On a 1200 calorie diet? How's it going?

I have been on a 1200 calorie program for 7 weeks now.  The friend that got me started said I would easily take off 25 pounds in the first six weeks. However I have only lost 12 and tomorrow is weigh in day and I don't think I have lost any this week.  I'm 28 and weigh 200 lbs.

Anyone else on a 1200 diet?  Do you lose regularly?  Are you losing fast?  Do you lose best when you make sure you eat all 1200 calories?  Sometimes I find myself lower then 1200 and I wonder if it is not helping me to go lower.  You know the whole starvation mode. 

Your body can only burn about 1% of you body weight of fat each week.  If you are losing more then you are losing muscle, which is fine; if you have a lot of weight to lose you would expect to lose both at first.  1200kcal is really low for your weight, try increasing by 50kcal a day until you're comfortable on higher calories.  There is no point starving your body when you will lose weight on higher calories, at least 1500kcal, probably more.  Don't worry about what your friend said, so long as you're losing it's all in the right direction.

Good Luck!

I too am on a 1200 cal diet - although I avg around 1300.   After reading and posting on the boards, I just think that for me 1300 is better.  I'm 5'1 and 108 so I'm more trying to build muscle and tone up at this point than really loosing weight.  I'd like to loose another couple lbs but feel like if I keep up my strength training I will have more success.  Really, I'll take loosing inches over lbs any day at this point!  

Anyway, just wanted to chime in that I also am around the 1200 range.  Like another girl that posted, I do splurge on the weekends and have somewhere between 1400-1500 calories.  Which may set me back some, but hey, I love my food!  1200 is so little but like another poster, if you eat lots of fruits and veggies, it will help you stay at that level.

Good luck to all!

why are you eating ONLY 1200? were you advised this by a medical professional? are you undersupervision?

1200cal a day is not enough for you, let alone healthy... how much are you burning on a daily basis? I bet it is somewhere around 2000+calories... you would be able to safely eat about 2000cal with regular excersize and lose weight, probably even faster and REAL weight (because when you drop your calories low the first thing to come off is usually water)... you are not giving your body enough energy to function, and you need energy to BURN FAT. What you are basically doing is starving the weight off... and as you've probably heard before "starvation diets don't work"

it doesn't matter if you feel "full" on 1200cal... heck I could eat only 400cal worth of broccoli a day and feel "full"... but i would still be starving, because I am not giving my body proper nutrition and energy

if you continue eating so little you may find that it will get harder and harder for you to lose weight because your metabolism will slow to only burn as much as you give it...

see if you started at 2000cal, you could eat that until your weight plateaus, then drop to 1800cal and add a little more excersize, then 1600cal... 1400cal... 1200cal... if necessary until you reach your goal weight.

say you continue eating 1200cal and reach your goal.. then what? start eating more and have some of the weight come right back? or stick to a 1200cal diet for the rest of your life?

 

Hello all. I am new to CC and have been eating 1200 cal for about a week. I am 21 years old, 5' 2", and weigh 135, looking to lose 10-15 lbs.  CC suggested that I eat 1200 a day, but I am worried this is too low, as most weekdays I burn about 350 cal with exercise. As long as my deficit is less than 1000, am I ok? I don't want to slow my metabolism down...

I find it hard just to meet the requirement of 1,200 and usually undershoot it by quite a bit. But if you're calories are that low, be sure to give yourself a cheat week, boost up your calories to about 1,600, then after that lower it down to about 1,500, then 1.400 and so on until it's at 1,200. This is the safest way I can think of to get down to 1.200 as safely as possible.

The reason I aim for 1200 (and i say aim because sometimes i reach 1300 but try not to kick my own butt over it) is because thats what CC suggested for my goal weight and date and activity level. I work at an office so my activity level is limited to my multiple trips to the restroom (i drink tons of water during the day) and the occasional trip upstairs for whatever reason. when i get home i try to hop on my bicycle and sweat but by then i am hungry for dinner.

on the weekends i am more active and therefore eat more calories... because my boyfriend likes to go out to eat and drink beer and he likes me to join him. I have not been drinking beer but there are a few events coming up in the next month (Dave Matthews Concert and a camping/boat trip) where I know I will at least want to have a few beers. So we have picked up some Mich Ultra for the boat trip and I will just be extra careful about my calories at the concert.

I also tend to graze all day long. I dont really sit down and eat a meal at lunch time. I usually eat a snack about every two hours. These snacks are usually about 100 to 140 calories and they are usually a yogurt, aple, banana, cheese and crackers, usually some sort of 100 calorie pack treat in the afternoon. I eat veggie soup (progresso, 160 cal for the entire cup) for lunch when i do sit down and eat. I always have breakfast and it is usually about 300 calories whether it is cereal or toast and milk or something along those lines that will keep me full for two hours. I have lost about 4 lbs in the last week and it is even my TTOM!

 

Sounds weird but you might not be eating enough. I am 29 5ft3 and currently 223lbs. I started this journey 05-25-08 and I started at 236lbs. That averages about 1.5-2lbs a week. I will be honest it feels slow but i think I am on the right track. I notice when I eat 1200 cals I am really hungry at end of day. I try and stay between 1300-1500.

Maybe try eating 1200 one day and 1400 the next then back to 1200. Zig zagging may give your body what it needs to start losing. I always try and change up my daily menu. Our bodies can get used to our menu.

Not being negative or anything, but 25 lbs in 6 weeks in not a very realistic goal in my opinion.  I have previously done the 1200 calorie diet and used the eliptical for 30 minutes a day and lost 13 lbs, in 6 weeks, but as we all do I fell off of the wagon and food began to be to tempting and in 2 1/2 years I have gained 25 lbs bringing me to the haveiest I have been since I gave birth to my 18 yr old daughter and that was a weight of 205.  2 weeks ago I said this is it and begain using caloriecounter.com keeping track of all that went into my mouth, and all of my activities as well as going to the gym 5 days a week ( I have been looking at it like this I work Monday thru Thursday, so Monday thru Friday is my work day and gym day period) 30 cardio and 30 weights (3 sets of 15 on several machines)  my short term goal is 30 lbs by December and the long term is 25 by my birthday in March making this my goal weight losss of 55 lbs.  As of today I have only lost a couple of pounds but I can tell by the way that my clothes fit that I am toning already.  You can do this, but realistically it should take about 12 weeks to lose 25 lbs.  What you have lost is great it will all go away just remember 1 day a week treat yourself with a couple glasses of wine once a month a massage or a dinner.  Do not give up.  If you crave something eat a little of it, because if you do not you will binge and do not eat after 6 pm.  The worst part about changing the way we eat and live is the discouragement of wanting it now.  Good Luck