1200 cals from carbs- poss weight loss??

R4sika
R4sika Posts: 11 Member
edited October 6 in Health and Weight Loss
I was just wondering if gaining/losing weight is matter of maths , i.e. amount of calories you consume versus amount of calories you burn, does it mean if i steadily consume no more than 1200 calories a day and most of them come from carbs, I will still be able to lose weight like 10 pounds a months (obviously with some additional moderate exercsie)?

Replies

  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    Weight loss is primarily about energy balance.

    That being said, I would not recommend what you are suggesting. Of the 3 macronutrients, protein and fat are of greater importance than carbohydrates from a physiological standpoint and assuming micronutrient sufficiency.

    Neglecting sufficiency in pro/fat will lead to unwanted problems that extend beyond the number on the scale.

    EDIT: Also, at your size, 10lb/month is not even in the neighborhood of realistic. Your expectations are unhealthy for your size.

    You should expect to lose about 1lb/week and plan your diet accordingly.
  • Sublog
    Sublog Posts: 1,296 Member
    Weight loss is primarily about energy balance.

    That being said, I would not recommend what you are suggesting. Of the 3 macronutrients, protein and fat are of greater importance than carbohydrates from a physiological standpoint and assuming micronutrient sufficiency.

    Neglecting sufficiency in pro/fat will lead to unwanted problems that extend beyond the number on the scale.

    EDIT: Also, at your size, 10lb/month is not even in the neighborhood of realistic. Your expectations are unhealthy for your size.

    You should expect to lose about 1lb/week and plan your diet accordingly.

    Yep ^^ Good advice here. :)

    Nothing really to add but to agree. Eat protein and fats - they are essential to your body and they will help you diet to maintain muscle mass, help with satiety and keep proper hormone levels.
  • HisPathDaily
    HisPathDaily Posts: 672 Member
    Find your balance ... but it's more then weight loss (at least should be) ... the more balanced you eat the more you'll simply feel (and be) healthy. You could lose weight on the oreo diet ... you'll just be real hungry and feel like crap though :) ...
    I was just wondering if gaining/losing weight is matter of maths , i.e. amount of calories you consume versus amount of calories you burn, does it mean if i steadily consume no more than 1200 calories a day and most of them come from carbs, I will still be able to lose weight like 10 pounds a months (obviously with some additional moderate exercsie)?
  • taem
    taem Posts: 495 Member
    You can lose weight from eating 1200 calls a day and with exercise. I know because I have done it. I don't know if it will happen to you though and I am not being sarcastic but it really depends on factors--just try it and see what happens. And yes, I ate primarily "carb" type foods (meaning starches), and legumes and nuts.

    Good luck!
  • NoAdditives
    NoAdditives Posts: 4,251 Member
    Weight loss is primarily about energy balance.

    That being said, I would not recommend what you are suggesting. Of the 3 macronutrients, protein and fat are of greater importance than carbohydrates from a physiological standpoint and assuming micronutrient sufficiency.

    Neglecting sufficiency in pro/fat will lead to unwanted problems that extend beyond the number on the scale.

    EDIT: Also, at your size, 10lb/month is not even in the neighborhood of realistic. Your expectations are unhealthy for your size.

    You should expect to lose about 1lb/week and plan your diet accordingly.

    I agree. While carbs are important for brain function, you don't need a whole lot of them. And, if you're consuming 1200 calories worth of carbs you aren't going to be very satisfied during the day. They digest quickly and you'll constantly be hungry. You need a healthy, balanced diet in order to maintain your health. And almost no one can maintain a 10lb/month weight loss. If you do that and eat primarily carbs you will end up losing a significant amount of muscle.
  • R4sika
    R4sika Posts: 11 Member
    Firts of all , thank you for the advise, greatly appreciated :smile:

    I know, i have to have a balance diet, but I am also a vegetarian... and to put it plainly LOVE carbs! i think I just need to train my brain to love other foods too. Also I ve seen here loads of people who lost 40 pounds in 4 months, 60 pounds in 6 months, so why it is not realistic for me ? And what type of exercise is more important , cardio or weight training?
  • taem
    taem Posts: 495 Member
    Weight loss is primarily about energy balance.

    That being said, I would not recommend what you are suggesting. Of the 3 macronutrients, protein and fat are of greater importance than carbohydrates from a physiological standpoint and assuming micronutrient sufficiency.

    Neglecting sufficiency in pro/fat will lead to unwanted problems that extend beyond the number on the scale.

