Calling out to those in the 300 range...

I have a question to those who are considered morbidly obese, or grossly morbidly obese (yes, I found a site that classified myself as such). To those who are trying to lose in the ballbpark of 100+ pounds, how many calories are u taking in each day? I am in that range and curently trying to lose a minimum of 80 more pounds, though I am well over 100 lbs overweight, and have dropped my calories to the 800-somethings, sometimes even less, and VERY little is happening on the scale. I am not able to exercise much right now due to health & back problems so have cut my calories as low as possible, without always feeling sick & hungry. Would like to hear what others in the same boat are doing.  Thanks a bunch!! :-)

Calories in/calories out is right to a certain extent, but you also need to be eating WELL or there's no way you're going to get the weight off and keep it off. Also, cutting that drastically can do unpleasant things to your metabolic rate - especially if you aren't able to exercise at all.

I do understand and don't mean to sound snotty if I do. I started at 303# and am now sitting at 254#. It took me over 1.5 YEARS to lose that 49#, so no quick fixes for me, but it IS possible to lose at least some of your excess weight.

Better than just starving yourself is to journal your normal (non-dieting) eating for a couple of weeks, then sit down with a dietitian if you possibly can. I was lucky enough to be able to take a bunch of modules through our local Health Authority on making healthy changes in eating habits, like eating breakfast within an hour of getting up, never skipping meals or planned snacks, not drinking anything with calories other than low fat milk. We also learned how to make good choices at restaurants and in social situations. It's HARD to totally change your eating habits, but it really is worth it.

If you have an iphone or itouch there's GREAT App called LoseIt! that has helped me a lot along the way. Having my dietitian help me by breaking down my calorie limit into meals and snacks and help me figure out strategies for in restaurants and while traveling was a HUGE help. It also helped that she looked at my food journal monthly for a few months. It helps to always be asking yourself,"Do I want this enough to deal with Carlene when she reads it in my journal? Umm.. no"

There are other online food journals that people use, like Spark, FitDay and the online version of LoseIt!. Do some poking around and try one. Remember that no matter what your calorie level you need enough protein, fibre, water, vitamins and minerals to keep healthy or you're going to get yourself into trouble - and feel like crap on a cracker.

As to what I eat. Well, I average about 12-1400 calories a day, with at least 75-80 grams of protein and 20-30 of fibre. (protein and fibre keep me from being miserably hungry all day long) I eat 5 times a day - breakfast, lunch, snack, supper and snack.

At the moment I'm keeping things super simple.(I have a very stressful life at the moment and need to not have to think about food) For breakfast I'm having high protein Boost (heated, with a cup of hot coffee or tea mixed in), lunch is either the same or a Greek yogurt cup and fresh fruit or a frozen entree (under 300 calories with a minimum of 15 grams of protein) or (if out) a pita or salad with chicken with a limit of 300 calories, snack is a copy of breakfast or a protein bar with 2 glasses of water or crystal light, supper is a large mixed salad with grilled chicken or fish or a big bowl of homemade soup and a flax bun, snack is fresh fruit or cut up raw veg - sometimes with some hummus to dip in.

I don't get all frantic about measuring my fruit or vag, since I sure didn't get this fat on an excess of carrot slices or blueberries.

You say you can't exercise. What CAN you do? There must be something, however small. When I started this journey I used a cane and had a handicapped tag on my car. I'm still too heavy to do much regular exercise, but I go to an aquasize class 3 days most weeks and take my dogs for short walks on the other days. Once I'm in the water I figure I weigh about the same as everyone else, and have gone from being the slowest and clumsiest one in the class to fitting in nicely. No more cane or car tag, and I can pretty much do anything I need to. Water exercise is amazing - and fun!

Back to you. Tell us more about your cir****tances and what changes you're willing to make long term. (diets that you go on and off of do NOT work - you have to make permanent changes to your eating habits and activity levels)

Hi!
I was definitely in the grossly morbidly obese range a year ago at around 400lbs. To date I've lost 183lbs just through making better food choices (mostly) and a bit of exercise. I usually eat around 1000 - 1200 calories per day. I've found that cutting my calories any lower than that will cause me to stall. Plus I alway have one "splurg" day where I have higher calories than normal. That keeps my body out of starvation mode and keeps the weight coming off.

I started at around 254 at the beginning of this year. I slowly lost the first 14 pounds on Weigh****chers, but it was too slow for me. I found that I didn’t really start to lose until I started to cut/ the starchy carbs. I have found that I don’t lose that much weight, even at 1,000 calories a day, when my diet include starchy carbs. IDK why that is. All I can say is, I think I’m super carb-sensitive. Have you tried to cut starchy carbs?  

When I started my weight loss I weighed 322 and I was probably taking in about 1800 calories per day and exercising at least 5 to 6 days a week, I think 800 calories i too low, even if you are not exercising, your body will jut go into starvation mode and not release any fat because it is afraid you wont feed it! I now am somewhere in the 220's lowet weight was 216 and i consume about 1400 to 1600 cal per day give or take and I walk 3 to 5 times per week. I have heard that women should not consume less than 1,000 cal per day and men should not consume less than 1,200 to keep away from starvation mode. Good luck on your weight loss journey! also make sure that the calories you do consume are high quality calories, full of vitamins, minerals and amino acids, this way your body can rebuild and retore while releasing fat, out with the bad, in with the good 

The day I started a MEDICALLY supervised fast - Oct 1997 - I was 407 pounds.  In seven months of seeing a doctor, blood draws, and group therapy (required to stay in that program), I lost 135 pounds in seven months.  I was ingesting 650 calories of MEAL REPLACEMENT, which was extreme - hence why they did blood work & weekly check ins.  Gall bladder disease is usually what you are at risk for (gall stones - eventual removal of the gall bladder - there are meds you can take to help curb this) and liver enzymes need to be monitored.

My daughter started meal replacement when she was 14, she is now 20, still does ONE meal replacement a day for maintenance, and she has kept off OVER 100 pounds!  My daughter lives at home, is in college, walks to & from her bus stop (at least a mile a day, five days a week), and that is her main source of exercise.  Being consistent is what she found works.

Now, to also admit that I ended up going a surgical route, you may ask why I am on this board, I BELIEVE weight control CAN be achieved in a non-surgical manner.  I think surgery is NOT the easiest route, and it isn't a guaranty you will keep the weight off.  Start looking at meal replacement products - have an exercise PLAN - and be consistent.

Brenda : )~

You are definitely not eating enough.

I'm at goal (147 lbs.) and I still consume at least 1800 calories/day. Now, I'm also very active. I teach kindergarten and I teach/take zumba 5-6 times/week. I wear a BodyBugg and I know that on a typical school/workout day I burn just over 3000 calories... sometimes up to 3200.

I think you are in danger of messing up your metabolism if you keep cutting back the calories. You are setting yourself up for binging and going off plan if you keep starving yourself.