those on 1200-ish a day - typical days menu?

suzycreamcheese

whats a typical days food for you?
I thought it would be easy, but im actually struggling to keep it under a lot of days and its often 100 or 200 cals over, and I really dont feel like im eating much at all.
Would be interested to hear suggestions and foods that make it easy to stay on track.

mistawalka

muesli/milk breakfast
steak/salad lunch
chilli turkey mince/pasta dinner

protein shake breakfast
grilled chicken/vegies lunch
flavoured tuna/wholemeal bread sandwich dinner

lunches/dinners vary with mince/soup/tuna and sometimes for breakfast a couple of boiled eggs or a small omelette

bahrainbel

I feel Iike I'm on a famine - I'm not paticularly exciting with my menus, today I am having/have had:

breakfast - sultana bran skimmed milk
lunch - tuna salad, banana
dinner - scrambled eggs on 2 pieces of wholemeal toast (no butter) and if I'm feeling exciting I may have a squirt of ketchup.
snacks - tea with skimmed milk - probably about 6 cups - I've given up cigarettes, I'm cutting down on diet coke, I need one vice :-)

xxx_Pink_Princess_xxx

I would appreciate some help too!! Im on 1200 cals but always end up at 1500cals and still feel like Im not eating much! My coffee is really putting up my cals x

hbunting86

I feel the opposite - I can't get mine over! My diary is open btw.

What's your average meal combo?

H

sophieshaped

I have oatcakes with PB and fruit for brek, multiple snacks throughout the day (satsumas, nuts, a slice of toast maybe, a Nakd bar, a babybel light, some cottage cheese with apple or on a ryvita), a salad or homemade soup for lunch, and a light dinner of maybe some fish or a tomato-based curry (w/o rice).

I think the key is snacking – I can basically eat all day long (and do), I just have very light meals so I don't feel like I'm missing out on those either.

I don't find it easy mind, and have been going to the gym more and more to earn some extra cals! Even a walk at lunch earns me an extra snack )

Feel free to add me and you can see my diary x

jammyone

That is an extremely low calorie diet, is there any reason why it's so low?

If I were to eat that little, I would stick to eggs, meat, fish, and vegtables.

bahrainbel

I feel the opposite - I can't get mine over! My diary is open btw.

What's your average meal combo?

H

You have trouble getting over 1200 calories?! I will be looking at your diary for tips! :-) I tracked a normal few days before I started, somedays, I was booting the *kitten* out of 2000 calories!!!!

suzycreamcheese

i normally drink quite a lot of coffee with SS milk and one sugar, that bumps it up a little

I normally have a cereal bar in the morning, with 3 coffees

lunch maybe a tin of soup and a slice of toast

evening meal, whatever, but its normally around 500 or 600 cals

I may have a muller light or another cereal bar or an apple as a snack over the course of the day to stop me feeling faint.

Im just used to grazing a lot, but the one day that i just let myself do that as normal (since i started recording it) i realised id snacked on over 800 cals over the course of the day alone. havent done that since!!

Maybe im expecting it to be too effortless. I dont want to be so restrictive that i cant maintain it long term

thankyou4thevenom

I have a lot of trouble hitting my 1200 cal limit. I've had a couple of hiccups over the past few days but you're welcome to look at my diary.

It goes along the line of

Breakfast
Cereal or porridge or egg & toast

Lunch
Sandwich (homemade roughly 250 cals) or Soup
Fruit

Dinner
Lean meat & Veggies

Snack
Fruit
Cracker & Peanut butter or feta cheese

abyt42

Exercise bumps me up some, but you're welcome to check out my diary.

Gymbunnie

Cereal bars are a poor choice for any meal - high in calories but the really don't fill you up.
Better breakfast options are porridge, protein shake, even lean grilled bacon with advacado.
Will at least fill you up for longer... :-) x

HarmonyD

I understand how you feel, but I've found that the calories I burn exercising bring my calories consumed below 1200. (eat 1600, minus 400 calories exercising=1200 net calories)

B: egg/vegetable omelette-no cheese/whole wheat toast
L: turkey/mustard sandwich/fruit
chicken breast/brown rice/vegetable

It is also helpful to eat 4-5 200-300 calorie meals a day. Not to be confused with grazing, which is snacking all day, but pre-planned meals, every 2-3 hours. It keeps your metabolism burning throughout the day.

