I just don't get the calorie thing...

My doctor constantly tells me he wants to see me at 1200 calories. I never seem to lose weight whenever I eat 1500 calories or more. Yet this site says this:

"You should consume about 2,828 calories a day to reach your goal weight of 200 lbs This is at a reasonable weight loss average of 1.5 lbs per week, which should be reached by August 04, 2010."

I have been on Medifast before, eating between 1000-1200 calories per day. I lost 5+ pounds per week and kept it off. I know it works for me. But now... i really don't know.

This is all massively confusing. Who the heck am I supposed to believe?

EDIT:

For the records, I'm 21, 5'10, male and currently 289lbs. I get about an hour of exercise per day.

if you are used to eat like 15oo a day,you will prabably gain some weight back/or wont lose any for a first week or two,but after that you will start losing weight slowly.

Your Estimated BMR (calculated at http://phord.com/cc):
BMR=2325 :: RMR=2790

Your customized recommendation:
EAT 2325 calories :: BURN 3604 calories :: LOSE 2.56 lb per week
(Moderately Active = Moderate exercise or sports 4-5 days/week)

Thanks for the reply!

I supposed I could TRY eating 2,000 calories for a month or so to see if anything works? Is that long enough to see results, though? :/

I'm just really fighting with what this site is saying and what my doctor is saying.

I personally would recommend you see a nutritionist rather than ask your GP/doctors. Nutritionists know how many calories you need and what macronutrients would work for you, etc. My one visit alone was very helpful when I made an appt. to see one. Just my 2 cents.

I've never seen a doctor in regards to weight loss, but from what I've read from a lot of different people, they don't know jack when it comes to nutrition and eating to lose weight. (one would think they would, right?) I agree, see someone more specialized in that area, like a dietitian or nutritionist. And if it's available, getting your RMR tested is a good idea too, so that you can compare your actual burn rate with that computed by online calculators. I had mine done and there was only a 50 calorie difference (my test being a bit higher).

When one undereats for a long period of time, the metabolism adjusts to burn fewer calories.  This is a life sparing adaptation.  Refer to Ask Mary for answers, and also, the Home page, Getting Started FAQ.

FAQ:  In order to get the daily food servings you need for a balanced diet, it takes about 1200 calories a day. With careful planning, you could have a balanced diet on 1000 calories, but the restrictiveness of a very low calorie level can lead to binging and weight cycling. What's more, very low calorie diets can cause excessive muscle breakdown and metabolic adaptations, which can make you need fewer calories to maintain a higher weight.

Ask Mary says:  Observations by scientists and lay people show that the "starvation mode" exists, but there is no clear explanation for the phenomenon and it is difficult to measure in the lab. In scientific terms, “starvation mode” is called “adaptive thermogenesis". In relation to weight loss, it is the decrease in calories burned by an individual following a low calorie intake, that is beyond what could be predicted by individual’s age, gender, weight, and activity. In other words, the person is burning fewer calories than the calculations predict. The composition of diet, the duration of dieting, the exercise output, and the individual’s muscle-to-fat ratio all affect the adaptation. Unfortunately, obese individuals may be more prone to adaptive thermogenesis

And also:  The body burns muscle to meet the needs of the central nervous system.  That system, which accounts for at least 20% of calories burned, can only burn glucose, a carbohydrate  The body doesn't really store glucose, but protein, from the muscles, organs tissues, and cells, can turn into glucose, while fat cannot.  Protein breakdown continues until the metabolic rate shifts to burn fewer calories from all sources.  That shift is familiarly called "starvation mode" and it is a life-sustaining adaptation. To forestall starvation mode, lose weight slowly, do muscle building exercise to offset muscle loss, and eat about 20% of your calories from protein.

Just for comparison:  I am a 5'11'' Female, 37 years old.  I weigh 253 and exercise strenuously 3-4 times a week.  I lose weight steadily (about 1-2lb per week) eating 1800-2200 calories a day.  

I think you definitely need to eat more.  

Original Post by thexnest:

My doctor constantly tells me he wants to see me at 1200 calories.

.....

I'm 21, 5'10, male and currently 289lbs. I get about an hour of exercise per day.

Get a new doctor. 

Original Post by tonyrocks922:

Original Post by thexnest:

My doctor constantly tells me he wants to see me at 1200 calories.

.....

I'm 21, 5'10, male and currently 289lbs. I get about an hour of exercise per day.

Get a new doctor. 

