5 Signs Your Calories Are Too Low (You MUST Know This!)

Summary

This video discusses the potential pitfalls of setting calorie intake too low for weight loss, such as losing muscle mass and slowing metabolism. It outlines five signs to identify if your calorie intake is too low: decreased gym performance, rapid weight loss, frequent cheat days, uncontrollable hunger, and impaired daily functioning. The video advises adjusting calorie intake, focusing on sustainability, and suggests a more balanced, long-term approach to achieving and maintaining a lean physique.

Takeaways

• 🔍 A daily calorie intake of 1500 might be too low, and 1700 could be more appropriate for some people.
• 🏋️‍♂️ Consistently getting weaker in the gym could be a sign that your calorie intake is too low, affecting training performance and muscle mass.
• 📉 Losing weight too quickly can lead to muscle loss and a slower metabolism, so it's important to adjust calorie intake based on your body fat percentage.
• 🚫 A common misconception is that eating very low calories will lead to faster weight loss, but it might be unsustainable and unhealthy.
• 🍽 It's crucial to find a balance between calorie restriction for weight loss and maintaining enough intake for daily function and workout performance.
• 🔄 Frequently falling off track with diet plans due to hunger and low energy might indicate that the calorie intake is set too low.
• 🤔 Constant hunger and obsession with food could be signs that your calorie intake is not sustainable and needs reassessment.
• 💡 The video suggests increasing calorie intake by 5-10% if you're experiencing signs of an overly restrictive diet.
• ⏳ A long-term, sustainable approach to weight loss is recommended over quick fixes, emphasizing lifestyle changes and healthy routines.
• 🚶‍♂️ Incorporating daily walking and hitting 7,000 to 10,000 steps can help create a calorie deficit without extreme calorie restriction.

Q & A

What is the main concern regarding a daily calorie intake of 1500 or 1700 for weight loss?

The main concern is that such low calorie intakes may lead to under-eating, which could result in losing muscle mass, slowing down metabolism, falling off track with diet plans, and potentially regaining lost weight.

What are the five signs that suggest your calorie intake might be set too low?

The five signs are: 1) getting objectively weaker in the gym, 2) losing weight too fast based on your body fat percentage, 3) consistently having cheat days, 4) hunger getting completely out of control, and 5) not being able to function properly day to day.

Why is it important to not just focus on the number on the scale when dieting?

Focusing solely on the number on the scale can lead to losing muscle mass, which is counterproductive for achieving a better physique and sustainable weight loss. It's important to maintain muscle while losing fat.

What is the recommended rate of fat loss to protect lean muscle mass?

The recommended rate of fat loss is between half a percent to about three quarter of a percent of your body weight per week, depending on your current body fat percentage.

How can you tell if your calories are truly set too low based on weight loss?

A more precise way to tell if your calories are too low is by monitoring how much weight you are losing week to week in relation to your body fat percentage. If you're losing weight at a rate that's too fast for your body fat percentage, it might be a sign that your calorie intake is too low.

What is the significance of the 10 calories per pound rule for target body weight?

The 10 calories per pound rule is a guideline suggesting that one should not consume fewer than 10 calories for each pound of their target body weight to avoid unsustainable and potentially harmful calorie restrictions.

Why might someone experience an increase in cheat days if their calorie intake is too low?

Low calorie intake can lead to increased hunger and cravings, making it difficult to stick to a diet plan and resulting in cheat days. These cheat days can disrupt progress and lead to feelings of guilt and failure.

How can consistently low energy levels affect your daily life and diet adherence?

Consistently low energy levels can lead to tiredness, lethargy, and difficulty focusing, which can negatively impact your work and daily responsibilities. This can also make it harder to adhere to a diet plan, leading to a cycle of unsustainable eating habits.

What is the advice for someone who is struggling with extreme hunger while trying to lose body fat?

If extreme hunger is an issue, it's advised to increase calorie intake to a level that allows for consistent adherence to the diet plan without feeling deprived. Eating whole, healthy, unprocessed foods, getting enough protein and vegetables, and drinking enough water can also help manage hunger.

What is the recommended approach to creating a sustainable and healthy lifestyle for long-term weight management?

The recommended approach is to take a long-term, patient perspective that focuses on creating a new lifestyle and building healthy routines rather than crash dieting. This includes maintaining a calorie intake that supports a gradual and sustainable rate of fat loss while also incorporating activities like walking 7,000 to 10,000 steps per day.

