Ideas for staying under 1200

Hey all, I've been using this for about a week and even though I started on 1370 I changed it to 1200 calories as I feel like that will give me the best results, can anyone share any ideas or recipes to have lunch and dinner under 500 and 400 and 300 calories? Feel free to add me and share your journey :)
Eva

Replies

  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    Welcome to MFP! The best weight loss results will come from a deficit you can stick to. You can use any recipes you want, and make any meal as calorific as you want by changing amounts.
  • crb426
    crb426 Posts: 661 Member
    Remember it’s not a race. Give your body a chance to adjust to your lower weight as you go.

    Aim for 1200 exactly or slightly higher, but going below 1200 risks too aggressive of a plan. You don’t want to crash and burn.

    That said, I pace out my day so I’m eating small amounts, saving more calories for dinner because that works for me.

    Breakfast: 200-250 calories
    Snack: 200 calories
    Lunch 300 calories
    Dinner: 500-700 calories
  • AJR041407
    AJR041407 Posts: 21 Member
    Hello. Welcome. This app has great recipes and are low in calories. I have the links somewhere and I will find them.
  • AJR041407
    AJR041407 Posts: 21 Member
    Well they are on my home page can't access a copy feature from phone but add me and they will be on there.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Evie7113 wrote: »
    Hey all, I've been using this for about a week and even though I started on 1370 I changed it to 1200 calories as I feel like that will give me the best results, can anyone share any ideas or recipes to have lunch and dinner under 500 and 400 and 300 calories? Feel free to add me and share your journey :)
    Eva

    in what way do you think eating less than recommended will be 'best'?
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  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    What are your goals OP? How much weight do you have to lose, and what rate of loss are you aiming for?

    As others mentioned, 1200 is the minimum recommended calorie target for women and it's a NET target on MFP meaning that if you exercise, you're meant to eat back at least some of those calories.

    Aiming for bigger deficits to lose faster is not always optimal. You risk losing lean body mass, experiencing fatigue, and difficulty adhering to the process.
  • mewilmes
    mewilmes Posts: 44 Member
    As someone who just reached goal weight, I would suggest not going to 1200, unless you are very short and very sedentary. Hunger is a hard thing to constantly fight. I wish I would have been less aggressive calorie-wise. It did not shorten the process and sometimes I gave up. Better to stay at the original plan and maybe exercise more--as the extra calories might give you the energy to do so.
  • Evie7113
    Evie7113 Posts: 9 Member
    1200 is the minimum mfp sets and members shouldn't be giving advice for.anyone to purposely eat under that.

    I dont intend to eat less, I love food too much and wouldn't even be able to eat less :)
  • Evie7113
    Evie7113 Posts: 9 Member
    mewilmes wrote: »
    As someone who just reached goal weight, I would suggest not going to 1200, unless you are very short and very sedentary. Hunger is a hard thing to constantly fight. I wish I would have been less aggressive calorie-wise. It did not shorten the process and sometimes I gave up. Better to stay at the original plan and maybe exercise more--as the extra calories might give you the energy to do so.

    But I feel like when I do 1200 or maybe just over that's enough for me, as in, I feel satisfied after about 20 min eating the meal and its just my brain that wants sweets, at no point I have been starving myself, only between the meals Its hard
  • Evie7113
    Evie7113 Posts: 9 Member
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    What are your goals OP? How much weight do you have to lose, and what rate of loss are you aiming for?

    As others mentioned, 1200 is the minimum recommended calorie target for women and it's a NET target on MFP meaning that if you exercise, you're meant to eat back at least some of those calories.

    Aiming for bigger deficits to lose faster is not always optimal. You risk losing lean body mass, experiencing fatigue, and difficulty adhering to the process.

    Is 3lbs per week to much? I have a holiday in June and would love to loose 60lbs by then, am I aiming too high? I want to be at that point when Im at my goal weight and I can keep it, rather than feel like ive been starving myself this whole time and start eating junk again, thanks for your comments tho, definitelly something to think about..:)
  • Evie7113
    Evie7113 Posts: 9 Member
    crb426 wrote: »
    Remember it’s not a race. Give your body a chance to adjust to your lower weight as you go.

    Aim for 1200 exactly or slightly higher, but going below 1200 risks too aggressive of a plan. You don’t want to crash and burn.

    That said, I pace out my day so I’m eating small amounts, saving more calories for dinner because that works for me.

