When 1200 calories a day equal 0

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Yanicka1
Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Why eating 1200 calories a day and not eating your exercise calories is a bad idea.

Ok ….I already posted about this but I will do it again. Sigh

Ok let just say that you eat 1200 calories a day and exercise for 600 calories a day. It is the equivalent of eating 600 calories a day. Do you know what need 600 calories a day to fonction?

You brain.

Since I love brains and I think they are sexy, let just give it all the 600 calories remaining. Probably that you body will try to reduce the calorie consuption of your brain a little but for this explaination, just humour me.

So now 1200-600 = 600 calories

600-600 calories to your brain = 0 freaking calories. Wonderfull !!!!

Your body has 0 calories to :

-Grow your hairs and nails

-Maintain body heat

-Make your heart pump

-Digest your food

-Divide and replace your cells

-Maintain you hormonal balance

-filter your blood by your kidneys and liver

-Doing everything that need to be done in your daily life like walking to work, keeping your cool when your *****y coworker is rude once again, when your kids want to play with you and when your SO want to get frisky

If you have a lot of weight to lose, your reserves are easily accessible, the negative impacts are negligibles. When you have a few pounds to lose, that is when the trouble start.

As an exemple, let just say that you have 1 000 000$ dollars in the bank, if you bust your budget and have to take money out of your account, It will not make that much of a difference. If you only have 1000$, each retreval will make a huge difference.

When we need to lose those last few pounds, the energy reserves are really hard to acces because for the body, those reserves are there in case of emergency. Muscle mass will be easier to acces. Muscle mass reduction = slower metabolism.

Slower metabolism = big chance of gaining weight when you eat slightly more.



Stay healthy.
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Replies

  • Contrarian
    Contrarian Posts: 8,138 Member
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    Thanks for posting this. People need to understand that food is not the enemy. Food is fuel.
  • StrlJmnz
    StrlJmnz Posts: 23
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    Thank you for posting. :)
  • Lizzy_Sunflower
    Lizzy_Sunflower Posts: 1,510 Member
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    Thanks for posting this. People need to understand that food is not the enemy. Food is fuel.

    I could not agree more! This made me think of this:

    3977475_4375.jpg
  • jetscreaminagain
    jetscreaminagain Posts: 1,130 Member
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    Really good points. My fear is that if they devalue themselves enough to starve themselves, they might not think much about the value and attractiveness of a smart brain.
  • lii804
    lii804 Posts: 1 Member
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    Thanks for posting this information because I too was told not to include the calories burned during exercise in my daily food bank.
  • Contrarian
    Contrarian Posts: 8,138 Member
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    Thanks for posting this information because I too was told not to include the calories burned during exercise in my daily food bank.

    Whoever told you that does not understand how this site works. You should be eating back your exercise calories. Your body needs the calories and nutrients.
  • _HeathBar_
    _HeathBar_ Posts: 902 Member
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    Thank you for posting this OP <3

    It's so sad to see people starving themselves eating less then 1200 net/day.
  • fesse02
    fesse02 Posts: 88 Member
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    *standing ovation*"
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
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    I have a really hard time with this. When I eat back my exercise calories I feel like I wasted my time exercising (even though I know it's good for me, and I enjoy it). On weeks when I eat back my calories (and I eat REALLY healthily, I cheat maybe once a week for one meal only), I see no weight loss. Period. But when I stay around 1200ish, I see weight loss...not just weight loss, FAT loss (we have access to free body fat comp tests at my gym, so I keep myself in check).

    I eat when I'm hungry, I definitely don't starve myself. I eat nutrient dense and fiber rich foods, drink a lot of water, and I don't run out of gas when exercising (and I work out pretty hard). This whole weight loss thing is a lot more complicated than it should be!
  • elo83
    elo83 Posts: 97 Member
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    Agreed!
  • Nickieg3
    Nickieg3 Posts: 5 Member
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    I completely agree Meredith... :(
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
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    I have a really hard time with this. When I eat back my exercise calories I feel like I wasted my time exercising (even though I know it's good for me, and I enjoy it). On weeks when I eat back my calories (and I eat REALLY healthily, I cheat maybe once a week for one meal only), I see no weight loss. Period. But when I stay around 1200ish, I see weight loss...not just weight loss, FAT loss (we have access to free body fat comp tests at my gym, so I keep myself in check).