Yeah, my sentiments exactly. You're an adult male - even if you were at your optimum goal weight, you should be having AT LEAST 1500 calories per day, and THAT is if you do nothing but lay there still, just breathing, 24x7. Though you want to lose weight, you need to adjust your calories way up to support a quick metabolism for your 5'10, 289lb frame. The fastest way to NOT lose is to eat too few calories. Even if you don't feel like you're "starving" you could be tricking your body into thinking it is ... then comes the true lack of hunger, because your metabolism has slowed down so much ... then the stall in weight loss ... then the fast gain once you start to give your body back what it needs. No bueno.

I am a healthy, active 5' 10" male and I can maintain 170 lbs while eating 2500 calories a day.  1200 cals seem extremely low to me for a person your size, I'd recommend talking to the Doctor about it.  Are there other health concerns?

An hour a day of exercise? Depending on what you do, that's 600-900 calories right there, and if you do it daily, that's 4200-6300 calories off per 7 day week, or up to 1.8 pounds a week from exercise alone. I'm sure it's not 7 days of exercise, so let's say it's 3500 less calories. That's 1lb/week from exercise alone.

If you only eat 1,200 calories with a 2790 RMR...wow. The numbers aren't adding up.

Your doc is an idiot. A man at your height, no matter what size, shouldn't eat under 1500 cals.

Up the cals to 2000 and remember: you don't lose weight overnight. Give it time. If you're at a 500-800 cals deficit, the weight will come off (1-2 lbs a week).

Original Post by clairelaine:

When one undereats for a long period of time, the metabolism adjusts to burn fewer calories.  This is a life sparing adaptation.  Refer to Ask Mary for answers, and also, the Home page, Getting Started FAQ.

FAQ:  In order to get the daily food servings you need for a balanced diet, it takes about 1200 calories a day. With careful planning, you could have a balanced diet on 1000 calories, but the restrictiveness of a very low calorie level can lead to binging and weight cycling. What's more, very low calorie diets can cause excessive muscle breakdown and metabolic adaptations, which can make you need fewer calories to maintain a higher weight.

Ask Mary says:  Observations by scientists and lay people show that the "starvation mode" exists, but there is no clear explanation for the phenomenon and it is difficult to measure in the lab. In scientific terms, “starvation mode” is called “adaptive thermogenesis". In relation to weight loss, it is the decrease in calories burned by an individual following a low calorie intake, that is beyond what could be predicted by individual’s age, gender, weight, and activity. In other words, the person is burning fewer calories than the calculations predict. The composition of diet, the duration of dieting, the exercise output, and the individual’s muscle-to-fat ratio all affect the adaptation. Unfortunately, obese individuals may be more prone to adaptive thermogenesis

And also:  The body burns muscle to meet the needs of the central nervous system.  That system, which accounts for at least 20% of calories burned, can only burn glucose, a carbohydrate  The body doesn't really store glucose, but protein, from the muscles, organs tissues, and cells, can turn into glucose, while fat cannot.  Protein breakdown continues until the metabolic rate shifts to burn fewer calories from all sources.  That shift is familiarly called "starvation mode" and it is a life-sustaining adaptation. To forestall starvation mode, lose weight slowly, do muscle building exercise to offset muscle loss, and eat about 20% of your calories from protein.

So... I'm guessing that's a bad thing then. xP

Original Post by tattooed_kitty:

Original Post by tonyrocks922:

Original Post by thexnest:

My doctor constantly tells me he wants to see me at 1200 calories.

.....

I'm 21, 5'10, male and currently 289lbs. I get about an hour of exercise per day.

Get a new doctor. 

Yeah, my sentiments exactly. You're an adult male - even if you were at your optimum goal weight, you should be having AT LEAST 1500 calories per day, and THAT is if you do nothing but lay there still, just breathing, 24x7. Though you want to lose weight, you need to adjust your calories way up to support a quick metabolism for your 5'10, 289lb frame. The fastest way to NOT lose is to eat too few calories. Even if you don't feel like you're "starving" you could be tricking your body into thinking it is ... then comes the true lack of hunger, because your metabolism has slowed down so much ... then the stall in weight loss ... then the fast gain once you start to give your body back what it needs. No bueno.

Oh, I feel like I'm starving. Some days aren't bad, but I can't stay on the plan at all because I keep wanting to "cheat"... and then I end up eating "too much" and uhg.

And I think I do need a new doctor... Basically if I don't lose weight or gain it, he tells me it's because I'm eating too much. I try to tell him I exercise on a consistant basis and he acts like it doesn't matter. It's very frustrating... And a bit scary, because I NEED to lose the weight and it feels like nothing is working. Especially when I cave in, eat more and then gain weight. :( Which might be from my metabolism being shot thanks to this low cal diet.

Original Post by trhawley:

I am a healthy, active 5' 10" male and I can maintain 170 lbs while eating 2500 calories a day.  1200 cals seem extremely low to me for a person your size, I'd recommend talking to the Doctor about it.  Are there other health concerns?

