Meridia and Doctor prescribed me to eat UNDER 1200 cals a day...

I went to the doctor yesterday to see if I could get a pill to help me with my weight loss. I know that is not a permanent answer, but I more or less want something to help me get a jump start. I have been trying to lose weight for the last 6 months.. (yes.. I could have tried harder).. but I have only lost about 5 lbs or so and am starting to lose motivation.

So.. anyways.. the doctor asked what I have done so far to try and lose weight. I told her I have been *trying* to stick to 1600 calories a day and exercise 2-3 times a week. More than not, I went over the 1600 calories, and only actually exercised one time or so, which is why I said try. But I was surprised with what she told me next.

She said that in oder to LOSE weight, I have to eat UNDER 1200 calories a day AND exercise for 40-60 mins a day. She said if I eat 1600 calories that I will most likely just maintain. Now I'm not a little girl either.. I'm 5'8" and 200+ lbs. (Let's just say I'm classified as obese for my height and frame) And from what I've read on this site, you are not supposed to go lower than 1200 because that is what your body needs just to function, and that you are supposed to add more calories if you plan on exercising. So I guess.. I don't know who to believe.. my doctor.. or calorie-count??

Also, she did end up prescribing Meridia. Has anyone tried that before? If so, how did it work? Any bad side affects? Anything you can share about it? I'll be starting it tomorrow.

Thanks in advance!

I don't know about Meridia, but I'd recommend a second opinion - doctors often get precious little training in nutrition and weight loss, and unless you have a thyroid disorder or similar, it's ridiculous to say that you'd maintain at 1600.

My stats - 5'6", went from 168 to 135 eating 1400-1600 calories... so clearly was not maintaining.

IMO, your doctor sucks.  Probably been thin his/her entire life.  Might be better to see a nutricianist.

I can't speak on the Meridia but my doctor told me to do the same thing when I asked about getting my RMR tested. She told me that I needed to be eating 1200 calories to lose weight and that was when I was in the 180s. I'm 5'5. That was like 400 calories LESS than what I'd burn in a coma at the time. So I ignored her 'advice' and continued to eat what the calculators told me, which was 1600ish. I've been steadily losing anywhere from 0.5 - 1lb a week and I'm happy with that.

Definitely seek out a nutritionist, though. Sometimes regular doctors are just as misinformed as the rest of us when it comes to proper diet. Maybe they read all those misleading magazines in their waiting areas as well...

I'd agree, get another opinion.  But in the doctor's defense, and as a suggestion for the second opinion, be honest!

if the doctor thinks you are "trying" try eat 1600 and work out 2-3 times means you missed it once or twice in 6 months, and your "trying" reall means you hit it onces or twice in 6 months, the doc may think you have a slower metabolism, etc.  if you have averaged 1800 say so.  if you worked out once a week or less, say so.  they need to know the true starting point.

One would think a physican would be able to give us good advice about how to lose weight, but, alas, that is not the case. Physicians receive little to no education about nutrition - both for healthy people, or for the not so healthy. A nutritionist will  be able to give you much ore accurate information. Your physican may be able to refer you to one - and may be more than happy to refer you to one if you start asking specific questions regarding diet.

Not every physician has every answer, nor should you expect them to, so if you have a good relationship with this doc, it may not be necessary to find another one. But you should consult an expert.

shaye! don't you know that people on this website are smarter than your doctor who went to med school

In a sense I can believe this because I've heard of many doctor's telling patients to eat as low as 800 calories a day. I really don't think this is the healthiest way to go about it either.

You can eat lower then 1200 calories, BUT the main purpose to eat that amount is to get adequate nutrition and vitamins from food. Without them your body is going to be severely lacking, not to mention you will be very low on energy. You can eat 1200 calories and still lose weight, you can even eat more then that and lose weight.

Truth of the matter is, doctors arent really experts when it comes to the nutrition field. I've learned this from many doctors I have seen. I'm with others and suggest you get a second opinion. I would even recommend more so that you see a nutritionist someone who actually studied the field of nutrition and the amount YOUR body truly needs. I think you would get better advice.

Definitely don't go by this plan you are going to be miserable and lack a lot of energy. So I'm with others, get a second opinion.

Original Post by mimi_js:

shaye! don't you know that people on this website are smarter than your doctor who went to med school

Med school has exactly one lecture (a whole entire hour out of years and years of training) about nutrition.  So, yes, people who take the time to research nutrition will know more about it than your average doctor.  Does that make them smarter than the doctor?  Not necessarily.  It just makes them better informed. 

