1200 calories

yOU NEED TO MAKE SURE YOUR EATING 3 MEALS A DAY, COUNTING SNACKS AND DRINKS.

my problem is i am under my 1200 limit some days i just eat 7-900 a day so its kind of hurting when i excercise

Not to be rude, but odds are you can eat 1200 calories. Else wise you wouldn't be here.

You won't lose weight on a 1200 calorie diet with exercising, because you've increased the deficit and your body will retain what it gets, because it thinks you're in a famine. So, eat and eat healthfully when you feel hungry. Think of it this way; if you don't eat, you'll gain weight and your metabolism will slow down (especially with the added stress of exercise - which you're not eating enough to maintain). If you eat, you'll perform better at the gym or where ever you're working out and you'll lose that weight.

Need nutritious ways to get more *calories: eat avocados, have a banana with peanut butter as a snack, add veggies to all meals, have some honey with your tea and eat some nuts with dried fruit.

You can have the foods you like in moderation and that'll definitely help get your counts up. Don't lose hope.

Try to include snacks or meals that have plenty of protein. I like to keep a packet of smoked lox or salmon in the fridge; it's easy at breakfast time to just grab a few pieces and fuel up for the day without even having to cook anything. Raw unsalted mixed nuts are a good choice too. I love almond butter. I like Aidell's sausages too, although I have to check the labels to get the kinds with no added sugar. Cheese sticks are a quick easy option. Definitely bananas; at a 100 cals each, just a couple a day adds up, plus they are loaded with potassium which is all good. You can boil some eggs ahead of time and then keep them in the fridge and grab one anytime; that's about 80 cals there and all protein and healthy fats. Hummus is a great high-protein choice and full of fiber as well, maybe with some carrot sticks?

When I started. MFP set me at 1200. I lost, I stayed under. I lost weight for 2 months at about 1.5 to 2 Lbs a week. After 2 months I plateaued. I changed my goal to 1300, trying to eat 1500 and net at 1300. lost weight after I changed. Been doing research and talking with MFP fieinds and feel yes you do need to net atleast 1200.

Can't? Cannot? You CAN'T eat that many calories??? Buy yourself a bar of dark chocolate and go to town on that badboy. Seriously, if you can't eat MORE food, eat more calorie-dense foods.

"I can't eat all those calories!"

Yes you can. If you couldn't eat 1200 calories you wouldn't need to be losing weight.

Wow! Are you people being real? The only time I have a hard time eating my calories is when I do some massive workout that burns 1,000 calories or something. Then I just have a hard time eating back the exercise calories. But on a typical day I have NO problem whatsoever eating my calories. And heck...I'm set to 1750!

How is this possible that so many people feel this way? I have two probably very ignorant theories.

1) Maybe you are not logging correctly? I log every bite and crumb that passes through my lips. Liquid calories, condiments, everything! It adds up quickly.

2) Maybe you are very sedentary? I need my calories just to get through my very active days. But on my sick days where I sit on the couch all day, I need very little.

I just don't understand this at all. Enlighten me on how you can be in a position where you need to lose weight and yet you are struggling to eat 1200 calories a day. It makes no sense.

Not to be rude, but odds are you can eat 1200 calories. Else wise you wouldn't be here.

You won't lose weight on a 1200 calorie diet with exercising, because you've increased the deficit and your body will retain what it gets, because it thinks you're in a famine. So, eat and eat healthfully when you feel hungry. Think of it this way; if you don't eat, you'll gain weight and your metabolism will slow down (especially with the added stress of exercise - which you're not eating enough to maintain). If you eat, you'll perform better at the gym or where ever you're working out and you'll lose that weight.

Need nutritious ways to get more *calories: eat avocados, have a banana with peanut butter as a snack, add veggies to all meals, have some honey with your tea and eat some nuts with dried fruit.

You can have the foods you like in moderation and that'll definitely help get your counts up. Don't lose hope.

Agree with above post and the following advice. If you don't eat your calories and your exercise calories your body goes into self protection as it thinks you are starving.

Not to be rude, but odds are you can eat 1200 calories. Else wise you wouldn't be here.

You won't lose weight on a 1200 calorie diet with exercising, because you've increased the deficit and your body will retain what it gets, because it thinks you're in a famine. So, eat and eat healthfully when you feel hungry. Think of it this way; if you don't eat, you'll gain weight and your metabolism will slow down (especially with the added stress of exercise - which you're not eating enough to maintain). If you eat, you'll perform better at the gym or where ever you're working out and you'll lose that weight.

