under there even though I am short) and I think it's a healthy pace. I know people with a resting metabolism that is much slower and they do go under 1200 to lose but I don't recommend that without a doctor's supervision. Your body needs certain levels of vitamins, minerals, etc. to function properly and long-term diets under 1200 don't provide them. I always recommend (and who am I??) gals look at sleep (sleep deprived folks lose very slowly, if at all), hormone levels (a hormone imbalance can cause weight to hang on), and a resting metabolism test. If the last one is cost prohibative, get a $5 pedometer at WalMart and track your steps daily for a week; under 5,000 daily (including any exercise you do) is considered sedentary and means you may be burning fewer calories than you think. Assuming you are rested, healthy, and not sedentary, measure your food, drink lots of water, move/exercise every day, and don't weigh more than once a week. You may surprise yourself at how 1200 calories can work.

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