Thoughts/Opinions needed on dropping calories
 

Hi Everyone!!! I posted this on the CC board, but just incase some of you don't wander over there...here it is:

So before with my weight loss journey's I started at 1200 calories a day and stayed there until the weight was gone. I am not quite sure why this time around I am trying to go with the calculators...but my gut is telling me I should not be eating 1500-1600 calories a day and need to drop it to the 1200. I am not losing weight consistently as I have before.

I am just looking for some opinions and encouragement on if I should drop my calorie intake to 1200. It has always been successful for me; I'm not sure what my hold up is this time...ugh!

A little about me: 40hr/week desk job, 30min walk on lunch, and I try to get in 30-60min of exercise in the evenings. So I am very sedentary except for a few hours in the evenings!

It could just be that you are not losing weight as consistently because you are approaching a normal weight. It's pretty common for weightloss to have major stalls or move at a snail's pace the closer you get to the end. I would say my last 10 pounds took about 6 months to lose, where the 70-ish before that took 6 months total.

Another thing to keep in mind is that once you drop to 1200- that's it. There's nowhere else to go. If you think dropping your cals will help get you to the end, could you maybe drop them gradually- like 100 calories every few weeks? It really is a very arduous process towards the end and I know how frustrating it is when you have a desk job. It is a patience-tester, for sure.

Really think before you drop your calories to 1200. That's really low even for a sedentary person with a few hours of exercise. I am about your height and weight and eat 1300-1400 a day (and lose about 2 lbs a week). Maybe drop to about 1400 and see how you feel. I've considered dropping to 1200 but like Junebug said-if you go there it's the end of dropping calories. Save 1200 for when the loss completely stalls.

Good Luck!

Personally I only do 1200 when I don't exercise much. Otherwise it's 1500 because my body feels nourished that way. I think the problem with 1200 is losing weight slows your metabolism so if you're at the bare minimum you don't have wiggle room.

Thanks for the opinions! Maybe I should try cycling my calories 1200-1500? I'm just used to losing consistantly and this time around I am not having very good luck. I have heard that with each baby the weight is harder to lose...it's proving to be true in my case :p