Outlines

00:00

🏋️‍♂️ Signs of Too Low Calorie Intake for Fat Loss

The first paragraph discusses the potential issues with setting a daily calorie intake too low for fat loss. It highlights that a significant number of individuals might be under-eating, which could lead to loss of muscle mass, slowed metabolism, and regaining weight. The speaker introduces five signs to identify if one's calorie intake is too low: 1) consistently getting weaker in the gym, 2) losing weight too fast, 3) frequent cheat days, 4) uncontrollable hunger, and 5) inability to function properly day-to-day. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of not prioritizing scale numbers over muscle retention and suggests increasing calorie intake if these signs are present.

05:01

🍽️ Balancing Caloric Intake for Effective Fat Loss

The second paragraph continues the discussion on the pitfalls of a too-restrictive diet, focusing on the psychological and physical effects of extreme calorie restriction. It points out that such diets often lead to a cycle of cheat days and feelings of deprivation, which can negatively impact body composition. The speaker advises increasing daily calorie intake to prevent frequent urges for high-calorie foods. Additionally, it addresses the issue of constant hunger and the importance of satiety, suggesting that a more balanced approach to dieting is necessary for long-term success. The paragraph concludes with a recommendation to increase calorie intake to a level that supports daily function and suggests a diet break if one has been on a restrictive diet for an extended period. The importance of a sustainable, long-term approach to weight management is emphasized over quick fixes.

Keywords

💡Calorie intake

Calorie intake refers to the number of calories a person consumes daily through their diet. In the video, it is discussed as a critical factor in weight loss and body composition. The script mentions that a low calorie intake can lead to muscle loss, a slowed metabolism, and other health issues. It is suggested that individuals should evaluate their calorie intake to ensure it's sufficient to support their fitness goals without compromising health.

💡Body fat percentage

Body fat percentage is the proportion of fat in relation to total body weight. The video emphasizes its importance in determining an appropriate calorie intake for weight loss. It suggests that individuals with higher body fat percentages can have lower calorie intakes without risking muscle loss. The script provides guidelines on how much weight one should aim to lose per week based on their body fat percentage.

💡Undereating

Undereating is the act of consuming fewer calories than the body needs for basic functions and activity. The video discusses undereating as a potential issue when trying to lose body fat, as it can lead to muscle loss, a slowed metabolism, and difficulty sustaining the diet. The script mentions signs of undereating, such as consistently getting weaker in the gym and losing weight too fast.

💡Metabolism

Metabolism refers to the chemical processes in the body that maintain life, including breaking down food into energy. In the video, a slowed metabolism is mentioned as a consequence of undereating. When calorie intake is too low, the body may respond by slowing down its metabolic rate to conserve energy, which can make weight loss more difficult and lead to other health issues.

💡Lean muscle mass

Lean muscle mass is the amount of muscle in the body that is not fat. The video stresses the importance of preserving lean muscle mass during weight loss to maintain a healthy body composition and metabolic rate. It suggests that undereating can lead to the loss of lean muscle, which is counterproductive to long-term fitness goals.

💡Cheat days

Cheat days are periods during a diet where individuals allow themselves to consume more calories or indulge in foods that are typically restricted. The video discusses how having cheat days can be a sign that the regular diet is too restrictive, leading to unsustainable eating habits. It suggests that a more balanced approach to calorie intake can help prevent the need for cheat days.

💡Sustainable weight loss

Sustainable weight loss refers to losing weight in a way that can be maintained over time without significant effort. The video emphasizes the importance of finding a balance between effectiveness and sustainability in a weight loss plan. It suggests that extreme calorie restriction may lead to short-term results but is not sustainable in the long run and can lead to regaining weight.

💡Diet break

A diet break is a period where an individual temporarily stops a restrictive diet to allow the body to recover and to prevent diet fatigue. The video suggests that if an individual is struggling with the effects of a low-calorie diet, a diet break may be necessary to restore energy levels and prevent negative impacts on quality of life.

💡Diet composition

Diet composition refers to the types and proportions of different foods in a person's diet. The video implies that while calorie intake is important, the composition of the diet also plays a role in weight loss and overall health. It mentions the importance of eating whole, healthy, unprocessed foods to manage hunger and support a sustainable weight loss plan.

