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900cals enough for maintanece?

Hi,

im 18, 58kgs, 168cm tall and either bike 12km or run 4km everyday! is 900cals eenough for maintance? very confused!!

Not even remotely.

i cant seem to wat more or i feel phsically sik!

Not nearly enough!!!  I'm 31 and 57 kg.  I power walk 5 km 5 days a week.  I'm currently maintaining at 2500 (though this varies slighty depending on my other daily activities).  You should go up to at least 2000 and try that for a couple weeks before deciding to go up or down.  I fine tune my calarie amount every couple weeks to maintain balace.  900 is even too low for weight loss!

You are starving yourself. You are in need of help. Right. Now. Please contact a doctor.

Then eat high calorie high quality foods like nuts and whole grains.  Eat an avocado that will add 300 calories.  I love them but I have to watch it!

BEFORE POSTING ON THE FORUMS PLEASE READ THE FORUM RULES!! it only takes a quick search of the threads to see that anyone eating less than 1200 calories is highly discouraged from doing so. You're only eating 3/4 of that...so the answer is NO NO NO!! 900 is too little for even weight loss, so weight maintenance would require much much more!!

it's simply not true that you feel physically sick from eating over 900 calories, if you ate trail mix and didn't count the calories and peanut butter with apple slices you would easily surpass 900 calories without even noticing it. 

Your body needs at least 1200 calories per day to survive. Here is a very rough scientific break down provided by a dietician for a  5' 2", 19 year old female weighing approximately 100 pounds, sitting around all day and doing nothing:


-The heart needs 12% of the calories (144 cals)
-The kidney needs 12% of the calories (144 cals)
-The Liver needs 23% of the calories (276 cals)
-The brain needs 23% of the calories (276 cals)
-The skeletal muscle needs 30% of the calories (360 cals) 

Reference: http://www.calorie-count.com/forums/post/3178  ;.html#6

There is no way that on so few calories you are fueling your body with what it needs. The minimum intake for a sedentary female over 21 is 1200 calories per day. For a sedentary female under 21 or a man over 21 it is 1500 per day, and a sedentary male under 21 1800 per day. And believe it or not, that’s only the sedentary minimum. Unless you are very, very short and small, and/or if you are working out it is very likely you will need even more calories than those minimum guidelines.

If you are 21 or older use CC's tools to work out your BMR so you have a number to work from for your diet: http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/calories-bur  ;ned.php. If you are under 21, CC's tools are inaccurate and you should use this calculator instead:http://www.bcm.edu/cnrc/bodycomp/bmiz2.html as you are still growing. Yes, even in the later years - there's more going on inside of you that you simply can't see.

Eating too low a calorie intake, or having a deficit from your BMR greater than 1000 results in something called "survival mode", where your body holds every last thing it can get in expectance of a famine. Water, food, calories. Explained:

• Dieting & Metabolism - This article explains starvation mode and why undereating is counter productive.
• The Body Neglected - This is what happens when you undereat for an extended period of time. 
• "Obesity on 700 Calories" - A tale of starvation mode's devistating effects, and proof you don't have to be underweight to be starving.
• From Ask Mary, the segment provided by our CC nutritionist Mary Hartley: On the dangers of undereating and what it does to your body.

The physical dangers that come with undereating are numerous. You put yourself at risk of osteoporosis, of loss of fertility if you lose your period, hair loss, electrolyte problems, a weakening of the immune system, low blood pressure, blood disorders such as anemia, heart problems, and even death. The mental woes that come alongside can be just as devestating. Depression is common in undereaters, as well as distorted perceptions and problems like Body Dysmorphic Disorder.

Crash dieting will do nothing to help you lose weight as the weight will likely come straight back on, and undereating can easily do more damage than good. Think about it - your health or your vanity? Weight is easily lost if you do it in a healthy and sustainable manner which is what CC is all about. 

I think you ought to read the following link: An Unofficial Calorie Count Guide to a Fad-Free 2009. It covers the basics of calorie counting, largely in how to do so safely and sensibly without resorting to drastic methods. And please remember:

Posting Guidelines 

Calorie Count's mission is to promote healthy and sustainable weight management. Please help our moderators follow this vision and respect the following guidelines.

• Your post is subject to modification or deletion by our moderators. Repetitive, off-topic, disruptive, and frivolous posts will be removed. We will take down any posts that violate either the letter or the spirit of any of these rules.
• Promotion of starvation diets or habits that exhibit signs of an eating disorder ("pro-ana", "pro-mia", etc.) is prohibited.

- Chrissy
Calorie Count Volunteer Moderator

I just started dieting yesterday and had this problem too.

I ended my day yesterday with +370 calories (after subtracting exercise from food calories) and though I didn't feel sick or anything, I know it was unhealthy. It wasn't on purpose but I was misinformed and also I did more exercise than planned at the end of the day.

Like I said in my other thread, I will be having a scoop of 90cal Peanut Butter a couple times a day, as needed to boost my calories to an end total of 13-1400.
Force feeding yourself isn't ideal, but neither is restricting your calories that low. It's unhealthy and your body will start eating it's muscle, not fat, in order to survive.

900 CAL ????????????? OMG!!! You'll need at least 1800 with our daily schedule!!!!! Eat almonds, & nuts...... Whole gains are great carbs you will burn when you run.. lean meats: fish, turkey & Tofu is also a  great proteins!! Fruits/veggies are very low cal and you need the naturals energy's. Good luck,.. You might want to ask you primary Doctor for guidance.

Two months ago, you asked virtually the same question and we are giving you virtually the same advice. Please read your old threads and the posts above and remember to abide by posting guidelines.

http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-eating -ft141467

http://caloriecount.about.com/cal-enough-ft14 0038