Ask Mary

Your personal nutritionist

By Mary Hartley, RD
Director of Nutrition

Won’t I lose faster if I eat 1200 calories?
Asked by lswillia on Nov 08, 2008 in Weight Loss

I find that when I eat around 1600 calories, I feel better and I'm less likely to feel depressed. However, I have been aiming for 1200 calories per day, and sometimes even less.  Should I try to feel physical better and eat 1600 calories or should I continue to aim 1200?  I feel like I should eat more but won't eating 1200 calories make me lose weight faster?  I am an 18 year old girl, 5’6” and 204 lbs.

Answer

In the long run, you won’t lose weight faster by eating 1200 calories a day.  Under-eating deprives your body of essential nutrients and leads to muscle breakdown to provide energy.  With less muscle, you require fewer calories and you reach a weight low plateau more quickly.  Restrictive dieting also places you at risk for binge-eating which can lead to weigh gain and a life of yo-yo dieting. The Calorie Target calculator in the Tools section recommends 1650 calories a day for you, personally, to lose 1.5 lbs per week, and so eat 1600 calories, feel happy and healthy, and set yourself up for lasting weight loss success.