I has asthma, possible Lupus, and am pre-diabetic.

I've talked to the doctor before. He's just convinced that I'm simply stuffing my face. Which might be true sometimes, I do admit I slip up, but after I joined this site I am really suspecting that it's more the type of food I eat (since I snap and binge), not exercising enough (I shoot for an hour a day, sometimes I slip when I get depressed) and the fact that this low calorie thing is killing my metabolism (I'm not eating enough to fuel my body).

It's insanely frustrating.

Original Post by seemoleon:

An hour a day of exercise? Depending on what you do, that's 600-900 calories right there, and if you do it daily, that's 4200-6300 calories off per 7 day week, or up to 1.8 pounds a week from exercise alone. I'm sure it's not 7 days of exercise, so let's say it's 3500 less calories. That's 1lb/week from exercise alone.

If you only eat 1,200 calories with a 2790 RMR...wow. The numbers aren't adding up.

I /try/ to exercise for an hour a day. I get up and do exercises during commercials (I have a mini-trampoline that I love), I take longer walks with my dog and I do some work with resistance bands (which I've really come to enjoy) since weights tend to kill my joints.

Yet... the weight refuses to come off. The low calorie diet works perfectly fine if I sit around all day and eat it EXACTLY right, but I've actually /broken down in tears/ a few times because I get THAT hungry and depressed. So... something is definitely not right.

I assume that when you say the numbers aren't adding up, you mean that I'm not eating enough?

Original Post by mperic81:

Your doc is an idiot. A man at your height, no matter what size, shouldn't eat under 1500 cals.

Up the cals to 2000 and remember: you don't lose weight overnight. Give it time. If you're at a 500-800 cals deficit, the weight will come off (1-2 lbs a week).

I'm trying to give it time. It's hard, especially when weight keeps coming back after I eat one cracker. :| Or you know, just LOOK at a slice of cheese.

I like this Medifast stuff (it's what I'm on) and I think I could use it IN a diet plan, but the diet plan itself... I don't think I can do it.

It's just VERY confusing because so many people have been successful on it, doctors seem to think highly of it... And I'm at the point where "2000 calories" sounds scary to me. I really think this stupid crap has given me an eating disorder or something... I feel like if I eat over 1200 calories, I'm this huge failure and...

... Damn, I feel like some twelve year old schoolgirl. :(

Original Post by thexnest:

Thanks for the reply!

I supposed I could TRY eating 2,000 calories for a month or so to see if anything works? Is that long enough to see results, though? :/

I'm just really fighting with what this site is saying and what my doctor is saying.

 I heard the same thing from doctors for years and sure it worked for a little bit but then I'd reach a plateau, get frustrated, binge cause I was starving, quit and gain it all back (and then some) or I'd hit my goal and then not know about maintenance (which is really the "rest of your life" part).  Since finding this site and discovering that 1200 is just way too low for me I've been consistently losing weight and feel the best in many many years.  Yes I was skeptical at first and it took a bit of time to find the magic number so you have to be patient.

I'd definitely follow the advise of seeing a nutrionist and up your calorie intake.  Remember its a lifetime change not just a "diet" so you have time to find what works for you.

An hour per day at your weight is AWESOME.  Just sayin.

Also, make sure you count long-term.  When I "snap" and go wild, I COUNT that.  Because even though everyone says to pick up and move on, you still need to know the damage.  Your body sure does.

What kind of exercise are you doing regularly?   How much do you think you can keep up?  The best way to combat the slow metabolism would be strength training, but I am a HUGE proponent of cardio for its multiple other benefits.  Combination is always good :]   My 2cents however, is that "starvation mode" is not a huge effect, and apart from some strength training you shouldn't need to account too much for it.

How about this, think about what someone at your goal weight would eat, and eat about that each day, while doing the same amount of physical exercise you think that person would do.  Eventually you'll get there!

Original Post by tealparadise:

An hour per day at your weight is AWESOME.  Just sayin.

 

Also, make sure you count long-term.  When I "snap" and go wild, I COUNT that.  Because even though everyone says to pick up and move on, you still need to know the damage.  Your body sure does.

What kind of exercise are you doing regularly?   How much do you think you can keep up?  The best way to combat the slow metabolism would be strength training, but I am a HUGE proponent of cardio for its multiple other benefits.  Combination is always good :]   My 2cents however, is that "starvation mode" is not a huge effect, and apart from some strength training you shouldn't need to account too much for it.

 

How about this, think about what someone at your goal weight would eat, and eat about that each day, while doing the same amount of physical exercise you think that person would do.  Eventually you'll get there!