    Breakfast: 200-250 calories
    Snack: 200 calories
    Lunch 300 calories
    Dinner: 500-700 calories

    I eat oatmeal in the morning with bananas and that's over 400cal but that's the only things that keeps me going till my lunch and doesn't make me want to slip....
  • AMC110
    AMC110 Posts: 188 Member
    edited January 2018
    Evie7113 wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    What are your goals OP? How much weight do you have to lose, and what rate of loss are you aiming for?

    As others mentioned, 1200 is the minimum recommended calorie target for women and it's a NET target on MFP meaning that if you exercise, you're meant to eat back at least some of those calories.

    Aiming for bigger deficits to lose faster is not always optimal. You risk losing lean body mass, experiencing fatigue, and difficulty adhering to the process.

    Is 3lbs per week to much? I have a holiday in June and would love to loose 60lbs by then, am I aiming too high? I want to be at that point when Im at my goal weight and I can keep it, rather than feel like ive been starving myself this whole time and start eating junk again, thanks for your comments tho, definitelly something to think about..:)

    Just want to point out that even if eating 1200 calories a day leaves you with a current deficit of 1500 calories a day (for 3 lbs a week loss) your weight will decrease and the deficit along with it, so you won't be losing 3 lbs a week consistently until June.

    Check out Loser Town for weight projections.
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
    Evie7113 wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    What are your goals OP? How much weight do you have to lose, and what rate of loss are you aiming for?

    As others mentioned, 1200 is the minimum recommended calorie target for women and it's a NET target on MFP meaning that if you exercise, you're meant to eat back at least some of those calories.

    Aiming for bigger deficits to lose faster is not always optimal. You risk losing lean body mass, experiencing fatigue, and difficulty adhering to the process.

    Is 3lbs per week to much? I have a holiday in June and would love to loose 60lbs by then, am I aiming too high? I want to be at that point when Im at my goal weight and I can keep it, rather than feel like ive been starving myself this whole time and start eating junk again, thanks for your comments tho, definitelly something to think about..:)

    Basically, the maximum safe weight-loss is about 1% of your body-weight per week. So, if you're currently at 300 or over, 3lbs might be okay. For most people:

    Pound per week goals
    75+ lbs set to lose 2 lb range
    Between 40 - 75 lbs set to lose 1.5 lb range
    Between 25-40 lbs set to lose 1 lb range
    Between 15-25 lbs set to lose 1 -.50 lb range
    Less than 15 lbs set to lose 0.5 lbs range
  • bbell1985
    bbell1985 Posts: 4,571 Member


    My dinner is a lean meat, enough ounces to get about 30-35 g of protein, over veggies. Tons of veggies and hot sauce. Or I'll make a giant soup with similar ingredients. Last night I mixed lean ground turkey with taco seasoning and peppers and put it over a bed of lettuce with salsa and jalapenos. Even with a full 8 oz of meat it was only 388 calories.

    I'm going to add here that I do diet aggressively. I think for some this works. If you have a lot to lose and a bit of a journey to go on, I do think that a more appropriate deficit is wise to help with muscle maintenance, general health, and getting back into maintenance.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    Evie7113 wrote: »
    WinoGelato wrote: »
    What are your goals OP? How much weight do you have to lose, and what rate of loss are you aiming for?

    As others mentioned, 1200 is the minimum recommended calorie target for women and it's a NET target on MFP meaning that if you exercise, you're meant to eat back at least some of those calories.

    Aiming for bigger deficits to lose faster is not always optimal. You risk losing lean body mass, experiencing fatigue, and difficulty adhering to the process.

    Is 3lbs per week to much? I have a holiday in June and would love to loose 60lbs by then, am I aiming too high? I want to be at that point when Im at my goal weight and I can keep it, rather than feel like ive been starving myself this whole time and start eating junk again, thanks for your comments tho, definitelly something to think about..:)

    Yes that is too aggressive. If you have 60 lbs to lose - a goal of 1 - 1.5 lb/week is appropriate. That should be a deficit of 500-750 cals from your maintenance level.

    Aiming to lose weight rapidly for a particular event - vacation, wedding, etc is rarely a sustainable approach. You'd be better off setting up good lasting habits, aiming to lose 25 lbs by your holiday (that's a lot and would definitely be noticeable), and establishing a good fitness routine which may yield additional positive results from a body composition perspective.