Low Cal recipe ideas

2ndbubba12
2ndbubba12 Posts: 4
in Recipes
Hi all,

Im new to this and am just trying to concerntrate on getting my target of 1200 cals a day right. Any ideas for meals?

Ive never done calorie counting so not really sure, and Im scared to eat anything lol

Replies

  • rainghirl
    rainghirl Posts: 203 Member
    You can check recipes that you would normally make using the receipe tool in here, it's really useful. You can then adjust the ingredients until you get something you think is about right. Mainly I find that just reducing the amount of fat used in cooking and not cooking with a lot of dairy products brings the calories down, but I'm vegetarian so I have no idea how many extra calories meat adds in. I suspect that if you substitute low fat meats like chicken, turkey and good cuts of beef or pork then that will also bring down the calories.

    Cooking things from scratch is far better than using ready meals, and I usually make enough for 4 portions and freeze half of it for those days when I just don't have time to cook.

    I try and plan what I'm having for a day, put everything in my food log early in the day and then I can see if I'm hitting the right number of calories. I also think that 1200 is too low, really you should start with 1500 and see how you and only drop down to 1200 if your weight loss slows down or stops. Reading through messages others have posted many appear to be in agreement with this.

    I started losing weight back in April and lost 19lbs by July. I was using Fitday at that point, but moved to MFP because it had more UK specific foods in the listings.
  • coliema
    coliema Posts: 7,646 Member
    The blog on my page has a bunch of really good low calorie recipes :) I add more recipes often, I haven't added any in a few weeks but I'll be adding more soon! I have breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert recipes on there.

    You can also look online, which is really helpful. Just search "Low Calorie Meals" or "Low Calorie Recipes" into a search engine and ideas will come up. Also, what I do a lot is, I take a meal I like...for example "Eggplant Parmesan" and I type "Low Calorie" in front of it into Google and I can still have my favorite foods without going over my calorie goal.

    I am also at 1200 calories a day, it's hard at first to get used to being at or under 1200 but it gets easier the more food ideas you get.
  • AMSC130
    AMSC130 Posts: 2 Member
    Hi! How do I get to your blog so I can see the recipes? I am new at this and I have not made friends with the navigation part yet, lol. THanks!
  • bigmc1965
    bigmc1965 Posts: 6 Member
    Came across a quick low-calorie snack. My husband and I are doing so well on MFP, but, got a cravin' for something sweet. You take a lemon cake mix, add 1 can diet lemon-lime drink, and I used a little lemon zest, just for the "pop" factor, mix together till smooth. (No eggs, milk,oil, etc) Disregard all instructions on box except baking directions. Fill 18 muffin cups and bake at 350 degrees F. for about 18 min. We did not frost them and they came out to 113 cal. each! Better than chips and fulfilled our sweet tooth. Good luck to everyone. We have been here since February, 2012 and have each lost about 33 pounds. Feeling good and "lab tests" better! That was our goal!:smile:
  • misclemence
    misclemence Posts: 18 Member
    I am also on a 1200 calorie diet and 25 to 30grams a day fat. What I found works the best for me is to ALWAYS eat breakfast and drink a bottle or two of water before each meal. I've always been hit and miss on breakfast and the rest of my meals used to come from a fast food drive thru. If your only fixing meals for one, like I am, I like to fix kroger brand natural eggs (liquid form in a carton) for breakfast along with a couple slices of turkey bacon. I dress the eggs up with a little onion, green pepper, tomato and fat free schredded cheese. I'm not real fond of the eggs by themself! Kashi whole wheat blueberry waffles with sugar free-low cal. syrup and a couple of strawberrys is also good for breakfast. For lunch I like to fix a salad or I really like Kangaroo brand whole wheat honey pita pockets. I stuff them with 99% fat free deli turkey meat then toast it in the over for a few minutes then top with fat free mayo, lettuce and tomatoes. If your a simple cook(like me) or dont have much time, try baking chicken breast. I use emerill green chicken rub and bake in the oven along with a cup of whole wheat rice or a sweet potato sprinked with cinnamon powder. Or perhaps eating a lean cuisine frozen box dinner. That really helped me learn portion control. Try substituting ground turkey where you would usually use hamburger. Its yummy in chili and you dont even notice the difference! Also try buying low fat or no fat items. Like cheese makes a big differnece. I faithfully log my meal after I eat. If i didnt I probably wouldn't stay on track. I check the community recipe forum a couple times a day. There are alot of wonderful ideas. Be sure to eat a snack during the day, that help from over eating at meal time. last but not least dont make the mistake of weighing yourself everyday, you'll only be disappointed. I weigh myself every couple of weeks and I am pleased with the results. I'm not much on exercising but I try to walk at least 3 times a week for 30 minutes at a time. I have lost 19 lbs. since the last week of july. Hope these suggestions help you. If you remember to eat breakfast, drink water and snack you'll find that 1200 calories a day isnt hard to achieve.
  • healthynotthin
    healthynotthin Posts: 223 Member
    To get to Coliemariealessi's blog: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/coliemariealessi :)

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