Need nutritious ways to get more *calories: eat avocados, have a banana with peanut butter as a snack, add veggies to all meals, have some honey with your tea and eat some nuts with dried fruit.

You can have the foods you like in moderation and that'll definitely help get your counts up. Don't lose hope.

I agree

mfp says to eat 1200 calories.. but i cant eat that many! and im not reallly lossing weight! then i exercise and it gives me more that i really dont eat! i dont know what to do! please help!

So we forgot how to eat ?

OK, go to McDonald's and order 2 Cheeseburgers.
Eat them.
Mission accomplished.

Or eat a bowl of cereal or anything. Discipline cuts both ways.
Eat more or you fail more than likely.
Eat too much and you fail.

MFP sets these limits for a reason: HEALTHY WEIGHT LOSS.
What good is it to go from fat to skinny fat?

Not to be rude, but odds are you can eat 1200 calories. Else wise you wouldn't be here.

You won't lose weight on a 1200 calorie diet with exercising, because you've increased the deficit and your body will retain what it gets, because it thinks you're in a famine. So, eat and eat healthfully when you feel hungry. Think of it this way; if you don't eat, you'll gain weight and your metabolism will slow down (especially with the added stress of exercise - which you're not eating enough to maintain). If you eat, you'll perform better at the gym or where ever you're working out and you'll lose that weight.



This ^

I wouldn't mind betting you are actually eating substatially more calories than you think and thats why you aren't losing. Check portion sizes on pre-packed food, weigh your ingredients, count the oil you use for cooking, sugar for your coffee and all your drinks. 'Starvation mode' or not, if you are eating less than your calorie requirement you WILL lose weight (even if you believe the starvation mode theory, it just means you would lose a bit more slowly).

Be sure you are eating things like grilled chicken breasts, fish, or lean steaks or something. Great sources of protein and have good calories but are low in carbs. If you drink protein shakes, and fruit, milk, yogurt, or cottage cheese to them for extra good calories and protein. Again, be sure that you are logging EVERYTHING you intake. Even if you eat like 4-5 m&m's, log them!

I thought this was an interesting read.... :happy:

Question: I have been told that when I eat too little, my body goes into starvation mode to protect itself, and that it will slow down my weight loss. Is this true and how can I avoid starvation mode?

Answer: Many weight loss coaches use the term “starvation mode” to describe your body’s natural response to protect itself when you don’t eat enough for extended periods. When you regularly eat too little food to provide your body with the necessary nutrients, it perceives itself to be in danger from starvation. Since your body is wonderfully designed to protect you, it will slow down your metabolism to conserve energy so it can keep vital organs such as the brain and the heart going for as long as possible in the face of the perceived threat. While it will burn fat for fuel, it will also start burning lean muscle mass for fuel, which will slow down your metabolism even further. People on starvation diets invariably find that they regain all the weight they’ve lost (and then some) very quickly as soon as they start eating again.

While a starvation diet may help you lose weight quite fast in the short term, you will pay a heavy price because you are setting yourself up for a lifetime of weight problems. Your metabolism gets progressively slower with each day you remain on a starvation diet. This resultant slower metabolism needs less fuel, so you consistently have to eat less and less to lose weight! As your metabolism slows down even further and your lean muscle mass dwindles you will also find that you become more and more tired. This in turn means you will get less exercise, which leaves you with less lean muscle, and an even slower metabolism. It really is a vicious cycle. The importance of protecting your lean muscle mass to boost your metabolism can not be stressed enough.

The question arises: when does your body go into starvation mode? As with anything that involves the human body, there is no one single answer that will be true for everyone. The levels at which starvation mode kicks in vary from person to person. What we can do though, is understand how it gets triggered so we can avoid getting our bodies in that state. Your decision of how much to eat should be based on your individual Total Daily Energy Requirements, which takes into account a variety of factors including height, weight, age, gender and activity levels. If you want to lose weight safely, without setting off the alarm bells in your body; aim to eat approximately 300 – 500 calories less than your total daily requirements. This will provide your body with enough fuel to keep it going comfortably, but will still create a sufficient caloric deficit to ensure that you lose weight. To protect your metabolism even further, make sure your diet contains enough protein and that you maintain / increase your activity levels.

Note. You will find that many experts advise you not to eat less than 1 200 calories per day to prevent starvation mode. This is just a general rule of thumb to provide advice in the absence of enough information. To be safe, get your individual Total Daily Energy Requirements calculated, and follow the advice above.

I think it is more of a mental block honestly. You do not need to starve to lose weight. Your body composition will look better if you eat more.

Sunshine used to say she cant eat that many calories....