But it WILL work right? and I cannot gain it back if I don't eat junk. right?

If you really want to lose weight that fast you should do it under a doctor's care. Of course you will lose weight if you eat 1000 calories. You'll lose weight if you eat 100 calories. But will you be healthy? Will you be able to stick with it?

I am so desparate though. I will try to eat more.... and I am not expecting to lose it all so fast... I give myself a maximum of 2 yrs to lose this 150 lbs., and I want it so bad, that I am so sad.

it will STOP working. It's UNHEALTHY. It's NOT GOOD for your body to eat so little calories!!! Please don't

Your body will eventually go into survival mode and hang on to EVERY SINGLE THING YOU EAT and the weight will creep back on and it will be impossible to lose any more. It's a recipe for disaster. We care about you and we don't want you to fail (((hugs)))

Yeah - I can understand that. And I bet if you took a poll you'd find that most of us (me for sure) have started out desperate to lose so we start on some super strict/restrictive diet vowing to "do it this time!" and then somewhere we fall flat on our face.

If a marathon runner takes off like a 100yard man can he finish the race? No. Eventually your body will win. It's like holding your breath. You can do it for quite a long time but you can't do it long term. Your body will win.

So think of going too low on calories as if your holding your breath. At first it's not bad at all, in fact it's no problem. Then it gets a little harder and you double your resolve. Then it gets painful but you hold out as long as possible. But it doesn't take THAT long before your body flat out takes over.

Ok - 5"11 323 lbs - How many calories do I need? and what can I eat more of to make it up?

If you consume 2,970 calories per day, you should maintain your weight.
To lose one pound per week, you will need to eat approximately 2470 calories per day.
To lose two pounds per week, you will need to eat approximately 1970 calories per day.

(so says one calculator I found)
Eat lots of fresh fruits and veg
lots of good lean protein
healthy whole grain carbs
good fats (olive oil, almonds, peanut butter etc)

I try to pair carbs with protein and fruit/veg with almost everything.

So for 3 lbs per week, i should eat 1470? I can do that....
that makes sense.

Hmmm the calculator I found had me eating over 2000 calories to lose 2lbs a week when I was 318 and I'm a lot shorter so I bet 1970 will get you closer to 3lbs/week.

Anyhow 1970 looks like a great number to start at from what I've learned so far.

1400ish will get you more than 3lbs/week I think. I'm eating around 1700 at 5'7 and 294 and losing about 3lbs a week. Everyone's body is different but I'd start with 1970 for a week or two and see what happens.

You'd be surprised but I learned eating MORE can help you loose MORE.

At one point and time I tried eating under 1,000 calories a day. I grew tired of it. I lost 16lbs the first two weeks, then things just stalled and I quickly gave up and gained it all back. When I first started again in September, I tried 1,200 calories a day. I lost 1-2lbs steadily. Then I upped my calorie intake to 1,600 calories and the first 2 weeks I lost about 3.5lbs. Now I eat up to 1,800 and I'm still losing 2.5lbs.

I'd advise you to start out at about 1,800 - 2,000 calories for your weight and exercise, of course. Give it about 2-3 weeks, if you don't lose, then either up or subtract 200 calories. It's all about experimenting and seeing what works for you. It won't be easy, but it will get there eventually.

Ok, I just ate some more, I had a bannana... and 2 slice of provolone cheese..... now I am at 1398 cals

xbubloox,

One of the tricks to long term weight loss (and maintenance) is keeping your metabolism up. To do that you need to eat. If you start out so restricted, eventually you will have to drop your calories and have no where to go.

Think about what you used to eat. If you were to log a "typical" day in fitday how many calories would that be? Were you gaining or maintaining? If you were maintaining, then dropping those calories by a third should start some significant loss. (Based on my history I would be surprised if you were eating less than 3000 calories a day, so 2000 would definitely result in loss.)

Increasing your movement (calorie usage) also has a major impact.

The wonderful thing about weight loss is that unlike growing your hair out, every pound lost makes a difference! Right now you can only imagine the difference between your current weight and 179. Think about how much better you will look and feel at 300...at 275...at 250. Nothing you do will result in your being at 179 next month. (I'm not suggesting you think that.) Your goal is to get to 179 eventually, and then to stay there! Doing that requires major planning and changes in your life.

Oprah is a wonderful/horrible example. She's done every extreme diet. Presumably she had every possible support, a private chef and trainer, a team of folks dedicated to making her look good. All the crazy diets resulted in her damaging her body and gaining the weight back again...and again.

Be a long term winner. Don't be afraid of food, it is fuel and your body needs it. Look at making permanent changes. If you do you can achieve your goals. (Sorry for being so long-winded.)

Good luck

I agree with the other girls. You have started entirely too low. Your body is going to go into a starvation mode and slow your metabolism down. It is best to start a little higher because at the calories you are eating now, if you hit a plateau, you have no where to go. I recommend adding some raw veggies into your diet and maybe a salad (use dressing very sparingly) with each meal, as the dressing will add so many calories to your day if you are not careful. Also, how much olive oil are you using a day? Make sure you measure that as well because you could be taking in far more calories than you think.

All my life, I was desperate to lose weight. I knew I could cut some calories and lose some weight, I figured if I cut MORE calories I would lose MORE weight. I would eat between 800-1000 calories a day. And it did work. For a little while. I lost weight but I NEVER kept it off.

The "eat a lot less, lose a lot more" plan was how I managed to "diet" myself from a 140 lb high school student to a 200 lb 35 year old woman. Your will can be strong for awhile, but your body is a very powerful thing. When it gets hungry enough, it will DRIVE you to eat. Binges after restrictions always made me feel out of control and powerless, I used to cry because I had no "will power." I should have hugged my body - I was treating it badly by starving it and it just wanted food. Be good to your body and it will be good to you.

Losing weight and regaining is very painful. Every time I regained weight, I regained MORE weight. When you lose weight by cutting calories so drastically, you lose a little muscle each time. That means, you wreck your metabolism since with less muscle, your body needs fewer calories to just live (because muscle is metabolically active and fat is not).

Since I have done this and it didn't work, and I was hungry and miserable and devastated when I regained, I would encourage you NOT to go this route. I would want to spare anyone the pain of my experiences.

I can tell you what DID work. Finding a lot of foods I liked to eat, eating 1400-1600 calories a day (but my initial weight was lower than yours and I am 4 inches shorter, you could eat more), eating whole foods and practicing volumetrics (lots of low calorie foods to stay full). I also food planned, counted calories and food journaled.

Good luck!!!

I just added the small things I had with my food yesterday, like butter and olive oil. and I have had about 1,841 calories. is this better?