So how do we know 1200 cal is the magic number?

It was a "magic number" for me, reached my goal, now I'm maintaining my weight of 120lbs on 1530......calories reduction is the key to losing weight, bottom line.

MFP did not set that number - it was set by various health organisations.

The recommended dietry requirements for an average female are 2000 calories, so most women should lose weight on 1500-1800 calories a day,

http://www.livestrong.com/article/309283-the-minimum-amount-of-healthy-calories-per-day/

But you will also find that rather than rely on the MFP minimum of 1200, many people recommend you don't actually go lower than your BMR.

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/512956-tdee-what-is-it-and-why-you-should-not-eat-below-your-bmr?

If you don't go lower than your BMR...how do you create a calorie deficit? That just doesnt make sense to me....through exercise I suppose but I can never depend on that i will def have time for that.

You are confusing BMR (coma requirement calories) with TDEE (total daily energy expenditure).

Have a read of the link and it should start making sense.

I'm just going to start using this.

I approve of this message

To the person who says eat below 1000... GTFO of our forums please

When I eat 1200 calories I gain weight. I am 5'3". I don't think it is realistic to think you are going to lose weight on 1200 calories. Keep it below 1000 & you will lose.

Please don't recommend to others to keep their calories so low. Only her doctor should do that, and that's in extreme cases.

^^This.

I kinda laugh at the people that say this, then get their "extra" 200 cals from the ketchup and sauce on their food. or the butter on their toast.. etc.
in other words, nutritionally they're basically eating the same thing as the person they are chastising....
theres a big range of people in this world.. and if you are not in the middle, but rather at the extreme end of anything... you have to always keep that in mind. if you're a tiny tiny girl that doesnt do much then sit at a desk or on a couch, you 1000 is not an extreme deficit.
But you have to keep in mind, that with limited food intake, what you take must be good, and somewhat varied from day to day. Thats the nutritional aspect you probably want to talk to a doctor about. You dont want some vitamin or mineral deficiency that grows into a problem because you keep eating the same 10 foods every day.

Well said Dude!!:drinker:

1200 calories is a generic number based off research. This number - which works for most people - is the bare minimum needed to survive. This amount of calories is used to keep your organs functioning. Sure, you can go lower and probably won't go into starvation mode for a short time, but is it really worth it in the long run. Sending your body into starvation mode will have negative consequences, because if you do eat more, you will gain a bunch of weight. You might also notice your skin not looking as healthy or your hair might start shedding more. Granted, these are drastic and I am not even suggesting anyone would do this. After all, it is a generic number that works for the average person. But, without a doctor's diagnosis, you should probably stick to what has been put out there.

The other option - and this is where alot of people go wrong - is to make sure you are measuring everything correctly. If you don't have a scale and you don't count and measure everything out, even a little bit could send you in the wrong direction. When I first started, I couldn't understand why I wasn't losing my goal weight each week following the numbers. Well, I was overestimating on some of my food. The chicken breast which I thought was 3 oz. was actually 6 oz. Once in awhile overestimating won't hurt you, but doing it on everything all the time could mean you are actually eating way more than you think.

In addition, the 1200 is what you should eat as a net. If you eat 1200 and say you go for a short walk at lunch and burn 150 calories.. you should use that additional 150 calories. Not eating back your exercise calories, could also hinder your success. But, each person is different. I find the more I eat back my exercise calories, the better I do (and I have a hard time doing that!) But it really is up to the individual to find there own person sweet spot that will work for them.

Up until Jan 2012, I had been using another weightloss website and had been severely under-eating for four years, averaging about 1100 - 1150 calories per day INCLUDING exercise. I always felt full and never seemed to feel tired or lethargic.

Whilst this helped me to drop from size 22 (UK size) to size 12 (and about 4.5 stone) it has taken me four long years and many, MANY plateaux. In fact, I was known as the "Plateau Queen" and often would lose the same few pounds for months and months.

Last week, I upped my basic calories from MFP's suggestion of 1290 to 1400. I exercise 5 times per week (running, power walking and the gym) and have a desk job and my activity level is set as "sedentary". I have been eating back ALL of my calories since joining MFP Jan 2012. It felt really strange at first - and BOOM! The penny dropped. I was now beginning to experience HUNGER. I hadn't heard my tummy growl in nearly 4 years.....

Although it's still early days I gained a pound on last Friday's weigh in, but it disappeared today :laugh: and I'm now hoping that by increasing my calories by just a little bit, it will make all the difference to the last 10 pounds I have to lose.

It's still very much work in progress, but I'm keeping everything crossed that I can lose the last bit of weight without any more hitches.

But I just wanted to say that years of intake on 1100-1200 sends your body to sleep. I don't recommend it!

When I eat 1200 calories I gain weight. I am 5'3". I don't think it is realistic to think you are going to lose weight on 1200 calories. Keep it below 1000 & you will lose.

Yes you will lose- but you can not maintain this calorie intake the rest of your life. You are starving yourself. Eventually you will gain your weight back and then some.

According to MFP my BMR is 1400 and the recommendation is 1200. I try to stay under 1200 but I don't sweat it if I go a little over. I exercise a lot so if I go a little over I don't feel guilty.

My guess is that is a recommendation from myfitnesspal's legal team to ensure that people aren't being encouraged to eat to little.

Funny how there are countries where people are literally starving to death and we are telling people to eat more. If you ate nothing but fresh fruits and veggies all day long, and you still didn't reach your 1200 I'm pretty sure you'd be a lot healthier than the person who eats 1400 calories worth of 90 calorie fiber one bars and worthless processed garbage....

It's all relative. We aren't idiots... we know what our bodies need....

