1200 Calories... What are you eating?

Pixt

Do you have access to a crock pot? If you brown a pot roast on your hot plate, then toss it, along with a bunch of chopped carrots and celery into the crock pot, and pour a cup and half of peach flavored tea (I know, odd, but I swear it's awesome) then cook it on high for about 4 hours, and low the rest of the day, you can have your "entree" set for any number of meals. Just add microwaved steamed veggies and you're all set.

marcellomoo

I'm on about 1200 and without an oven. I eat things like:

pittas- chicken/ tuna and salad
soup
omelettes
bowls of chilli
protein shakes
bananas
porridge- chocolate/ syrup and strawberries/ banana
sugar-free jelly with fruit in
fruit bagels with jam
stir fries

ieatcolors

Not sure if you will be able to buy this, but spaghetti squash! I really enjoy pasta and this has been one of my number one ways to reduce the calories. You can also cook it in a microwave. 1.5 cups of spaghetti squash is only 40 calories, a marianara sauce is about 35 calories for 1/4 cup, add veggie and protein and you can a sizable, filling meal for around 200 calories.

its_about_the_journey

I am still pretty new to this, but egg whites are like magic for me at this calorie level. And at least in the US you can get them in the pasteurized cartons so they can be safely cooked in a microwave. I typically just add veggies (usually spinach) and salsa and call it a meal.
Also, I love avocado but there is no way I can eat a whole one in one sitting, so I cut it up into my jar of salsa. That way I can eat it over a couple days and the acid in the salsa keeps it from getting brown.

kellogsmscott

Also you can make "pasta" out of some veggies. I use zuchhinis and i also make mashed potato and rice with a cauliflower, and turnip with cayene pepper for fries.

isk8nbessy

Wow you guys impress me with your culinary finds! I am in the Netherlands and the grocery stores here are tiny. Not much to choose from and it doesn't help that I'm not a good cook. I definitely need to invest in a toaster oven atleast.

JoRocka

eggs + bacon for breakfast
chicken + veggies lunch
yogurt + protein + fruit
fresh cut veggies afternoon snack
more chicken/veggies or steak and veggies for dinner.

measured and weighed to 5-10 oz of each thing usually.

Ninetta

I just wanted to get a rough idea of how you are filling up those calories in a healthy way. Can those of you who are eating 1200 calories be kind enough to list what you eat for breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner? Any help would be really appreciated.

Feel free to take a look at my diary - you'll find:

Cream of wheat with 1 cup blueberries (200 cal) - sub any fruit

Black Bean and Tomato Stew (can find recipe in recipe section) - 210 Cal depending on your serving and is high in protien

Stir fry - Rice noodles or just veggies with a little soy sauce and sea salt. If you can work lentils in that will give you a good size portion of protein

Rice crackers, hazelnuts, apples, any raw veggie

You'll eventually find your grove and it will be become easier!! Because you have limited resources for cooking food, eat as many raw items as you can!!!

annapanor

I eat about 1200 sometimes less sometimes more (FYI I only started this 4 days ago)

breakfast: sometimes none cause I have no time for it but today i had beef jerkey from Costco thats about 180 calories
Lunch: huge salad with 1 chicken breast with homemade avocado chipotle dressing approx. 400 calories
Snack: two tangerines or one apple aprox 100 calories
Dinner: turkey chilli with one slice of whole wheat bread and a little cheddar cheese thats 500 calories

lequire

Wow, that would be really tough without an oven! Good luck! Here is what I usually eat for my 1200 cal/day:

Breakfast: Yogurt and coffee with creamer
Snack: Apple or banana
Lunch: Leftovers from dinner or salad
Snack: Popcorn
Dinner: Some kind of meat option with veggies or sweet potato fries, most often baked chicken. My favorite sauces are hot wing sauce, pesto, marinade, or bbq.
Dessert: I usually have enough calories for a small dessert or a glass of wine.

Moosello

What am I eating when I eat 1200 calories?


Lunch.



(I keed! I keed!...


...but seriously.)


ETA: Most people don't need to eat 1200 calories to see results. Most people will likely fare much better long-term by not trying to restrict themselves to such a deficit. (Inb4: 4'9" or shorter is not "most people".)


ETAM: And if you're doing any kind of load-bearing exercise 24/7, you'll definitely need more than 1200 calories to fuel your efforts.

Hey, I'm 4'8 and eat 1400 calories while working out 3 times a week. MUCH MUCH HAPPIER than when I ate 1200. So even for us shorties, more than 1200 does work.

jofjltncb6

What am I eating when I eat 1200 calories?


Lunch.



(I keed! I keed!...


...but seriously.)