    I eat when I'm hungry, I definitely don't starve myself. I eat nutrient dense and fiber rich foods, drink a lot of water, and I don't run out of gas when exercising (and I work out pretty hard). This whole weight loss thing is a lot more complicated than it should be!

    If you maintain your weight when eating 1200 calories a day and eating your exercise calories, I would suggest reading this : http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
    (it is not exaclty the same thing but it might help)
    I exercise 45 minutes a day to be healthy, I have a small calories deficite to lose weight. I do not exercise to lose weight. This is a diet mentality and not a lifestyle mentality.

    You realise that you are comdemning yourself at eating 1200 calories a day for the rest of your life? How about instead of trying to lose weight as fast as possible, you try to lose the weight once and for all? I am not telling you what you should do....I have not walked in your shoes and do not know your history.....I know that for myself, a 1200 calories a day is not the life I want for myself. Life is too precious to be miserable.
  • kateroot
    kateroot Posts: 435
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    Thanks for posting this. So true!
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
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    I have a really hard time with this. When I eat back my exercise calories I feel like I wasted my time exercising (even though I know it's good for me, and I enjoy it). On weeks when I eat back my calories (and I eat REALLY healthily, I cheat maybe once a week for one meal only), I see no weight loss. Period. But when I stay around 1200ish, I see weight loss...not just weight loss, FAT loss (we have access to free body fat comp tests at my gym, so I keep myself in check).

    I eat when I'm hungry, I definitely don't starve myself. I eat nutrient dense and fiber rich foods, drink a lot of water, and I don't run out of gas when exercising (and I work out pretty hard). This whole weight loss thing is a lot more complicated than it should be!

    If you maintain your weight when eating 1200 calories a day and eating your exercise calories, I would suggest reading this : http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
    (it is not exaclty the same thing but it might help)
    I exercise 45 minutes a day to be healthy, I have a small calories deficite to lose weight. I do not exercise to lose weight. This is a diet mentality and not a lifestyle mentality.

    You realise that you are comdemning yourself at eating 1200 calories a day for the rest of your life? How about instead of trying to lose weight as fast as possible, you try to lose the weight once and for all? I am not telling you what you should do....I have not walked in your shoes and do not know your history.....I know that for myself, a 1200 calories a day is not the life I want for myself. Life is too precious to be miserable.

    I do have days where I eat more, and my weight loss is definitely slow. I mean 2 lbs in one week tops (usually more like 1 pound). I don't obsess or anything, I just find that I'm force feeding myself to eat more. Like I mentioned, I eat when I'm hungry and I eat until I'm satiated, and I really enjoy healthy foods, and I don't eat anything I don't want to eat. Also, my exercise isn't just for weight loss, but it's also for overall well being and I actually enjoy running as a hobby. I guess that's why this confuses me so much, because I'm totally not miserable and I'm really happy with the way I eat. I cheat too, trust me, I have those days where I say "ok I'm having enchiladas and that's that." But I just don't want to be doing myself a disservice in the long run.

    Should I try to force down an extra couple hundred calories a day? Or just keep with the "eat when I'm hungry and until I'm full" mentality?
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
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    I have a really hard time with this. When I eat back my exercise calories I feel like I wasted my time exercising (even though I know it's good for me, and I enjoy it). On weeks when I eat back my calories (and I eat REALLY healthily, I cheat maybe once a week for one meal only), I see no weight loss. Period. But when I stay around 1200ish, I see weight loss...not just weight loss, FAT loss (we have access to free body fat comp tests at my gym, so I keep myself in check).

