5'5" teenage girl and I'm eating about 1100-1200 calories a day?

I'm 5'5"  and I weigh about 115 pounds.  I'm a young teenage girl and i'm looking to lose some of the fat that gathered on my belly from eating junk food and all-around I just want to lose about 5-10 pounds.  If I eat about 1100-1200 calories a day will i lose from 5-10, and if so how fast?? I exercise about everyday, usually about 30 minutes and 1 hour on a good day.  I go walking and jogging along with biking on more laid back days.  Any opinions or tips on what I should do?

I think you should eat more and keep exercising if you want a better looking body. I know that sounds contradictory, but if you don't eat enough your metabolism will turn on you, and exercise will eat your muscles if you aren't getting enough calories. Focus on eating healthy and working out. Don't neglect yourself; chances are, you don't need to lose that much weight (considering you're already pretty light), and you'll lose fat via exercise if you eat properly.

http://www.bcm.edu/cnrc/bodycomp/bmiz2.html

This will tell you how many calories you burn per day. When I first saw it, I was surprised that I was burning over 2000 a day because I'd been dieting forever and technically should have been losing weight. However, my metabolism was messed up from eating 800-1200 calories a day. Teenage girls need at least 1500.

Good luck, and I hope you reconsider your plan : )

I agree with the other post - I'm 49 now and have been at this since younger than you. I truly wish someone told me to exercise and eat more. I'm only learning that now!! Remember to eat protien.

Good luck - stay fit

I don't think you are eating enough....

Hi!!! I'm also a teenage girl who is 5'3" and I weigh around 110, so we're almost twins! I'm also looking to lose 4-5 lbs and tone up a bit. 

I've been eating about 1200-1300 cals every day, biking 12 miles 4 days a week, and going to dance class the other 3. 

I think the best way to achieve what we are trying to achieve (haha i love this matching thing) is to not eat processed food. I've been cooking all my own meals and eating a TON of veggies (they fill me up). The other thing is nuts- I find that eating 1/4 cup of almonds every day really curbs my hunger and even though they're fatty somehow seem to be helping in the weight loss thing.  I've already lost 2 lbs in a week, so its working pretty well! 

If you have more questions let me know :)

it is not advisable for teenagers and those under 21 to consume less than 1500 calories a day and anything less puts you at risk of being malnourished. Not only that but it sets you up to become overweight later in life by decreasing your metabolism and your body's ability to properly utilize calories for energy, instead your body stores the calories as fat and you gain weight more easily when you begin to eat more. 

it would be more advisable for you to stick to a deficit of roughly 500-700 calories, half of which can  be achieved by exercising, the other half by reducing calorie intake.

For exercising 1 hour a day you need about 2400 calories to maintain your weight, that's with an age estimate of 16. So, if you were to consume 2000 calories and exercise for about 30 minutes to an hour daily you could lose weight at a healthy rate. 

111 pounds is the border of underweight for someone 5'5 and you should not go below that number, in fact, to restrict your calories to lose any weight at all can lead to health problems since as a teen your body is still developing and needs the energy to do so. 

104 is the bare minimum for someone 5'3. 

Why are you both shooting for such low BMIs when clearly you've already achieved a healthy weight? this can lead to huge health consequences and is not worth the effort or potential damage. Sorry to discourage you from losing weight, but your goals really aren't very healthy.

Regardless of what you decide 1500 is the bare minimum and should be taken into account when you create a calorie target!!

chrissy-

I didn't know about the 1500 cals lower limit, so thank you for telling me about that!! 

I know the numbers may say something different, but I find that even with an hour of exercise a day, if I eat 2000 calories I gain weight. I'm not sure why this is- it happens even when I eat pretty healthy food. And my burn meter said 1740...so that explains the 1200/day thing (though i will definitely bump it up to 1500 now).

As far as why I am shooting for a lower BMI- I don't actually care about my BMI number. I weighed 105 (my goal weight) a few months ago, and my doctor said that was a perfectly healthy weight for me. I know that I'm in the normal BMI/weight range now, but I feel more comfortable with myself at 105 than at 110. So I think my goals are healthy, though arguably not necessary.  

If you gain weight on a normal amount of calories, it indicates that the weight you are trying to maintain is too low for you.

Basically, if you need to restrict to maintain your weight, or to maintain your goal weight, than you will be far better off eating a normal amount of calories for your age/height/activity level and being a little heavier and to have a fast/normal metabolism, then to restrict and have to under eat for the rest of your life.

2000 calories for a 5 ‘ 3 teen who exercises for an hour is not a lot at all. If you gain weight on this amount, than it might be a sign that your body is naturally supposed to be a slightly higher weight - nothing drastic, maybe only 2 - 5 lbs! you can convert that weight into mostly muscle and actually LOSE dress sizes, even if you DID gain a few pounds.

Original Post by personaltrainer87:

If you gain weight on a normal amount of calories, it indicates that the weight you are trying to maintain is too low for you.

Basically, if you need to restrict to maintain your weight, or to maintain your goal weight, than you will be far better off eating a normal amount of calories for your age/height/activity level and being a little heavier and to have a fast/normal metabolism, then to restrict and have to under eat for the rest of your life.

 personaltrainer has it right.  We've said here many times that as a teen, having a lower BMI might be ok....if it's achieved naturally.  This means if the person eats the amount of "maintenance" calories that they are supposed to eat and can still maintain that weight naturally.  However, if someone has to constantly diet or constantly undereat to get down to a lower BMI, then it's really their body telling them that this is not a natural weight for them.