    EDIT: Also, at your size, 10lb/month is not even in the neighborhood of realistic. Your expectations are unhealthy for your size.

    You should expect to lose about 1lb/week and plan your diet accordingly.

    I agree. While carbs are important for brain function, you don't need a whole lot of them. And, if you're consuming 1200 calories worth of carbs you aren't going to be very satisfied during the day. They digest quickly and you'll constantly be hungry. You need a healthy, balanced diet in order to maintain your health. And almost no one can maintain a 10lb/month weight loss. If you do that and eat primarily carbs you will end up losing a significant amount of muscle.

    Weight loss while maintaining muscle is going to be difficult with 1200 calories a day, I have to agree. I am sure I lost muscle and fat while eating 1200 calories and day and exercising (I walked and jogged).

    However, I don't mind losing some muscle because I lost more fat (and got off of my diabetes medication and high blood pressure medication). I am now in my ideal bmi range and I am concentrating on maintaining my weight and trying to build lean muscle.

    So, I guess the question we are asking you is what is your goal and what are you willing to do to achieve it?
  • HisPathDaily
    HisPathDaily Posts: 672 Member
    And what type of exercise is more important , cardio or weight training?

    The kind you do. :)

    I just can't get into strength training, I know I should, but I just can't. For me, the ONLY thing I found in years that I've actually stuck to is running (ironically the last thing I thought I'd stick to) ... people tell me all the time, "you need to cross-train, you need to do this, you should be doing this" ... yeah well ... I run ... deal :)

    Sure beats sitting on the couch ... so find WHATVER it is you like to do (even try new things, you never know) and just go from there ... what's the best? ... what will you actually do is the question.
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    . Also I ve seen here loads of people who lost 40 pounds in 4 months, 60 pounds in 6 months, so why it is not realistic for me ?

    Think of it in terms of a percentage of your overall weight. A 400lb person losing 10lbs per month is losing 2.5% of their weight per month. A 150lbs person losing 10lbs per month is losing almost 7% of their weight in 1 month.

    Conceptually, this is why it's not realistic. Your goal is not even remotely close to realistic and I'm not saying that to belittle you, I'm saying it so that you don't try and set up a completely ridiculous diet plan that will result in health issues or failure, or both.
  • R4sika
    R4sika Posts: 11 Member
    Oh, Christ!:ohwell: and here I am , thinking I will lose my extra weigth by March next year
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    Plan on 1lb/week on average.

    If you care about your physique, incorporate weight lifting and find a way to increase your protein intake. If you just care about the number on the scale, cardio+ just hit your calorie goal, to be blunt about it.
  • R4sika
    R4sika Posts: 11 Member
    i'm now boilng broccoli for my dinner tonight :sad:
  • wayhaps
    wayhaps Posts: 13 Member
    Hello! Being vegetarian doesn't mean you have to eat a ton of carbs. Beans provide a ton of protein (along with fiber) and are very inexpensive. Also, look into buying/making seitan. You could also eat veggie meat for protein, but I know some people don't like that.
  • nicolemariedwyer
    nicolemariedwyer Posts: 46 Member
    3500 calories = 1 lb.

    If you burn 3500 calories more than you eat, then you will lose 1 lb.

    So if you are trying to lose 1 lb a week, you should make sure that you are burning 500 more calories than you are consuming.

    If you go to the Tools tab and click on the tool that tells you how much you generally burn on a given day, that will help you get started and you can figure out how much more exersize you need to do to get where you want, that isn't always accurate though it depends on you, because carbs, and salty foods can have an impact as well.

    If you eat too few calories as well your body will go into starvation mode which will make it hard to lose weight.
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,321 Member
    . Also I ve seen here loads of people who lost 40 pounds in 4 months, 60 pounds in 6 months, so why it is not realistic for me ?

    Think of it in terms of a percentage of your overall weight. A 400lb person losing 10lbs per month is losing 2.5% of their weight per month. A 150lbs person losing 10lbs per month is losing almost 7% of their weight in 1 month.

    Conceptually, this is why it's not realistic. Your goal is not even remotely close to realistic and I'm not saying that to belittle you, I'm saying it so that you don't try and set up a completely ridiculous diet plan that will result in health issues or failure, or both.

