To think that women don't actually need 2000kcal a day

[Croissantsfordinner]

I am barely losing weight eating 1600kcal a day and most of the people I know who are slim and fit definitely do not eat 2000kcal (I am referring to family, friends, colleagues, what I read here on MN and also celebrities diet, lol). So where does this guideline come from?
Unless you are almost an athlete, I don't think all those calories are actually needed, AIBU?

Completely dependant on the person. I eat 2000, sometimes more, and don't gain weight. I have an active lifestyle in that I can't stay sat down for very long, I enjoy walks and have a toddler so spend a lot of time on the move with them when I'm not working. Although I'm no where near an athletes level of fitness and my work involves a lot of time sat at a desk, broken up with walks around as I can't focus if I'm sat for too long.

😂 a little nibble and then putting it down and dabbing your mouth with a napkin ever so daintily

Some people clearly think 2000 calories automatically means stuffing your face with refined sugar. Has nobody noticed how high in calories things like avocados and nuts are, even as part of a healthy diet?

Where do Cadbury Mini Eggs fit into this debate? They are very small…..

Yes, and does anyone remember the programme supersize vs superskinny where the ‘skinny’ often had terrible diets, living on crisps, and chocolates etc (according to my memory!)?!

energy drinks and/or "diet" fizzy drinks by the gallon, 3 chocolate fingers and a bag of monster much was their entire day of food intake, but they still made out like the fat one was always worse even if theirs contained some actual food in amongst the junk. Yep. Awful show.

depends what yr eating. i eat over 2000 a day and my weight pretty stable

Sadly I gain weight if I eat over 1500 calories on days I don’t go to the gym. I’m only 5 ft 2 and have pcos. I try to stick to 1400 calories. I walk my dogs so I would probably need even less if I didn’t do that.

Don’t ask this sort of question on a page that is full of people with unrealistic ideas about normal eating. Ask the GP to refer you to a dietitian, who has been to university and has actually studied nutrition. The problem is that asking people who may have eating disorders will mean you will get answers from people who want to validate their own misguided views.

Agreed, but don’t ask for nutritional advise from a GP either. A proper nutritionist with actual qualifications (not just a certificate of the internet!) is the best bet 👌

If I'm walking 8-10k a day then I need at least 1850. I'm 5.6. Quite high muscle mass.

Gosh no. Couldn't eat anywhere near 2000 a day and not put on weight. I think this advice is not suitable for women mid 30s onwards.

What a broad, dismissive comment.
i am pretty sure very many healthy weight women over 30 consume at least 2000 cals a day

Which is exactly what she has said. Ask the GP to refer.

@rosemarble I perhaps phrased that incorrectly and gave a short unspecific response, my apologies.

A lot of GPs won’t refer you, and will give advise instead especially if in regards to weight loss. However they are not specialists and will general put you on very restrictive diets for quick results and not sustained results to get scale weight down.

Sometimes the best option is to find a qualified nutritionist or dietician directly instead.

It completely depends on lifestyle, height, age etc. I’m 5’6”, in my 40s, exercise most days and I’m quite active. I eat between 1800 and 2000 calories each day to maintain a healthy weight of around 9.5/10stone

im 5ft 8 and size 12. i have 23.5 bmi - half a stone to go to be overweight.

i walk all day, every day and eat an average of 2700 cals a day (i track it) because i feel i need the energy to keep me on my feet all day.

Simple fact is, I don't really need it and am bulging in all the wrong places.

Exactly what I said. I said ask the gp for a referral to a dietitian.

I'm 5'5 and definitely do not need 2000 cals per day

More like 1500

It's very hard, though, to keep to it

Food is good!

It’s an average. I am 5ft 1, 9 stone ish and I’d gain if ate more than 1500. I guess that’s why so many women are overweight if they automatically think they can eat 2000.

But a 9 stone, 5' 1" woman isn't a relevant comparator for many women. You're much smaller than average.

My maintenance calories are above 2000 and I'm only slightly above average sized, so from where I'm standing it seems about right for an average sized woman and I didn't think I was particularly active in that I have a job that is mostly desk based but driving and site visits once or twice a week.

I typically just manage 10000 steps a day when averaged over a week and do one aqua aerobics class.

I think the problem is that very short and/or inactive people think that the average calorie requirement applies to them when it clearly doesn't.

Wow lucky you. I never sat down, I was at my thinnest between DCs and ate what ever I liked ( or what ever I could get my hands on) though we were poor so perhaps I didn't buy treats as I was watching the pennies. I am a boringly average size woman ( 5'5") Site linked above reckons I need 2100.

2000 is an average. If you don't need 2000 then eat less. There's a huge range in the amount of bone and muscle each person has, the level of activity they find "normal" and even the efficiency with which each digestive system extracts energy from food and converts that to energy in the body. You do you, but don't assume that what applies for you applies to everyone else.

Yabu. Unless you are very overweight or tall/ active you are not going to have weight falling off reliably at 1600. You say you are ‘barely losing weight’ so you are losing weight. Just slowly. Keep going and weigh yourself monthly. In 6 months you’ll be lighter.

I’ve been on 1800 average (I’m very tall and current bmi 26) and am finding that most weeks I lose nothing then every so often it just jumps down a bit. It’s a long haul, I tried lower but lasted for 2 days - this way it’s sustainable. To maintain I’ll need higher than 2000 for sure. Oh and I’m peri, maybe that’s the reason for the odd weight loss pattern.

I really doubt people thinking that they can eat 2000 a day is the reason for most obesity.