💡Training performance

Training performance refers to how well an individual performs during physical exercise or workouts. The video uses training performance as an indicator of whether calorie intake is sufficient. A decline in performance, such as being able to do fewer reps or needing to reduce weights, can signal that calorie intake is too low and may lead to muscle loss.

Highlights

1500 calories per day might be too low for effective weight loss and muscle retention.

A recent survey showed 28% of respondents consume between 1500 to 1700 calories daily for fat loss.

Undereating calories can lead to muscle loss, metabolism slowdown, and weight regain.

Five signs are presented to identify if your calorie intake is too low.

Sign 1: Consistently getting weaker in the gym indicates potential overtraining or under-eating.

For beginners and intermediates, strength should increase until reaching around 10-15% body fat.

Sign 2: Losing weight too fast can be a sign of too low calorie intake.

A general guideline is not to consume less than 10 calories per pound of target body weight.

Recommended weight loss rates depend on current body fat percentage for sustainable fat loss.

Sign 3: Frequent cheat days may indicate that daily calorie intake is too restrictive.

Sign 4: Uncontrolled hunger suggests that calorie intake is too low to be sustainable.

Sign 5: Inability to function properly daily due to fatigue or other symptoms is a red flag.

A balanced approach between effectiveness and sustainability is key for long-term success.

Increasing calorie intake by 5-10% and re-evaluating can be beneficial if signs of under-eating are present.

A long-term, patient approach to weight loss is more effective than crash dieting.

Walking 7,000 to 10,000 steps daily can aid in creating a calorie deficit without extreme calorie restriction.

Engaging with the content through likes and subscriptions can provide further guidance and support.