    Here is a useful guide http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/61706-guide-to-calorie-deficits

    I realize you wanted it all off by March, but realize even at 1Lb/week you will be well on your way to your goal by March. For that matter if you lift heavy weights along with the cardio, you will preserve more muscle and get rid of more fat, so you body will look much better. Also, don't use just the scale to measure your progress. Get a tape measure and measure you chest, waist and hips at the very least as that is often a better measure of success than just the scale.
  • nicolemariedwyer
    nicolemariedwyer Posts: 46 Member
    I have a bodybugg that provides my with how many calories I burn per day too, which helps me.
  • HisPathDaily
    HisPathDaily Posts: 672 Member
    If you steamed it you wouldn't be crying ... just saying ;)
    i'm now boilng broccoli for my dinner tonight :sad:
  • havalinaaa
    havalinaaa Posts: 333 Member
    I ve seen here loads of people who lost 40 pounds in 4 months, 60 pounds in 6 months, so why it is not realistic for me ? And what type of exercise is more important , cardio or weight training?

    People with more to lose can lose can lose faster. The closer you are to your goal weight, the slower your weight loss should be for many many reasons. It's taken me nearly a year to lose 25 pounds! I probably could have afforded to lose more quickly in the beginning, but I didn't want to have to completely overhaul my entire life in one big step, so I broke it down into baby steps and know that my changes are permanent, as opposed to drastic temporary fixes.
  • MrsCon40
    MrsCon40 Posts: 2,351 Member
    Firts of all , thank you for the advise, greatly appreciated :smile:

    I know, i have to have a balance diet, but I am also a vegetarian... and to put it plainly LOVE carbs! i think I just need to train my brain to love other foods too. Also I ve seen here loads of people who lost 40 pounds in 4 months, 60 pounds in 6 months, so why it is not realistic for me ? And what type of exercise is more important , cardio or weight training?

    I am vegan and get 30%+ of my calories from protein, so you can't blame vegetarianism. Losing weight is not worth it if I am losing muscle. I like food and I like to eat. The more muscle mass I can maintain, the more calories I will burn at rest.

    10 pounds a month is not realistic. If you under eat in order to lose weight quickly you will not only lost muscle mass, but you will also slow your metabolism.

    Carbs are convenient when you're veg. You can continue to chose convenience but your metabolism will suffer.
  • auntiebabs
    auntiebabs Posts: 1,754 Member
    Plan on 1lb/week on average.

    If you care about your physique, incorporate weight lifting and find a way to increase your protein intake. If you just care about the number on the scale, cardio+ just hit your calorie goal, to be blunt about it.

    If you lose weight, but don't figure out how to eat so that you can maintain the loss odds are you gain back all the weight you lost plus MORE. So doesn't matter how quickly you lose if you can't maintain.

    Studies show the slower you lose, the more likely you are to keep it off.

    As for me I'm down about about 32 lbs. But I've been at it over a year,
    Starting at 175 lb I did...
    --- lose 1 lb /wk for the first 15 lbs, then went to
    --- lose 1/2 lb week for the next 10, then for the next 5 lbs every time I lost a pound
    --- I gradually added calories back so I'd be at maintenance (for my goal -5 lbs) when I reached my goal.

    So now I'm still losing very slowly and playing with my diet to see what guidelines I can wiggle on and what guidelines I'll need to follow so that this can work long-term.
  • auntiebabs
    auntiebabs Posts: 1,754 Member
    I ve seen here loads of people who lost 40 pounds in 4 months, 60 pounds in 6 months, so why it is not realistic for me ? And what type of exercise is more important , cardio or weight training?

    People with more to lose can lose can lose faster. The closer you are to your goal weight, the slower your weight loss should be for many many reasons. It's taken me nearly a year to lose 25 pounds! I probably could have afforded to lose more quickly in the beginning, but I didn't want to have to completely overhaul my entire life in one big step, so I broke it down into baby steps and know that my changes are permanent, as opposed to drastic temporary fixes.

    Amen Sister!
  • ShrinkingChelle
    ShrinkingChelle Posts: 187
    Keep in Mind 'weight loss isnt easy, if it were wed all be skinny'
    Not sure where this quote came from but Ive heard it a few times.
    Oh, Christ!:ohwell: and here I am , thinking I will lose my extra weigth by March next year
  • MattWilcox81
    MattWilcox81 Posts: 3
    There is also an information website www.expertfatloss.com which has excellent easy to understand weight loss articles and guides. I send some of my clients there for homework reading. I’ve been a personal trainer for 6 years and have studied weight loss and nutrition, the websites I mentioned contain accurate information. At least it’s very up to date based on recent tests and theories, a rarity these days!

    Anyone can do ANYTHING if they are prepared to invest a little of themselves.

    -Matt
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