Well, I really am trying, despite what the doctor thinks. :P I love exercise. I wish I would have loved it when I was in HS, because maybe I wouldn't have gotten this heavy if I had. But hey, at least I'm getting on the ball now.

I bounce on my mini-trampoline during commercial breaks every day, sometimes during TV shows... uhm... so I get at least 30 minutes of that. Then I do some yoga for about 15 minutes, arm exercises with a resistance band for about 15 minutes... And then some 'core' exercises... So really, I probably get more than an hour per day. I think I can keep it up because I really like it. Not to say it's easy-- I tend to slip a week if I get sick-- but it's not terribly impossible if I have discipline with myself.

And I figured 2000-ish calories because I did the "calories it would take to maintain the weight I want to be at" then subtracted about 500 calories from that. So it SHOULD start to come off at some point... I just need to make sure I stay on the exercise.

Actually the body can break down fat into a glycolytic subunit.  Glucose is the energy of choice because it leads into glycolysis and then into the TCA/Kreb's/Citric Acid Cycle as pyruvate and then into the Electron Transport Chain (assuming that your body is operating under aerobic conditions).  For every 1 glucose your body gets 36 ATP which is the most basic biological energy 'currency'.  

While your metabolism prefers to break down carbohydrates (like glucose), if you're mounting a moderate caloric deficient it will break down fats through beta oxidation into pyruvate and fatty acids that through a series of further modifications can enter into the TCA cycle and generate ATP.  The reason why your body stores energy in the form of fat is that it's much more stable and harder to break down than sugars.  Its an evolutionary way to ensure survival during hard times.  If the body has no adipose fat deposits to break down and you aren't consuming enough fats, it starts to break down proteins.  If you aren't consuming adequate levels of 'food energy' and you have no fat stored your body will start metabolizing it's own protein starting with those stored in the liver and the muscles.  

http://dl.clackamas.edu/ch106-06/metaboli.htm http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11255140

Original Post by dominiquep1:

Actually the body can break down fat into a glycolytic subunit.  Glucose is the energy of choice because it leads into glycolysis and then into the TCA/Kreb's/Citric Acid Cycle as pyruvate and then into the Electron Transport Chain (assuming that your body is operating under aerobic conditions).  For every 1 glucose your body gets 36 ATP which is the most basic biological energy 'currency'.  

While your metabolism prefers to break down carbohydrates (like glucose), if you're mounting a moderate caloric deficient it will break down fats through beta oxidation into pyruvate and fatty acids that through a series of further modifications can enter into the TCA cycle and generate ATP.  The reason why your body stores energy in the form of fat is that it's much more stable and harder to break down than sugars.  Its an evolutionary way to ensure survival during hard times.  If the body has no adipose fat deposits to break down and you aren't consuming enough fats, it starts to break down proteins.  If you aren't consuming adequate levels of 'food energy' and you have no fat stored your body will start metabolizing it's own protein starting with those stored in the liver and the muscles.  

http://dl.clackamas.edu/ch106-06/metaboli.htm http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11255140

...I'm not sure if that means what I was doing was a good thing, or a bad thing.

Aside from that...

I've boosted my calories up to around 2000 and I've gone from 284 to 290. This is a bit depressing, and I'm not sure why my weight went up that fast within a few days. Is it just getting used to the new calorie intake, or am I going to just keep gaining? :|

You dont gain weight that fast.  Are you eating more salt?  Are you drinking enough water?  Your "weight" gain is most likely water.  Eat low sodium foods, got lots of fiber and drink lots of water.  Your water weight will fall off in a day or two.

I was looking at your exercise routine.  Have you tried walking?  Its wonderful for so many reasons.  It is very low impact, contributes to our calorie burn and makes you feel wonderful. It also helps stem the water weight gain.

But honestly, I was skimming the posts above  Perhaps you mentioned it and I missed it.

Original Post by madamq:

You dont gain weight that fast.  Are you eating more salt?  Are you drinking enough water?  Your "weight" gain is most likely water.  Eat low sodium foods, got lots of fiber and drink lots of water.  Your water weight will fall off in a day or two.

I was looking at your exercise routine.  Have you tried walking?  Its wonderful for so many reasons.  It is very low impact, contributes to our calorie burn and makes you feel wonderful. It also helps stem the water weight gain.

But honestly, I was skimming the posts above  Perhaps you mentioned it and I missed it.

 

It must be water weight. I will try adding more fiber to my diet as well as cutting back on the sodium.

I love walking. I don't do it as much/as fast as I should, usually just to walk the dog or for long periods but at a slow speed... I'm getting a treadmill soon, though, so I can do that when the weather is bad (101*F here today!).