k2d4p

What I have discovered recently are light soups. Any brand really, Progresso, Healthy Choice, Campbell's... 150 - 250 calories for a whole can of soup. I have stocked up. Perfect for lunch or dinner.

kandy80cat

i am on the 1200 cals too

my typical day is

breakfast : tea with ss milk and sweetex, 2 slices of warburtons bread, toasted and spread

lunch: chicken stirfry with rice noodles

Dinner :2 x chicken breast with vegtables and jacket potato

snacks : alpen chocolate and orange bar, penguin bar, frube yoghurt, sliced peppers, cups of tea with ss milk and sweetex

this normally brings me just up to 1200 but if i exercise i add extra portions to my meals , and having a larger lunch means im not that hungry to snack later in the evening

adriayellow11

That is my calorie allotment also and I really struggle and feel deprived if I leave it at that. So it usually compels me to workout and earn more. You can friend me and see my diaries if you want.

CARNAT22

Today my breakfast is: 2 small slices of wholemeal toast with a little peanut butter and yoghurt.

Lunch will be pasta salad (pre-bought - 325 cals) and some fruit

Dinner will be 60g (dry weight) of spaghetti with a tomata based sauce (passata, pepper, onion, corgette, mushrooms plus a little garlic, basil and orgeno) served with a big green salad.

Plus I have enough left over for a snack (humous & raw veg!)

suzycreamcheese

ive put my diary to public now.

Flossycat100

Breakfast- typically a Muller Light fat free yogurt, or a sachet of OatsSoSimple with skimmed milk (depending on what combos of protein/carbs etc I'm eating for the rest of the day). As a treat sometimes, scrambled eggs on 1 slice wholemeal toast.

Lunch- a big bowl of salad with chicken or tuna and a fat free dressing. Or a low fat/low cal fresh soup- eg Covent Garden carton/Glorious Skinny tub/Supermarket's own tub. If I can afford the calories I'll have a miltigrain bagel or slice of dark rye bread (no butter) with these.

Dinner- either a low fat ready meal (if in a hurry) or grilled meat or fish with steamed veg or a salad. If I can afford the calories, a low fat dessert such as creme caramel, Cadburys low fat mousse etc.

The key for me is the snacks! I am currently managing three meals a day as above, plus two or three decent snacks. I always have fruit, either two pieces or more likely a shop-bought pack with 2-3 portions of prepared fruit in it. Other snacks include Dairylea Dunkers (up to 120 cals each); Mattessons Fridge Raiders chicken pieces (higher fat but loads of protein and still only around 140 cals a pack); Babybel Light mini portions (40 cals each); low fat crisps (generally around 100 calories a pack); or a Go Ahead! bar of some description- the Yogurt Breaks are particularly nice and, again, only about 150 cals a pack.

I always plan my eating a day or so ahead and will start by entering dinner (main course only), followed by lunch. Depending on what carb/protein ratio I'm on, I'll then select a breakfast which balances it nicely. Snack are then added based a) on how many calores I have left, and b) whether I need snacks rich in protein, carbs, or both, and whether I can afford much more fat. So really by looking at it a little more scientifically, I am letting my day's menu pretty much write itself.

I find it's when you just enter your food as you eat that things start to run out of control. A little applied thinking and things kind of fall into place. Hope this helps!

rlysrh

I live with my parent so I can't really be too picky about what I have for dinner unless I offer to cook it so I tend to stick to eating about 500 calories (or more if I exercise) for most of the day and then I have 700 calories left over for whatever I have for dinner. So I have oatso simple or some cereal for breakfast which is about 200 calories.
Then I have either a sandwich for lunch or a salad and a smoothie later on. If I've done some walking during the day I'll have some dried fruit or something as a snack later on.
Unless we're having something really unhealthy for dinner the meal usually totals to about 700 calories or less. I normally work out how many calories the meal is going to be beforehand and if it goes over 700 I'll just leave some.
I'm normally hungry by about 5 oclock but I just ignore it until dinner.
Also to avoid calories from drinking coffee I just drink it black. I add extra water to it instead of milk and it doesn't taste bad. Plus I read online that if you drink coffee black it boosts your metabolism, which it doesn't do if you drink it with milk and sugar. (:

denitraross

one word - exercise!!! If you even got in 30 mins a day you could burn 300 calories = calorie per minute is a decent workout. This would allow you to even have a couple snacks like fruit, fiber one bars (they are great)..etc. Try to eat high fiber foods when you can, for me they keep me fuller.

