1,200 calories seems like a lot

lizzie · #1 (**permalink**) July 7th, 2006, 08:21 PM

Hi there. I just started counting calories and exercising in an effort to shed some weight. I read that you should shoot for 1,200 to 1,500 calories per day. (I am 5'10" and 180lbs, I just want to get down to 150.)

Is this right? 1,200 calories sure seems like a whole lot of food! Can anyone reassure me that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing? I am eating 5 or six small meals per day like they say you should, and at 1,200 calories it seems like I am just constantly eating. I heard that sometimes you don't even lose if you go too low so I am keeping it around 1,300 per day on average. I dunno, maybe I should have counted calories the way I used to eat, then I might have better perspective on this... it just doesn't seem like a person could lose weight by eating constantly, but I have been prescisely measuring and counting the calories.

I am also drinking 8 8 oz glasses of water per day and riding my bike 4 miles per day. I hope this works, because it isn't easy.

ImaFatass · #2 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 12:13 AM

Are you joking? What are you constantly eating that is so hard to add up to 1200 calories? Air and water?

lizzie · #3 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 07:14 AM

No, I'm not joking. And it isn't hard to get foods to add up to 1,200 per day. It's just that when eating low calorie low fat foods, 1,200 calories means eating all day long!

Here is what I ate the last two days:

Thurs:

breakfast:
1/2 C lowfat yogurt - 105
1/4 C granola - 85
1/4 C blueberries - 18

Snack:
slimfast meal bar - 190
1/2 C 1% milk - 50

Salad:
1C romaine lettuce - 10
1/4 C onion - 15
2T dressing - 35
1/4 C olives - 40

snack:
1 slice bread - 40
1 T reduced fat peanut butter - 55

dinner:
1 cup asparagus - 50
lowfat dijon sauce 78
4 oz salmon - 350

dessert:
lowfat sugarfree cheesecake - 135
1/4 cup rasberries - 20
smaller second helping of the above - 77

TOTAL 1,353 calories

Friday:

Breakfast, I guess:
second half of the cheesecake from night before - 77

Snack:
1 slim fast snack - 120
1/2 cup 1% milk 50

Salad:
1C romaine lettuce - 10
1/4 cup peppers - 8
1/4 C onion - 15
2 0z turkey - 80
2T dressing - 35
1/4 C olives - 40
1/4 C reduced cheese - 45

lowfat sugarfree cheesecake - 135
1/4 cup rasberries - 20

1/2 can crab - 35
1/4 egg beater - 8
onion - 8
pepper -8
1 t. hot sauce - 0
1 T miracle whip - 14
1/4 slice lite bread (crumbs) - 15

Tabouli:
lemon
tomato
mint
romaine lettuce
added it add and then divided, my portion = 240

lowfat sugarfree cheesecake - 135
1/4 cup rasberries - 20

Total: 1,178

My question is, how can I possibly lose weight when stuffing my face all day day and then eating cheesecake? Even if it is diet cheescake... mmm....

ImaFatass · #4 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 10:47 AM

That is very light eating. Many people that aren't dieting would think they are eating like a rabbit to eat like that. But I think its great, you've got yourself a solid plan and aren't having any problems with calorie control. Best of luck!

Epi · #5 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 01:50 PM

Hiya - welcome to the forum and congrats on starting a weight loss plan.

Your calorie count is off on the egg beaters (1/4c is 30 cal) and on the miracle whip appears to be off also. Just make sure that you are accurately counting your calories on other stuff. One of the biggest mistakes that 'dieters' make is 1) either not keeping a food journal all together and 2) if you do, not keeping one that is accurate. Is all your drinking only water also?

Weight loss, in my opinion, is not solely about low calories, it is a balance of other things. You could very easily only eat 1200 calories but consume 600 + g of carbs or sugar or hundreds and hundreds of grams of fat.