    I eat when I'm hungry, I definitely don't starve myself. I eat nutrient dense and fiber rich foods, drink a lot of water, and I don't run out of gas when exercising (and I work out pretty hard). This whole weight loss thing is a lot more complicated than it should be!

    If you maintain your weight when eating 1200 calories a day and eating your exercise calories, I would suggest reading this : http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/3047-700-calories-a-day-and-not-losing
    (it is not exaclty the same thing but it might help)
    I exercise 45 minutes a day to be healthy, I have a small calories deficite to lose weight. I do not exercise to lose weight. This is a diet mentality and not a lifestyle mentality.

    You realise that you are comdemning yourself at eating 1200 calories a day for the rest of your life? How about instead of trying to lose weight as fast as possible, you try to lose the weight once and for all? I am not telling you what you should do....I have not walked in your shoes and do not know your history.....I know that for myself, a 1200 calories a day is not the life I want for myself. Life is too precious to be miserable.

    I do have days where I eat more, and my weight loss is definitely slow. I mean 2 lbs in one week tops (usually more like 1 pound). I don't obsess or anything, I just find that I'm force feeding myself to eat more. Like I mentioned, I eat when I'm hungry and I eat until I'm satiated, and I really enjoy healthy foods, and I don't eat anything I don't want to eat. Also, my exercise isn't just for weight loss, but it's also for overall well being and I actually enjoy running as a hobby. I guess that's why this confuses me so much, because I'm totally not miserable and I'm really happy with the way I eat. I cheat too, trust me, I have those days where I say "ok I'm having enchiladas and that's that." But I just don't want to be doing myself a disservice in the long run.

    Should I try to force down an extra couple hundred calories a day? Or just keep with the "eat when I'm hungry and until I'm full" mentality?

    You can try eating more calorie dense food, it is easy to eat a few handfull of almond (I say that and note that I have not looked at your diary) Also I would put the weight lost at 1 to 1.5 pound a week max. With all due respect, Do you really trust your body and it's signales it is giving you? You can feel full by eating a metric ton of carrot and eat carrot all day long but it does not mean it is the healthiest thing to do.
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    I have to agree with Meridith on this.... I eat them back if i am hungry but if I am full I am not going to stuff myself, and sometimes I can't reach that calorie goal with calorie dense foods.... there is a line that goes from calorie dense foods to fattening foods, I am just NOT going to eat those to get my calories back....

    I don't starve myself by any means, take a look at my diary, heck I even went out this week and had a Big Mac Meal :) OMG!!

    but, if I keep my overall calorie consumption to around 12-1300 even if I work out.... things just seem to work better for me.

    I am not going to gluten myself just to meet my calorie goals, MFP calculates I need about 2064 calories just to function/maintain, but I don't believe it, I think it's more like 1800.
  • tabinmaine
    tabinmaine Posts: 965 Member
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    I think that this is a great article and explains it well :

    http://voices.yahoo.com/starvation-mode-dispelling-myths-2900886.html?cat=5
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
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    I think that this is a great article and explains it well :

    http://voices.yahoo.com/starvation-mode-dispelling-myths-2900886.html?cat=5

    Oh I am not talking about starvation mode....in fact I hate that term LOL. I rather call it conservation mode.

    No what I am talking about is feeding your body right, with a sufficent number of calories so in order to acheve a hleathy lifestyle and a life long weight loss and keeping as much muscle mass as possible. I understand it can be confusing :flowerforyou:
  • Contrarian
    Contrarian Posts: 8,138 Member
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    This site is set up in such a way that you are eating at a calorie deficit WITHOUT exercise. Unless you are obese, you should not be shooting for a 2lb per week weight loss.

    Please read through the posts in this group. Many of us have been on this site for a while and we have learned through trial and error that eating less isn't always better. I know you'll do it your own way, but we are trying to save you the trouble of learning the hard way. Take the advice or don't. It's up to you.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/457-unofficial-mfp-faq
  • Picola1984
    Picola1984 Posts: 1,133
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    I'm sure someday's my brain only uses 100 calories, or it feels like it anyway!!

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