ETA: Most people don't need to eat 1200 calories to see results. Most people will likely fare much better long-term by not trying to restrict themselves to such a deficit. (Inb4: 4'9" or shorter is not "most people".)


ETAM: And if you're doing any kind of load-bearing exercise 24/7, you'll definitely need more than 1200 calories to fuel your efforts.

Hey, I'm 4'8 and eat 1400 calories while working out 3 times a week. MUCH MUCH HAPPIER than when I ate 1200. So even for us shorties, more than 1200 does work.

:drinker:

emilysfatsuit

I set my goal to 1200, but I'm good as long as I'm under 1300 most days. My diary is wide open, so take a gander. 1200 - 1300 may not seem like a lot of calories to most people, but I choose lots of little protein-rich stuff that fills me up. And best of all, most weeks I lose 2+ pounds without feeling like I'm "dieting" or living in the gym- just eating right and reaping the rewards!

If I have a leisurely morning (weekends), I'll make an egg white omlette with onions, garlic, tomatoes and melt in a babybel and wrap it all in a low carb wheat tortilla. Most mornings, however, I grab a freezer lunch bag and hurriedly stuff it with: a hard boiled egg, 2 cans of Pure Protein, string cheese, a tub of Dannon 80 calorie Greek yogurt, a ziplock bag with a handful of almonds, and a banana. That all adds up to about 600 calories and I'll eat random items from the freezer lunch bag from 6:30am - 12:30pm. That leaves me with 600ish calories for dinner and dessert, which is usually Costco marinated salmon or rottiserie chicken or baked marinated chicken or tuna salad stuffed lettuce wraps, and 1/2 a store-bought microwaveable steamed veggie bag. For dessert, I like the 100 - 150 calorie Skinny Cow ice cream bars and sandwhiches.

Mamaof2UK

Breaky: Porridge made with water and grated apple, when cooked stir in 1-2 tblsp Alpro soya yogurt..
Maybe some fruit after

Lunch- Large salad, either veggie sausage or veggie burger, 1 tblsp salsa sauce

Dinner- Today was 2 veggie sausages and home made chow mein noodles with lots of veg

Snacks- Snack a jacks, a few squares of chocolate, pineapple chunks, strawberries


Have cut out bread, dairy, pasta, just happened naturally wasn't intentional, but it's only been 2 weeks and my stomach has really deflated yeeeeeaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!

monica_reinert

Breakfast is usually: cereal, oatmeal, or eggs. Lunch: TV dinner, soup. Dinner: whatever I make for my family but watch portion and I usually have light ice cream at night with a few pretzels

lavaughan69

I"m not a breakfast eater so I start my day out with coffee with almond milk

Typical lunch:

packet of oatmeal
packet of splenda
small red apple that I slice up and put in the oatmeal
key lime yogurt
cup of mini carrots
sometimes a 5 calorie jello or a 100 calorie chocolate pudding

Note: when I get sick of oatmeal I switch it up with soup

Dinner:

5-6 ounces of meat of my choice...I like steak of pork chops
a couple cups of the veggie of the day, usually green beans, sauteed cauliflower or broccoli
sometimes a 1/2 cup of rice or 1/2 cup of boiled red potatoes

Snack

Oil popped popcorn and if I have the calories to play with I put butter on it.

Feel free to look at my diary. I've been under a lot the past couple days...soooo busy! But I plan on making up for it this weekend so it will all even out in the end.

Urban_Princess

Similar to whatever everyone else is eating. I load up on veggies because, volume wise, it is a lot!

My favourite for breakfast is a broccoli and egg bake.

1 medium head of broccoli cut into florets, 4 eggs, 8 egg whites. Mix everything up and season to your liking (you can even add in ham or red peppers or something). Pour into a 9x9 dish and pop in the oven. Makes 4 servings around 150calories.

I eat a ton of tilapia and cod, I use ground extra lean turkey breast in salads for lunch, roasted seaweed, applesauce, Kaizen whey (after workouts), homemade butternut squash soup, carrot and tomato soup, and almonds. I'll have a small banana or apple once a day.

jofjltncb6

For the record, if I was trying to stick to 1200 calories...(*shudder*)...I would completely skip breakfast. Seriously. Eating breakfast tends to make me hungrier throughout the day. I generally don't worry about being hungry because I've learned that it's okay to be hungry, especially when on a cut like I currently am...so I have breakfast now to help meet my protein minimum, but that's because I'm at 2100 and that level of hungry is bearable. If I was trying to stick to 1200, I doubt I could weather that level of hunger.

supermysza

I opened my diary
58 day streak, I've been logging everything since I started

Breakfast: oats with milk and fruit
Lunch: tuna/cottage cheese/eggs
Dinner: anything really with portion control
Snack: anything I feel like as long as it fits my calories

jessilyn76

Grass......and that's about it.