1200 calories -- Questions

I really thought that I had this down, but now I'm full of doubt, yet again. I had committed to the idea that it is best to have a net-deficit that is no more than 20% of your daily intake of calories. I also believed that calories burned doing exercise had to be factored in when calculating said net-deficit.

But looking at "The Mayo Clinic Plan" book that I bought, this doesn't really seem to be the case... They recommend the 1200 calorie + exercise diet for anyone who is less than 250 lbs. This is a highly respected organization - surely they wouldn't leave out important information, or recommend something that would be dangerous to a person's health... right?

Now, I suppose the real problem is that I don't technically "need" to lose weight. (5'0, 107) And there isn't a lot of information out there for losing safely when your weight is within the healthy range. I want to be closer to the bottom of that range, (100) but I want to do it in a healthy way. I am so tired of conflicting information, but I suppose that is the way of the world.

Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I know there are a lot of people on either side of the equation, I'd like to hear opinions, but I'm especially interested in research, good sources, etc.

I don't really have thoughts on this per say however i did realise a long time ago that sometimes too much reading is a bad thing.

every book has a different opinion idea and way of doing things some idea's work well hand in hand with someone elses views most don't and if you spend your life trying to work out which is the "right" way you'll drive yourself insane.

Is the way your currently doing it working??? if it is then don't worry about the other ways, if it's not then perhaps a change will benifit you.

Persoanlly i couldn't survive on 1,200 cals AND exercise i feel awful if i dip that low ... also you have to concider what they concider exercise??

Persoanally i work off 500 - 800 cals a day with exercise alone if  was to only eat 1,200 my body would have to try and function on the 400 - 700 caloires left over .. to me that doen't sound very healthy... but if they are only suggesting 100 - 200 cals of exercise then perhaps it's doable ... personally i'd still be cranky and hungry but thats just me you might be different.

I'm with leiela on this one.  I joined a well respected slimming organisation that set me 1200 cals a day though I was doing cardio for 30-40 mins 3x a week plus an active job.  I was well under the 250 lbs mark you mentioned and I got down to my goal weight but felt awful.  I was cold, lethargic, "cranky and hungry" to quote leiela and believe I had not done my metabolism much good!  I couldn't keep to that weight and put on about 14lbs (when I joined CC).

However, that's only my experience.  Others could say something entirely different.

EDITED TO ADD:  CC has set me 1600 cals and I have loads more energy, feeling much fitter and though the weight loss is slower the inches are coming off more quickly and I know that this time it is a lifestyle I can maintain easily cos I'm neither hungry nor cranky now.

I've struggled with trying to do everything healthy, like exercising a bit more, calorie-cycling, etc. to budge my weight from 110 to 100 as well, and it hasn't yet worked. Personally I'm going to give it a rest awhile, since I find I've always lost weight when I've thought less about it. I guess it's the same old, I'm happy the way I am but if I was 5 lbs lighter I wouldn't mind.

That said, if it's getting difficult for you to lose weight when you are a very healthy weight, chances are this is your natural size. Don't forget that sometimes when you are a healthy weight, it's just the way you were MEANT to be, even though it's not exactly 100lbs or whatever. Love the way you are! =] I'm still working on completely believing it myself, but it's always good advice.

Maybe it's time to do a serious re-think.

why is being 100lb's important?? have you been that wiehgt before?? if your anythin like me the last tme i was 100lb i was 18 - 21 but it was all flab.

These days i have some muscle and im alittle older and i realise 100lbs isn't a realistic goal for me unless i'm willing to lose my muscle because muscle is heavier than fat and it 18 i had almost no muscle to speak of.

At 110lb's you sound a very healthy weight, so why do you want to lose wieght?? do you really need to lose wieght??

i joined Cc a month ago and when i joined i was determind to lose 10lb's im 120lbs and 5ft3 and for a month i've made myself pretty damn misrable about it as ive watched the scales torment me.

Then on saturday i realised i didn't need to lose 10lb's it's not the "wieght" im unhappy with it's the way i carry it .. (all on my belly) and even thought i've really not lost any noticable wieght in the last month i have lost an inch around my belly, thighs and chest and i think it has made a noticable improvement.

The other guys are right perhaps your not losing anymore because your body like's it's current wieght??? perhaps it's time to focus your attention of measuring inch's and not the scales toning up lifting wieghts making yourself look leaner and slimmer without actually losing lb's on the scales??

Seriously as of saturday you wouldn't belive how much the weight has been lifted off my shoulders .... it hasn't been a wasted month because the scales have hardly budged because i have lost an inch on my waist and hips and my belly doens't hang so badly over my jeans

 i feel great about it ... i few more inch's and i'll get my ass into thoses sexy pink leather pants i bought of ebay 6 years ago !!!!! which didn't fit me then and don't fit me now .... but they where waaaay too beautiful to part with.

I have a goal .... pink pants here i come !!!!! 

WAHT SIZE DO YOU WANT YOUR HIPS TO BE? WHERE DO YOU MEASURE YOURS?

Thanks everybody for all of your thoughts and insights! My mom has been saying, too, to focus on the exercise and not the food. I'm going to try to hang in there for a week, and see how I feel - but if I'm miserable and cranky (which I have been in the past) I'll go back to 1500 and just try and focus on building muscle, etc.

In terms of the 100 lbs thing -- I'm a whole 3 inches shorter than you! But also, I realize that 105 may be more where my body wants to be. We'll see.

Thanks again, everybody -- I love this site, it's so nice to have people to talk to about these things. :)

It does seem a little odd that the Mayo clinic would recommend a 1200-calorie diet, especially considering how difficult it is to get sufficient nutrients on a diet that low in calories.  I guess you could make it up with supplements but vitamins and minerals derived from natural sources are better, and better-absorbed, than ones in pill form.

I feel like you have to go with what works for you.  My weight-loss stopped completely when I accidentally dipped below my BMR (2100 at the time) for a week, and I was very tired the whole following week.  It took me 2 more weeks to pull myself back out of that plateau.  What works for me is eating just above my BMR and being generally active, but I have to be careful not to eat too little.  I know that to some that idea sounds ludicrous, but that's what works for me.

Hey lionpaw - it doesn't sound ludicrous at all -- and I was doing much better when I was on a similar plan. Yesterday I was weepy and depressed all day. I officially swear off the 1200 calorie plan - it makes my body very unhappy.

I also have chronic hemolytic anemia - and I've heard that being anemic makes you burn calories faster, because your heart-rate is naturally higher (in an attempt to keep your body supplied with O2 despite the constantly suicidal RBC troops.) :P

Anyway, I was no good on the 1200, truth be told, even counting isn't really that smart, but I just am addicted to the site -- the forums and the people, and I worry that if I don't count I'll cheat and gain.

onward and upward...