AIBU to think that guideline ‘suggested calories per day’ should be reduce

[Crepid]

We all know that the NHS guidance is that adult women should eat 2,000 calories per day and men should eat 2,500.

I’ve also just seen that a 7 year old girl is suggested to eat over 1,500 calories a day - again, the source is the NHS.

I’m 5ft 6, and have a BMI are the upper end of normal (very close to overweight) and I would say that I am probably a little overweight (fat around my abdomen and generally not as slim as I’d like but I’m on track).

In the past year I’ve taken to the gym where, combined with eating less and healthier food, I’m happy to say I’ve managed to lose about 1.5 stone (9.5kg).

For motivation, every time I attend the gym I use a new body sensor device that gives me a detailed breakdown of my stats and it clearly states that to maintain my weight and physique I should eat no more than 1,350 calories per day.

Obesity is causing a huge strain on the NHS and robbing people of their mobility and broader health.

Why are they recommending that people eat 2,000 calories per day when myself - a woman of larger than average height and medium activity levels is being told on both the gym equipment and the GP surgery machine that 1,300 calories will suffice in keeping me at the upper region of ‘healthy’ if not close to overweight?

That’s less than a 7 year old child.

AIBU to think that the calorie suggestions should be lowered to combat it?

YABU - calorie guidance should stick at 2000/2500 calories

YANBU - calorie guidance should be reviewed and lowered

I would bloody love to eat more than 1300 calories a day but I put on weight if I do. I skip breakfast (just black coffee), absolutely never snack, drink very little alcohol, have a small sandwich or salad for lunch followed by a portion of fruit and then a normal but healthy main course with one Lindt ball or a couple of squares of dark chocolate for pud. I reckon I eat half what I did in my twenties and thirties which is very depressing as I’m the same weight.

Am permanently hungry.

Totally agree and I've thought this for ages. According to my Garmin, my average calorie burn over the past 7 days is 1750. That's a combination of some days doing zero exercise with a sedentary job and other days doing some sort of workout. Most people in the office I work in are over weight because they do no exercise and eat around 2000 cals a day.

1300 calories is if you do no exercise.
When I was very active I regularly ate 2500 calories.

Hmm yes that's much less than I eat. I'm only hungry before mealtimes. Are you very thin or more of an average weight?

Today I ate
Large bowl muesli with full fat milk
Cappuccino from cafe
Large cheese sandwich
2 babybels
Bag hula hoops
Apple, kiwi, banana
3.5 chunky fish fingers
Peas and oven chips
Half a hot cross bun
Half a bottle of beer.
3 cups tea.

I'd say that's about typical although there would be days when I eat more chocolate or cake and also more veg! If I hadn't had such a lot of fish fingers I might have had cake for pudding etc.

Depends what you are eating. I follow Zoe after going through all their testing. I can eat over 3000 calories some days and I have lost weight but I don’t eat sugar, processed food, alcohol, white carbs etc. I can easily eat a whole bag of cashews a day, I eat a lot of avocados, fish, lots of beans and pulses, nuts, seeds, dark chocolate, full fat milk and kefir.
Calories mean bugger all, as one persons absorption is completely different to someone else. We are learning that one size does not fit all and that NHS guidance is useless

I’m average mass (72kg) but also 5’11 and I’m very active. My maintenance calories are around 2500 a day.

Interesting. My resting heart rate is 55 yet I seem to spend most of the day in fat burn mode. Today other than a short weights session I was just pottering round the house and burnt 876 calories in fat burn, 1817 total. Maybe this is becuase I am unfit yet my fitbit thinks my vo2 max is 48 to 52.

People eating 2000 calories a day are not what is causing the obesity problem.

Calorie counting is difficult, even dieticians struggle

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12396160/

Energy intake and energy expenditure: a controlled study comparing dietitians and non-dietitians

I'm sorry but that really does sound like an absolutely fucking miserable existence.

My sister was a healthy weight her whole life. Didn't drink or smoke. Died of cancer in her 30s. Life is too short to live off dust.

Agreed. It's the people eating double that! Or higher.

Well, I'm pretty sure I eat around 2000 a day, and I'm 166cm and 63kg. Not particularly active either.

I have, however, NEVER been on a reduced-calorie diet. I know MN posters love to pooh-pooh the Starvation Mode idea, but all this talk about having to get down to 1200 suggests that long-term there may be something in it.

Unless you're all miscalculating, of course...

I agree. My Garmin says I burn 1600 on a lazy day and 1900 on a more active day (50 minutes walking today). So I should be sticking to that to maintain weight rather than 2000 which will inevitably lead to weight gain.

I think it should be worked out individually, I am really active and have a lot of muscle on me so I can eat quite a bit and not gain weight while my sister who is much more sedentary has to really restrict not to gain too much weight. We are all different.

Average woman needs 1500 per day, moderate activity

I eat around 2000 to maintain at 165cm/57kg. I got down to a bmi of 16 averaging at least 1200 a day.

I’m five feet one and maintain my weight if I eat 1600 calories, if I go down to
1200 I lose weight quickly.

Would you recommend Zoe? I’m thinking about starting it

It does vary by person. Vastly.

I'm mid 50s, lightly active, not at all muscular and all of 5'4 and typically consume around 1800-2000 calories a day. My BMI has been stable at 22 for a couple of years, now.

I've had bariatric surgery so now only have 30% of my previous stomach

I now maintain my weight at 1100 calories a day - my BMI is 27 (overweight) but I don't eat less than the above as I don't want to diet. I am really happy at a size 12.

Before surgery I was (obviously) starving hungry all the time

With such a reduced stomach size I can cope with it

I DO NOT OVERESTIMATE WHAT I EAT, it's physically impossible for me to eat more than 1100 calories unless I liquidised chocolate and sipped it constantly - I don't do that

I do intermittent fasting - I only eat between 12-8pm (it's easy for me now)

Exactly!

we are all different. If I ate 1500 calories per day I’d lose weight easily, if I ate 1300 per day it’s drop off dramatically and I’m about 10st. Probably eat 2000-2500 per day. If the recommended allowance was 1500 I’d just ignore it, I would find that so restrictive I’d probably just end up caving and bingeing

Yes I’d love to investigate Zoe too, I generally avoid sugar but perhaps it might help me to eat a bigger quantity of food and keep the weight off.

Not at all!

https://dieteticallyspeaking.com/the-minnesota-starvation-experiment/

It’s a shame that fat people are seen to be the cause of all the world’s problems.

I have a very similar diet to @Teddleshon but I’m only hungry near to dinner time. I’ve found that my body has adapted and I no longer get the hunger pangs that I used to

I would disagree that it’s a miserable existence. I can assure you I have felt on top
of the world watching my body seemingly shrink and my clothes fitting better. I also feel more mobile and a lot healthier day-to-day after the weight shift

Every body is different. My dd hardly ate anything and was slightly chubby, whereas my dgd has had the appetite of an adult since she was about five, and is slim