How is your energy level? Do you feel tired after meals or energized. I guess, you have to learn how your own body reacts to the foods you eat. If eating high bad carbs (essentially sugar) does not impact your weight loss or your energy level - then maybe you don't need to be concerned about them. However, if you consume high bad carbs (sugar) and you have trouble getting the scale to go down and you have energy level issues - then maybe you should back off the carbs.

If you aren't hungry on this plan then that's great news for you!! If you decide to reduce your calories, don't do it by upping carbs (sugar) and fats. Make sure you get your protein and vitamins.

Good luck with your plan and weight loss!
Epi

Bronski · #6 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 03:03 PM

In my opinion, anything below 1000 calories a day is borderline dangerous. I think 1200 is fine, some would even argue that it's still not enough. Again, you are doing very light eating. Maybe you should think about more substantial meals for lunch or tea? There are some great, low calorie meals on the recipe thread.

It does sound like you're doing well though. It is tough, yes, but maybe if you do add the more filling meal, it'll fill you more, and have a bit more calories than salad, so you won't feel like you have to graze.

Best of luck!

Bronsk

Epi · #7 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 03:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bronski

In my opinion, anything below 1000 calories a day is borderline dangerous.

Bronsk

If you make the decision to go below 1,000 please be sure that you do it with doctor approval and monitoring. However, I doubt that at your current weight, that anything below 1200 would be approved by an MD, MPH, certified baratrics or any other medical professional.

Bronski · #8 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 03:35 PM

Most recommend that for someone severally overweight and doing little exercise should be eating over 2000 kcals a day, and the less the weight, the less you eat, but nothing too much below 1500 kcals. 1200 is, again, OK though. Typically, 1500 is used for maintaing weight... *shrugs*

Like Epi said, you wouldn't get the thumbs up for anything under 1000 kcals a day.

Bronsk

Epi · #9 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 03:55 PM

Bronsk - I've been to two baratrics doctors (to receive a second opinion) and many regular MD doctors. Certainly, everyone is entitled to their own personal opinion. However, a lower calorie count is not necessarily unsafe or unreasonable with medical monitoring. I am on 800 cals a day with 115 g of protein. I don't feel hungry at all, the worst I have to fight with is 'head-hunger'. I also see an MD, nutritionist and fitness instructor weekly with blood work performed every 10lbs lost and EKG every 30lbs lost and a body composition analysis every 6wks. I began this plan after receiving a second opinion - because like most people I was ignorant as to what was and wasn't safe, I wanted to be sure - the end of May. Since then my energy is increased, despite un-related issues, my cholesteral is down 30pts and my blood sugar is down 20pts.

My point here is that in this particular case I - ME - wouldn't recommend her eating any less than 1200 cals and certainly she should not eat less than 1000 calories.

Before handing out advise on what is 'recommended' or not, I would preface it with - unless you have consulted a medical professional and will be under their care to ensure that it is 1) safe and 2) your body reacts positively.

Epi

Bronski · #10 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 04:01 PM

I'm sorry, I was just relaying information I'd gathered myself, I wasn't trying to imply that you were wrong, and I certainly wasn't trying to imply that I was right. I wasn't recommending anything, other sources do. I don't agree with it, it was just food for thought.

I'm sorry to have upset you.

Bronsk

Epi · #11 (**permalink**) July 8th, 2006, 04:45 PM

Lizzie - we seemed to have hi-jacked your thread. I'm very sorry.

Bron - I wasn't upset. I may have been frustrated. I think a lot of us have done a lot of research and paid a lot of money to professionals to think for us lol. My research through the American Obesity Association which is in connection with US Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health and Weight-Control Information Network. I just actually posted a link for others to read about obesity from the American Obesity Association under the 'media' thread. These articles also talk about very low calorie diets, such as mine, for people who are obese and have high BMIs. It might interest you to know that VLCD are recommended for those who are very obese.

Lizzie, once again I'm sorry to have hi-jacked your thread on my soap-box. But you might find some interesting information at that site also. Good luck to you.

