Do people lose weight on 1200+ calories a day?

[Thebirdsandthebeads]

I've seen many people talk about not losing (much) weight but are eating above 1000 calories daily. I don't know how they lose at all but i guess bodies are different. I know personally, I couldn't lose weight if I'm not under 1000 cal. a day.

800 is the highest for me to maintain weight. When I was slim, I was able to maintain at 1200+ but MJ or not, I couldn't do that after dc. With MJ, I physically can't eat above 1000 cal because I'd be too stuffed.

Anyone else the same or is my body weird?

Everyone's metabolism is different.

The people I personally know who haven't lost the weight they should for a balanced calorie deficit have all got a strong history of family diabetes. I reckon they have some yet undiagnosed "fault" such as malfunctioning pancreas.

By undiagnosed I mean a condition not yet researched/discovered yet. Could be some other hormone or biological system malfunction.

You really shouldn’t be unable to lose weight at 1200. I still lose at 1600, but not with impressive speed. I’ve found 1200 very comfortable to lose at - but I’ve found I need to have some time out of calorie deficit to encourage my body to continue losing. I’m losing a lot of weight over a sustained time, which may be different for people with less to lose.

I wonder if you might have something medical going on that your TDEE is so low? Alternatively are you guesstimating calories? Because I know if I weigh everything then there’s more going on than I think there is.

Yes, people really do lose on 1200+ calories. I have lost 50 lbs now, and have been consistently on 1200-1400 calories a day.
It depends on your weight and height too.
The problem with cutting out too much is that at some point your body takes that as the new normal and slows down or stops the losing, as your metabolism slows. But if you have already cut so much out, you have no where to go from there. I'd argue anything below 1000 calories a day is too little for an adult, regardless of their height and weight.

I've been losing a 1lb per week on average with 1200 cal a day, some weeks it's stalled, I'm not very active, it's a bit slow but I'd get hungry under that amount.

Not at all guesstimating. Been calorie counting for ages before MJ. It could be something medical as you all have said. I know my metabolism has slowed and I've read about insulin resistance which is likely.

I can lose weight on 1800 cals a day but struggle on lower than 2.1k diets (fainting etc) which is why I’m trying Maunjaro. I’m very active and have high muscle mass, 5ft 7. I have a thyroid condition which does lower my bmr slightly but not massively.

Yes, I'm exactly the same. I've lost almost 50lbs in 20 weeks and can count on one hand the number of occasions I've eaten 1200 calories in a day in that time and each time I've done it, I've gained a little. Prior to menopause, I used to IF very successfully and could comfortably lose on 1200 but no more. I recognise that I don't exercise as much as many others and that reduces the calories I need, plus the impact of age which is not well-represented in the research into diet, can't be underestimated. I'm thinking now that 1500 or there abouts, will be my maintenance level of calories which I'm quite comfortable with, especially as I've massively reduced alcohol use in the last 4 months aswell. But equally, I'm open to playing about with this as time goes on - recording calories and regular weigh-ins and adjusting accordingly.

I've lost 66 lbs in nearly 6 months and I've never dipped below about 1400 calories a day

The reason I eat this many (although lol, it's hardly loads is it?!) is because I need to be able to maintain my weight once I'm done losing weight and I'll never manage that if I've eaten 700 calories a day for the past few months. The bounce back will be massive and I'm trying to avoid feeling ravenous once I come off the injection

I average between 7-9 lbs loss a month right now as I'm a normal weight - I did lose about 14 lbs in my first month, 11 lbs in my second and then it started to stabilise into a pattern

I'm also quite short at 5 ft 3 and a bit so sadly, maintenance cals of 1800 etc aren't going to work but I'm hopeful to be able to maintain at about 1600 ish as I'm still slowly losing on 1400

Pic for proof it works this way!

Wow, it's incredible everyone's losses and the calories they can eat to maintain. Congrats all. I've always been someone who sees what people eat on a diet and think that's still too much for me. I can't eat that much. I get even fatter.

I'm one of those people who just looks at food and gains weight. 😂Sadly I didn't start out that way and never had to concern myself with weight or calories before dc.

If you suspect insulin resistance can you be very strict about the types of food you eat?

I love fruit and veg and as a result my sugar intake is always on the high side

Yes I've reduced fruits now because of it ams cut out some foods like potatoes. I love them but I actually feel them messing up my blood sugar levels and how shaky I feel after eating them.

Trying out more of different foods to see how they make me feel.

And* not ams

I only lose on under 800 cals or if I am ill. And it needs to be consistent. I've lost 52lb in last year, but only ten if those this year as I've been faffing about

I'm 800 or I can't lose weight. It really annoys me! Am 48

Those like me, do you think you may have insulin resistance or problems with metabolism or is it 'normal' for some of us to only lose weight on low calories?

I've tried numerous TDEE calculators they all say I should be able to eat way more calories and still be in a deficit. I have to stick to around 900-1000 to lose weight, I don't think I could do it without Mounjaro.
I've had a recent blood test to check for anything that might cause this but nothing was flagged.

Same here re blood test. I've had a few over the years too and no apparent issues.

Having checked my TDEE, they said you should subtract 500 from it and that's the calories you need for weightloss, which they also showed after subtracting. No way I can lose weight on that. For me, I need to subtract at least another 500 from the calories they say I need for weight loss in order to lose weight. So 1000 subtraction in total from TDEE.

How accurate is the TDEE system? I suppose it can't work for everyone the same re: only subtracting 500.

I'd like to know, but not confident that the NHS in its current state, will be much help to me in finding out! My GP denied the menopause contributed to weight gain the last time I discussed it with him!
I do think some people might underestimate or overestimate calories eaten and energy used though. Packet calorie counts are notoriously inaccurate for instance. I've cut all processed foods out (except hummus and a couple of other minor items) so am pretty confident in my daily calories.
My bmr has fallen as I've lost weight and is now 1400 so that gives me a good starting point in terms of what I need to achieve to lose or to maintain.

yes, for me. although I've hit a plateau at the mo. I have lost a couple of stones on 1450. Now I've dropped to 1350 (my TDEE calc says 1820 for maintenance so 1320 which is generally what I hit anyway)
I think I need to drop again but I don't want to just yet in case I come out of the plateau.
800 is very low unless you're quite short and not that much overweight. And I'd be super frustrated if I were you OP.

Chances are you are eating more calories than you think without realising it.

If you are on a calorie diet and don't eat enough.. then your body thinks it's starving itself and stores fat.. so you stop loosing.

I think this had been disproved, or how do you account for people with eating disorders getting so terribly thin.