Mine is also set at 1200/day and without excerise I would starve I am sure!!!

forthefab5

I mainly eat 6 meals a day and sometimes still have a hard time going to 1200. Today's meals:

Breakfast: hard boiled egg and a green tea
Morning snack: nestle vanilla nofat yoghurt with sanitarium granola
Lunch: tuna and avocado rice paper rolls x 2 and a fruit salad
Afternoon snack: hard boiled egg and green seedless grapes (15)
Dinner: 100g chicken, a cup of sweet potato and 3 asparagus spears
Evening snack: protein shake (1 scoop plain with water)

Total cals: approx. 1120

Honestly don't feel hungry anymore, 3 months ago I was only eating two meals a day (no breakfast) and loaded up on nutrition-less junk in between. I've lost about 26.4lbs from my most recent highest weight (about 5 months ago) so I think it's working for me. Granted, I'm only 5 feet tall so that may play a part in it...

tarjake

what i dont get is MFP has got me at 3900+ cal /day. i dont eat that much. i been keeping it between 1500 and 2000 and am losing weight steady but dont feel like crud. how do they get the numbers?

NeverTry

I find if I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. (granted I am vegetarian) Instead of processed, packaged, breads, etc type food I get to eat more.
Big salads with everything, broccoli, nuts, spinich, advocado, onion, tomato, carrot etc.. and tonight i had tofu in it as well, and could barely finish the bowl.
I have had a few stressful days of late, where i didnt eat enough, but generally I use my 1200 as a rough guide, and dont beat myself up if im a little over.
My diary is open for you to look at

tarjake

I live with my parent so I can't really be too picky about what I have for dinner unless I offer to cook it so I tend to stick to eating about 500 calories (or more if I exercise) for most of the day and then I have 700 calories left over for whatever I have for dinner. So I have oatso simple or some cereal for breakfast which is about 200 calories.
Then I have either a sandwich for lunch or a salad and a smoothie later on. If I've done some walking during the day I'll have some dried fruit or something as a snack later on.
Unless we're having something really unhealthy for dinner the meal usually totals to about 700 calories or less. I normally work out how many calories the meal is going to be beforehand and if it goes over 700 I'll just leave some.
I'm normally hungry by about 5 oclock but I just ignore it until dinner.
Also to avoid calories from drinking coffee I just drink it black. I add extra water to it instead of milk and it doesn't taste bad. Plus I read online that if you drink coffee black it boosts your metabolism, which it doesn't do if you drink it with milk and sugar. (:

i been drinking black coffee more than normal because it seems to cut my appetite. is that right?

rlysrh

i been drinking black coffee more than normal because it seems to cut my appetite. is that right?

It definitely stops me being as hungry too for a while. (:
I dunno if there's any actual evidence to it or not though

suzycreamcheese

im definitely going to try and eat more veg, and cut to skimmed milk in my coffee. Cant do sweetners though - blergh

Im definitely going to tweak it a bit.

cant do too much exercise for a few weeks as ive just had an operation, but i can see itll definitely be easier when i can hit the gym again

curran80

I also have a 1200 limit. Feel free to add me to view my diary

CARNAT22

what i dont get is MFP has got me at 3900+ cal /day. i dont eat that much. i been keeping it between 1500 and 2000 and am losing weight steady but dont feel like crud. how do they get the numbers?

3900 sounds incredibly excessive... Unless you are exercising like a maniac for 6 hours a day???

mistawalka

ive put my diary to public now.

Using your Monday 14 as an example - overall calorie-wise don't be too despondant - if you are aiming for 1200 calories then your MFP 'deficit' each day is probably 500 calories - so by going over the daily target by 275 you are still going to lose weight as you will be under your daily requirements by 225 calories or so.

As someone posted above - throw in a 30 minute exercise and you'll be right on target calorie wise.

What looks like it hurt the most that day is the pizza (but in light of the above two observations not such a big deal) but maybe if you need to go down the takeaway route if you can shave off a hundred calories or so from the meal it would give you a bigger cushioning for grazing through the day - so something like a nando's grilled chicken with spicey rice might be an option.

Keep up the good work though

CARNAT22

Just to add that my cups of tea (PG Tips with SS milk and sweetner) are zero calories !!! Phew - thought I was going to have to give up me cuppa's as well...