And being a doctor doesn't necessarily mean you're smart.  I've certainly met doctors who made it pretty darn obvious they weren't particularly smart.  Fortunately, most of them are.

I took meridia years ago, at 2 separate times, the first time it worked, well, I didnt like that I felt like i was having heart palpitations, and my blood pressure got really low... hmmm.

The second time, it worked at first, and then it made me EXTREMELY constipated, like go to the doc constipated, and then stopped working, and it no longer curbed my hunger.

some people it doesnt work to start with...

You really have to just change your attitude if you want the weight off, bc meridia can only fight you so much, bc if you REALLY want to overeat, you still can.

Hey.....my mom was on meridia when I was like.....maybe 15-17 years old. She lost TONS of weight and LOVED it. But, eventually she had to go off of it, cuz that was when they found out all of th bad stuff about phen phen and waht not. She didn't have any heart probs while on it, but once she got off it she started having hte palpitations and got put on bp meds and stuff. And of course she gained it all back, even more, cuz her metabolism got so revved up on it and went SO SLOW after it. So she's been obese since then.....well, not anymore. She's lost over 40lbs in the last few months by eating 'clean' (the diet I was on when I was on the challenge, ya know high protein, low sugar, green veggies).I guess i'd be more worried about AFTER you get off the drugs. That's when the bad stuff seems to happen. And you can't stay on it forever....

So, I'm just sayin.....

I'm 5'8" and I used to be 255 pounds, but I lost 50+ pounds on 1700 calories (sometimes a bit more) and working out 3-4 times a week (usually, around an hour each time). I also have a moderately physical job, but not that much so.

I lost that weight in a little over six months - it's ridiculous to say you would only maintain on 1600 calories. 

Nutrition classes vary by medical school.  I'm in my second year and have received approximately 15 lectures which discussed nutrition either directly or indirectly.  A lot of my fellow med students are also extremely interested in nutrition and therefore know more than others.  Sometimes doctors do recommend eating less than 1200 calories/day (morbidly obese patients awaiting bariatric sugery, people with metabolic disorders, etc.), but I've spent 2 years on this site and the information is pretty legitimate (although there are always certain posts that make me go ?????).  The moral of the story is weight loss = calories out - calories in.  If you have a calorie deficit, you will lose weight.  I would say try to stick to a 500-1000 calorie/day deficit, try to move more, try to eat a well-balanced diet and you'll be fine.  Good luck!

Original Post by susiecue:

And being a doctor doesn't necessarily mean you're smart.  I've certainly met doctors who made it pretty darn obvious they weren't particularly smart.  Fortunately, most of them are.

 When my friend's lymph node was swollen to the size of a grapefruit, his doctor gave him anti-biotics and told him it was an infection.  No further testing.  It was lymphoma, come to find out.  Same thing happened to me, only they mistook cervical cancer for mono.

I almost always get a second opinion when it comes to anything important, especially if you see a lot of information contradicting what your doctor says.  Under 1200 calories a day for someone your size is just insane.  Go to a dietitian.

Doctors are far from being a perfect authority, especially on nutrition.  Go to someone who specializes in the field, they'll be more up to date than a doctor who went to school decades ago.

ok i'm sorry, but there has to be more to this story that what the OP said

i can't imagine a doctor... a person who has spent 8+ years studying the human body and its functions [nutrition classes or not] would recommend eating less than 1200 WITH that much exercise

either the doctor is off his rocker, or there is more to the story

let's not badmouth doctors in general here, they know a lot more about nutrition than people who are saying they do here

Actually there isn't any more to the story. It was a very short conversation and that's why I was so shocked when she said that I had to eat less than 1200 calories and that I would only maintain eating 1600.

then clearly this doctor is off her rocker

get a second opinion.. and possible report her? can you even report doctors when they give bad advice?

I went to several Doc's over the years about my weight problem and none of them took it seriously (I went from being around 135/140 to 230lbs in a couple of years). I frequently got told to eat around 1000-1200 calories a day and to excercise more.

I finally thought I had found one who was interested and prescribed me Orlistat - only for them to call me a liar when I didn't lose any weight on it.

It finally turned out I have had polycystic ovary syndrome for 12 years and thats not only why I gained but also why I couldn't lose.

Now I'm not saying that you could have something wrong with you - just that Doc's dont always look for causes of problems. I'm the same height as you and I have been losing weight eating around 1700-2000 cals a day and excercising 2-5 times a week and I think I would probably pass out on 1200!

If you really are trying as hard as you think and the weight is not coming off, you should definately go see a nutritionist.