as i am looking at all the posts, i notice that people are saying that we should eat 10 x our body weight to loose, because if we eat less we will put our body in starvation mode. I have also notice that people who are around 170 lbs, are eating around 1200 -1300 calories.....so i'm confused. I eat around 1300 -1400 calories a day, should i lower the amount i am eating??

I thought it was 10x your DESIRED weight.

So I eat about 1300 a day.

I don't believe you'll hit starvation mode, if there even is such a thing, eating 1200+ calories a day.

I try to keep as close to 1200 as I can. I arrived at that number because it seems to get me at least 1 pound a week off and that's a nice rate of weight loss, and I'm not generally hungry.

heres a site that tells you what calories you need per day based on age, weight, height.. then this statement


-Calorie Needs for Women - Weight Maintenance,Weight Loss, Weight Gain
When you have determined your total daily calorie needs, this will be the number of calories required to maintain your weight. If you want to lose weight, (e.g. one pound per week), you should consume 3,500 calories less, per week. (Or, consume 2,000 fewer calories and burn an extra 1,500 calories by taking extra exercise.) This is because one pound of weight is equal to 3,500 calories. To gain one pound of weight, increase your calorie intake by 3,500 calories


Other good information there too.

http://www.annecollins.com/calories...needs-women.htm

Thanks for the link! That was cool.

I know we need to watch our calories but some people lose here on this forum who eat almost 3000 calories a day. I think it's a metabolic thing that Atkins was driving at and calories aren't really what matter so much (as long you don't eat the whole brick of cheese and three lb steaks!!!).

by the way - thanks for the link.

Charlie Girl

Yes, 10x your CURRENT body weight is the recommended caloric intake. This does not, however, work exactly right for everyone. For example, I've lost the best when eating between 1800-2000 calories a day, with 75%+ of those calories coming from fat.

1200 calories is the absolute minimum a person should be eating, and even then on this WOE, there don't seem to be many benefits for MOST people--not saying all, because obviously some have found they do need to limit their calories more than others--eating that few calories.

One of the really important things is to make sure you're not going hungry with what you're eating. If you're eating 1200-1300 calories a day, are not hungry all the time and losing weight, then why not? But if you're hungry, try adding another couple hundred calories a day from fat and/or protein into your meals.