IS SO HARD!!

Ugh... how do people do it??

I have decided starting tomorrow, NO MATTER WHAT, for the next 12 days I will do 1200 calories a day!

If I work out and burn 500+, I will allow myself an extra 200.


(any tips here people??)

well I am not down to 1200.. I have to stay at 1500 because I'm still breastfeeding my 8 month old and I need the extra 200-300 calories a day in order to make sure there is enough fat in my milk so she can gain weight buttt... I have found that sugar-free jello has helped me out a ton... I don't know about you but I am a "snacker"... if I could I would just snack all day long... unfortunately I was snacking on oreos, pudding, well you get the point... now whenever I want a snack I go get a cup of sugar-free jello.. its only 10 calories and yet satisfies my sweet tooth! So far it has been working I've been doing 1500 calories for over 2 weeks... again I know that 300 calorie drop is a HUGE one but I hope my trick might help you or someone else!! Keep it up you are doing so well!!!

Getting below 1200 net calories is counter-productive and won't help you lose weight. I would recommend aiming for 1200 net a day at least, so if you exercise and burn even 100 cals, add 100 to your intake. Otherwise, if you burn 400, and don't eat any extra, it will effectively be like eating only 800, which is starvation-mode stuff.

See, that's what I've thought for years... but then some of the stuff from the biggestloserclub.com and the books have made me start to think otherwise... according to them, I should actually eat like 1160 a day or something like that PLUS working out on top of it.

I'm going to see how my body reacts to the endeavor and how my energy I can sustain. If I can't, then I'll bump it up a bit.

Thats really interesting... I will have to look into it some more! I know that when I count my calories on calorieking it sets my goal at 1220, and any exercise I do is subtracted off my eaten calories to be 1220 net. And that makes sense logically to me; if its a simple matter of energy in vs energy out, and you are aiming for a certain deficit (of, say, 500) then your energy in would surely be dependent on your energy out?

I have to admit I have also found that if I eat say 1200 and then work out on top I don't lose as much as if I ate back at least part of what I have burnt.

At the moment I am eating around 1300 base - but may burn from 500 cals on a light day to 1500 on a heavy one. On a light exercise day I probably wouldn't eat much more than 1400 or 1500 cals but on a heavy day - i'd definitely be eating back up to 2000 - I am usually STARVING on such days lol.

All depends on your body. I just know from my own previous experience that eating a little back does wonders for me.

Note though - the scale loss isn't as great as the centimeter loss. My body has been toning and reshaping rather than simply just losing fat.

I eat between 1150-1250 calories 5 days a week and then one day a week eat 1400 and then one day a week eat 1700-2000. It seems to work for me to shock my body each week and keep the weight dropping.

It's not difficult for me on the 1200 calorie days. I eat three meals of about 250-300 cals, and two snacks at about 150 cals.

Have you found that adding snacks as opposed to eating 3 squares/day makes any kind of difference?
My issue with snacks is that when I start, I don't stop and this goes especially at night when I am bored and sit down to watch TV for a bit once the kids are in bed.
I would like to eliminate snacks all together for that reason but I keep hearing about having to keep ones blood sugar low throughout the day etc...3 squares won't do that.
Anyone has any insights or can speak from experience?

I still eat 1200 calories/day approx 5 days a week, even though I'm technically in maintaince. 1200 calories can be a lot of food. I make an awesome veggie stir-fry that nets about 100 in a giant bowl. Bulky nutritious foods have helped me to lose 185 pounds. I also never eat back calories burned, seems to be a total waste of a good workout. Fat = energy. If you have extra fat, you have extra fuel.

I know everyone has their own way of getting into shape, so please take this as my opinion only.

I must say I'm really alarmed when I see people talk about eating only 1200 (or less) calories. The Biggest Loser and other popular shows have reinforced the attitude that "faster is better" when it comes to weight loss, and on those shows the people are barely eating, and working out for hours a day, to drop as much weight as possible for the sake of the show.

In the REAL world, a weight loss of 1 to 2 lbs per week is a healthy and sustainable weight loss that will more likely result in keeping the weight off after goal.

Your body needs a minimum number of calories just to keep your vital organs operating, and your body functioning. When you drop your calorie intake to 1200, plus exercising, your metabolism actually SLOWS DOWN in order to preserve what weight you have, so you don't starve. It is counter productive.

I am 5'5, 177 lbs. In order to maintain my weight, at my activity level, I need about 2000 calories per day. In order to lose weight, I eat 1600 calories per day, plus exercise. That creates approximately a 550-600 calorie per day deficit, which ends up being about a 1 to 1.5 lb per week fat loss, maintains lean muscle and I feel healthy and not deprived.

Again..this is my opinion, but I worry when I see these posts...It is NOT a healthy way to approach weight loss, according to my doctors, my nutritionist, and all other professionals I've spoken to in my weight loss journey.

Kat

My experience with fast weight loss was when I was on a Diet Center diet way back when. Calories and fat were extremely low, probably less than 1000 cal/day. I was also strength training 2-3 times a week. I lost the weight quickly, 60 lbs in 4 months. However, my hormones were completely messed up and never really came back normally and I ended up in pre-menopause. I lost a lot of hair and a fat analysis showed I had lost much less fat than the lbs showed. Thus, I lost muscle. Of course I gained the weight back quickly because I couldn't stop eating when I went off the diet. The final result has been that I can't make myself really stick to another diet; my mind just rebels.

I wouldn't recommend a very low calorie diet to anyone; even 1200 for some people could be too low, especially with exercise.

Hey Lori Bell,
Would you mind sharing your stir-fry recipe, I would looove to get full on 100cals.
Thanks!!

I lost 80 lbs eating 1200 calories a day, I was perfectly healthy and in great shape. I lifted weights and did cardio multiple times a week. I just slipped out of watching what I ate and I gained some of it back. 1200 calories works for my metabolism *shrugs*

I think it depends on your body. I can't lose weight by eating only 1200 calories a day. In fact, 1200 calories makes me gain weight. I guess my body thinks it's starving or something. I only lose weight eating at least 1600-1800 a day.

So... to update this thread on me doing it.

Yeah, didn't make it hehe.

BUT, I've kept my cal counts lower every day and have not let myself gorge. More like 1300-1600