Transcripts

is getting 1500 calories per day too low

how about 1700 calories well in my

recent survey 28 of you said that you're

between 15 to 1700 calories per day when

you want to lose body fat and a lot of

people would consider those to be very

low numbers so could it be that you're

in fact under eating calories and now

risking losing muscle slowing down your

metabolism frequently falling off track

and even regaining all the weight that

you've lost well calorie intakes are

pretty individual so in order to answer

this question in this video i'm going to

share with you five signs that your

calories might be set too low and what

i'd like you to do is take these signs

and then honestly evaluate your current

plan and see if you need to make any

changes now diving into sign number one

which is that you're objectively getting

weaker in the gym and i mean just a

one-off workout a bad day can happen

even in a closed surplus but if you

notice that you're consistently getting

worse training performance and you're

not even that lean well then you have a

problem and this usually starts with

getting fewer reps than you did before

and then eventually having to reduce the

weight that you use on your main lifts

and it can escalate to a level where you

have such low energy that the second

half of your workout is terrible you can

barely finish it and this is a real

issue poor training performance is how

people end up losing lean muscle

becoming more skinny fat and slowing

down their metabolism and if you're a

beginner or an intermediate lifter well

you should be able to get stronger all

the way until you get down that 10 to 15

body fat level this will not only

protect the lean muscle mass you

currently have but in case of beginners

allow you to build more lean muscle

while you're losing body fat now it's

important to note that it's completely

normal for strength gains to slow down

once you're at a very low body fat

percentage and for most guys that's

going to be around 10 to 12 body fat or

for guys that want to get under 10 body

fat but if you're not at those low

levels yet and you're seeing consistent

losses in strength well that might be a

sign that you're just not eating enough

so i would have you consider increasing

your calories by 5 to 10 percent and

then re-evaluating from there there's no

point in chasing a number on the scale

at the expense of losing muscle you'll

just end up with a much worse physique

and it's going to be much more difficult

to sustain anyway now moving on to sign

number two and that's that you're losing

weight too fast based on your current

body fat percentage so we know that the

more body fat you carry the higher your

body fat percentage the lower your

calorie intake can be and you can lose

weight faster without risking muscle

loss and this assumes that your training

is well set up that you're getting

sufficient sleep that's eating enough

protein and that you're hitting the like

button but there are some limitations

here it's often mentioned that the

lowest calorie intake you should have is

10 calories per pound of your target

body weight so if your target body

weight is 180 pounds which is about 82

kilos that you shouldn't be eating less

than 1800 calories per day now this

number doesn't describe a starting point

this might be an end point for last few

weeks of a cut if you're getting super

shredded but generally the rule stands

as a soft limit where if you get under

these levels you're probably doing

something that's unsustainable and what

i like about this is simplicity but i

already see some comments or some

problems here some people say well i'm

220 i'm eating 700 calories and i'm not

losing any weight and the problem is

tracking most people cannot accurately

estimate their calorie intake plus we

got labels that are a little bit off and

we also got eating out which can be off

as well so overall what i would say is a

more precise way to tell if your

calories are truly set too low

is to see how much weight are you losing

week to week based on your body fat

percentage if you're above 20 body fat

aim to lose one percent of your body

weight per week so for example if you're

200 pounds about 90 kilos at 25 body fat

aim to lose 2 pounds per week or about 1

kilo per week that's fast enough for you

to see great results but it's also not

too fast to a point where it becomes

unsustainable if you're losing double

that or a lot more than that it's

probably time to increase the calories a

little bit just so you can move to

something more sustainable now if you're

already at 20 body fat and you want to

get down to 15 12 or 10 body fat then my

recommendation is to lose between half a

percent to about three quarter of a

percent of your body weight per week so

if you're at 180 pounds which is about

82 kg this comes out at losing one pound

per week or half a kilo per week these

are recommended rates of fat loss that

will enable you to protect your lean

muscle mass and will make the whole

approach a lot more sustainable now the

third sign that your calories might be

too low is that you consistently end up

having cheat days and the common

scenario here is having four or five

days of very low calories followed by a

binge on the weekends and then returning

back to those low calories and if we

look at the average intake across

multiple weeks it's pretty close to

maintenance so you're barely seeing any

progress but you feel restricted most of

the time also your training performance

suffers due to those lower calorie days

and that then of course negative affects

your body composition and in this

situation most people tend to blame a

lack of discipline but the reality is

the plan itself is set up for you to

fail you need to start eating more on

those regular days so you don't have

such an urge to rebel against your diet

on the weekends now sign number four is

that your hunger is getting completely

out of control

and look some hunger when losing body

fat is completely normal and if you eat

whole healthy unprocessed foods get your

protein get your vegetables drink enough

water sleep well you'll be able to

manage it well but the problem is when

your calories are so low that you're

hungry all the time when you're

consistently obsessing about food no

meals leave you satiated and you

eventually reach your breaking point

where you just start snacking away your

calorie deficit so even though your goal

might be sixteen hundred calories per

day you're consistently eating more than

two thousand you may as well plan for

that and then increase your calorie

intake instead of going quote-unquote

off the plan all the time and then

dealing with the mental disappointment

that comes with that the ultimate goal

is to find a balance between

effectiveness and sustainability so

rather than trying to prove to yourself

that it can be ultra disciplined for a

few days just to fall off track aim to

prove to yourself that you can be

consistent for months that you can stick

with a plan long term now the fifth sign

that your calories might be too low is

that you're not able to function

properly day to day and the most common

symptom here is feeling tiring lethargic

most of the time where you can't focus

on work you end up falling behind that

causes more stress which makes

everything else worse some people

experience dizziness headaches not being

able to fall asleep they basically can't

keep up with their day-to-day

responsibilities at that level the diet

started affecting quality of life in a

very negative way and a lot of people

just say it's not worth it and they're

gonna quit and if this has happened to

you i would highly recommend that you

increase your calories by 10

and then you recalibrate from there and

if you've been in the stage for a long

time you felt like this then i would

even suggest doing a diet break to

maintenance calories for two to four

weeks to let some of that diet fatigue

dissipate i know that getting lean is

very important but it should not come at

the expense of your career your family

and your life in general there's a

better and more balanced way of doing

this instead of trying to fix a decade

of bad eating habits in 2-3 months of

crash dieting take a more long-term

patient approach it's not just about

getting into your goal weight as quickly

as possible it's about creating a new

lifestyle and building a healthy routine

that will help you stay lean which

doesn't happen overnight so instead of

cutting calories to the lowest amount

that you can possibly eat aim to keep

your calories as high as possible while

you're losing that half a percent to one

percent of your body weight per week and

if you're not doing it already i highly

recommend that you start walking seven

thousand to ten thousand steps per day

which will help you create that calorie

deficit without having to starve

yourself and another thing that's going

to help you with a calorie deficit is

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