When I eat 1200 calories I gain weight. I am 5'3". I don't think it is realistic to think you are going to lose weight on 1200 calories. Keep it below 1000 & you will lose.

Really and when 1000 stops working how low are you going to go?

When I eat 1200 calories I gain weight. I am 5'3". I don't think it is realistic to think you are going to lose weight on 1200 calories. Keep it below 1000 & you will lose.

WHOA! 1000 or below is REALLY LOW. I would suggest to look around at other sites such as livestrong.com or WebMD for the appropriate amount of calories. They do suggest to never go under 1200.

I used these sites to figure my calorie intake and for someone my height (5'9) and weight (175lbs) to lose 2lbs a week I was given 1220 cals a day. Also, 2lbs a week is considered a very aggressive goal for weight loss. These sites have been suggesting 1 lb a week as average and healthy weight loss.

Just an FYI. I'm not an expert.

I'm still having a really difficult time figuring out the correct amount of calories I should eat to lose weight.

My BMR is 1683.
My TDEE is 2019.

I want to lose at least 1 pound per week, which is 500 cals per day.
So I'd need to eat 1519 to lose 1 pound per week,.

And that number is below my BMR, which you're not supposed to do......

So is my only other option to eat at or above my BMR, but less than my TDEE and lose less than a pound per week???
I'm assuming this is because I have quite a large amount of weight to lose, so is it ok to eat lower than my BMR for now, assuming this number will eventually change as I lose weight, and I won't always be eating below my BMR??

Please, someboody make sense of this to me. I don't want to increase my calories to 1600 or 1700 and only lose half a pound or less every week.

I'm still having a really difficult time figuring out the correct amount of calories I should eat to lose weight.

My BMR is 1683.
My TDEE is 2019.

I want to lose at least 1 pound per week, which is 500 cals per day.
So I'd need to eat 1519 to lose 1 pound per week,.

And that number is below my BMR, which you're not supposed to do......

So is my only other option to eat at or above my BMR, but less than my TDEE and lose less than a pound per week???
I'm assuming this is because I have quite a large amount of weight to lose, so is it ok to eat lower than my BMR for now, assuming this number will eventually change as I lose weight, and I won't always be eating below my BMR??

Please, someboody make sense of this to me. I don't want to increase my calories to 1600 or 1700 and only lose half a pound or less every week.

If you have a lot to lose you can go under current BMR, what I would not go is go below your goal weight BMR. Try the BMR calculator and enter your goal weight, that may work better for you.

My current goal weight is 135. That is the very TOP of the healthy weight range for my age/height, etc.

My goal weight (135 lb) BMR would be: 1371.

Even at 160lbs, my BMR would be 1479, TDEE would be 1775, to lose one pound per week, I'd have to eat 1275 cals. That is well under my goal weight BMR. So how would I continue losing weight to reach my goal, if I cannot under eat under 1371??

Something is not adding up right here.

I'm still having a really difficult time figuring out the correct amount of calories I should eat to lose weight.

My BMR is 1683.
My TDEE is 2019.

I want to lose at least 1 pound per week, which is 500 cals per day.
So I'd need to eat 1519 to lose 1 pound per week,.

And that number is below my BMR, which you're not supposed to do......

So is my only other option to eat at or above my BMR, but less than my TDEE and lose less than a pound per week???
I'm assuming this is because I have quite a large amount of weight to lose, so is it ok to eat lower than my BMR for now, assuming this number will eventually change as I lose weight, and I won't always be eating below my BMR??

Please, someboody make sense of this to me. I don't want to increase my calories to 1600 or 1700 and only lose half a pound or less every week.

If you have a lot to lose you can go under current BMR, what I would not go is go below your goal weight BMR. Try the BMR calculator and enter your goal weight, that may work better for you.

My current goal weight is 135. That is the very TOP of the healthy weight range for my age/height, etc.

My goal weight (135 lb) BMR would be: 1371.

Even at 160lbs, my BMR would be 1479, TDEE would be 1775, to lose one pound per week, I'd have to eat 1275 cals. That is well under my goal weight BMR. So how would I continue losing weight to reach my goal, if I cannot under eat under 1371??

Something is not adding up right here.

You will lose weight even eating more than your BMR.

It is just the rate of loss will slow the closer you get to your goal. This is good as fast weight loss when you don't have a lot to lose leads to the loss of lean muscle. So when you are 160 you should expect to lose 0.81lbs/week, then when you are say 5 lbs away from your goal you should expect to lose 0.5lbs/week.
Here is a guide for setting weekly weight loss goals based on the amount you have to lose.
If you have 75+ lbs to lose 2 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 40-75 lbs to lose 1.5 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 25-40 lbs to lose 1 lbs/week is ideal,
If you have 15 -25 lbs to lose 0.5 to 1.0 lbs/week is ideal, and
If you have less than 15 lbs to lose 0.5 lbs/week is ideal.

Ok, so if 500 cal/day = 1 lb/week, how many cal deficit per day is .81 lbs/week?

Forget the numbers - it's just a easy (and free) way to keep track of your eating, drinking, and exercise. No need to go to silly meetings (WW) or eat special foods (JC). If 1200 doesn't work for you, eat less.

Sorry but I think it is kind of rude to say. There is nothing "silly" about WW meetings. Many people, including myself, need the support and motivation that those meetings provide. And it is rude of you to say something like that just because you don't need to participate in something like that.

^^ This!

Might be "silly" to you, but I get a lot of the WW meetings and enjoy hearing about new recipes and great "food finds" at our local stores. Not too mention the stories of other members who are wonderful motivators and very inspiring!