Why should you not go below 1200 calories a day?!


Question: Why should you not go below 1200 calories a day!?
I've heard that one should reduce their caloric intake by 500 calories when first starting a diet!. But I only eat around 1500 calories a day and decreasing it by 500 would cause it to be under 1200 calories a day!.
I'm trying to lose around 20 pounds (I'm 5'0 and 125 pounds) and I haven't noticed a single pound lost since I started taking 3 mile walks every day and limiting my food intake to 1200 calories a day!.
What should I do!? I need to lose weight because I've been told I need to!.Www@Answer-Health@Com


Answers:
If you go below 1200 calories in a day, your body goes into starvation mode!. This means that it saves every possible scrap of energy it can get, and will use that energy in the most efficient way it can (by changing certain chemical reactions, making you more sluggish, etc) In this condition, it is very difficult to burn off a significant amount of weight, since your body wants to hold on to it!.

!.!.!.At least, that's the way it works for most people!. If you only eat 1500 calories a day (and your body is COMFORTABLE with that amount of calories), then you probably already have a slow, efficient metabolism before you even go into starvation mode!.

So, here's what I would do:
Instead of limiting your caloric intake, and possibly triggering starvation mode, I would eat normally, and just work out that much harder!.
You don't need to limit your caloric intake to lose weight!. All you need to do is burn more calories than you take in!. It is usually healthiest to lose no more than 1 pound per week; If what you say is correct, then your body uses about 1500 calories on a typical day (no exercise)!. So all you need to do is burn 2000 calories every day (3500 calories=1 pound of fat, so 500 extra calories burned each day will equal 1 pound per week!.)

Best of luck:)Www@Answer-Health@Com

try a harder workout such as a 3 mile run or more, mabee some time in the gym!. also decreasing your caloric intake too much wont give you enough calories for your metabolism to kick in and burn more energy by itself!. id say 1200 is the limit!. but i am not an expert, just a fellow exerciserWww@Answer-Health@Com

don't go that low cuz your body will think you are starving and when you start eating normal again you will gain tons of weightWww@Answer-Health@Com

well i weigh 100 pounds and run about 3miles everyday to mantain my weight i take in about 600 calories a dayWww@Answer-Health@Com

Firstly, don't listen to people who just tell you you need to lose weight!. If its a pressing medical issue, than yes, maybe you should!. Check your BMI (Body Mass Index) to see if you are within a healthy range!. I'm 5'3 and 135 pounds, so you should be well within range!.
Secondly, when your caloric intake dips under 1200, your body assumes that you're starving and starts storing up any fat you give it!. So!.!.!. don't do it!.
Losing weight isn't just about cutting calories, its about eating healthier!. The Daily Plate will help you track your weight and eating habits!.
Also helpful is a weightloss book called "Dr!.Susan's Girls Only Guide to Weight Loss"!. It helped me a LOT!.Www@Answer-Health@Com





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