Cheers!
epi

Bronski · #12 (**permalink**) July 9th, 2006, 08:42 AM

Lizzie, likewise, apologies for taking over the thread you started! This site is excellent though, you should really check out places like The Club and start a weightloss diary in the Diary section. And like I said before, check the recipes as well, some of them are fantastic!

Epi, I'll check out the information you've posted. I do agree with what you're saying, as for all I've said I don't recommend going below 1200, I do. I don't see a doctor about it, because ours are very snotty and harsh about the fact that my family's overweight. I really aught to, but as I said, they make me feel very uncomfortable. Again, I'm sorry for any frustration I've caused.

Bronsk

Marcus · #13 (**permalink**) July 19th, 2006, 12:46 PM

Interesting thread! Whether 1,200 calories is a lot would depend on your height, weight, lean tissue mass, activity levels, etc. A pound of fat has 3,500 calories, therefore to lose a pound a week you'd need to reduce your calorie intake by 500 calories a day (in theory, anyway!) or burn off an extra 500 calories a day through exercise.

Therefore, a woman of c5'2" who is moderately active could maintain their weight on around 1,700-1,800 calories a day. 1,200-1,300 calories a day would in theory lead to a weight loss of a pound a week.

At 5'10" and 180 lbs, you could afford to eat a little more and still lose weight. However, it's hard to say without knowing more about your exercise habits, lean/fat composition, etc.

Looking at your daily food/calorie intake, a little more protein would help. Aim for 1g per pound of lean body mass - 80-100 g should do it spread over 5 meals (a couple of main meals and some healthy protein based snacks).

Protein has 4 calories a gram and is the most important macro nutrient for weight loss. Protein fires up your fat burning metabolism as it stimulates the production of glucagon (a fat burning hormone) by the pancreas. hence, you can burn more body fat.

Protein is also very satisfying as your body can't handle much of it in one meal. You get full fast as a result and stay fuller for longer.

Dietary protein also spares muscle tissue, which you commonly lose in addition to fat when dieting. Muscle is responsible for most of the calories your body burns each day so you don't want that to happen!

The problem with dropping your calorie intake too low is that your body thinks you're starving and slows your metabolism down to conserve energy as well as using muscle protein for fuel. Very low calorie (600-1,000 calories a day) are a short term option under medical supervison, but are counter productive in the longer term. Not very healthy either.

However, if your program is working for you then great. If you feel you're eating all the time then the chances are you're not hungry - the number 1 reason that diets fail!

Hope this helps!

wishes · #14 (**permalink**) July 28th, 2006, 08:33 PM

lowfat sugarfree cheesecake! Now where can i find that!
Im also on about 1200-1500 calorie diet, i usually sit at about 1300ish. There are days i just need to find some food to make up the extra few calories.
Occasionally I have craved Cheesecake however i didnt have any because i never knew about lowfat sugarfree cheesecake!
I think ill be hunting up some in the supermarket next trip

And as for the lower than 1000 calorie diets, the only thing you really have to watch for i think is lack of proper vitimins and the metabolism slowing down. Both avoidable if you are careful. I use fitday.com to track my intake and nutrition. Though i often can work out most stuff in my head now easy enough.

Teetah · #15 (**permalink**) August 22nd, 2006, 01:13 PM

I am with you on this one Lizzie! I have gone on a recommended website and found that I should be eating between 1200-1500 calories per day. I just CANNOT get up to 1500/day. I am trying to eat at the 1200 cals per day and it seems like I am eating all day. I have managed to lose 6 lbs recently though so I guess it's working but it seems like I have to force myself to eat more, I just can't find many low carb/low fat/high protein foods that I like. this is all new to me though so I'm going to keep trying. any recommendations on what to eat? I find I have been eating alot of yogurt, cottage cheese, fat free pudding, and salmon. If I could only incorporate more exercise I may have found the "magic secret" but some days I just have to remind myself to eat a snack or something just to get up to 1200 cals. I don't think I can do 1500 cals healthy...i dunno seems like alot to me!