5'3 1200 calorie diet- ALWAYS hungry is this normal?

Are you also exercising? What types of workouts and for how long? Do you eat back exercise cals?

I ran your numbers through the BMR calculator that I use, and it says 1390 for your stats - that's the minimum amount of calories a doctor would feed you through a tube if you were in a coma. So if you're active, walking and talking, working, you need even more than that to fuel your body. Especially if you're exercising.

Using that same tool, it gives a TDEE (total daily energy expenditure, or total calories you'd burn in a day based on activity level) of 1911 for someone who's lightly active (sports, light exercise 1-3 days a week). Subtract 20% from that for fat loss and you have a calorie goal of 1529 a day. Higher if you're more active.

Check out this topic: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

Great info there and links to the tools I used to run your numbers. I tried the 1200 game for awhile, and it wasn't nearly enough for me. I'm now set at 1800 a day, I have energy, I'm not hungry, and I AM losing fat and inches. Much much better than going hungry and trying to stick to 1200.

I am 5'3, 209lbs, and I am on a 1200 calorie diet as well. But i make myself eat, i really am only hungry in the mornings, and around 7pm. But i try to eat 5 small meals a day.
Breakfast: about 400 calories
AM Snack: about 100 calories
Lunch: about 300 calories
PM Snack: about 100 calories
Supper: about 300 calories

of course it changes through the day .. but that is my averages

What types of foods are you eating?

Ensure you are eating enough protein and fibre along with healthy fats and ensure you are drinking enough water.

Eat less processed foods... eat more whole foods.

Also, as someone else pointed out, eat more food. Since you have so little to lose set your goal to 0.5 lb per week. The smaller you are the less of a deficit you should have and the slower you should expect the weight to come off

If you are active, 1200 calories isn't enough. And more than likely, it's not even enough if you are sedentary. Also, losing 3 lbs won't do much... considering it's a little weight from your feet, hands, arms face, stomach, etc... If you are just looking to cut some fat, you want a moderate deficit (1/2 lb per week) and do some heavy weight training.

Whole wheat is not much better than white... you need the whole grain. Carbs won't make you gain weight unless you have a sensitivity to gluten or something else within carbs.

You may of lost muscle while eating so little. Eat more, a lot more (close to maintance) and lift heavy weights. Not only will eating more help you not be so hungry all the time but eating more and lifting heavy weights will allow you to increase muscle mass and better your metabolism allowing you to burn more fat.

If you are active, 1200 calories isn't enough. And more than likely, it's not even enough if you are sedentary. Also, losing 3 lbs won't do much... considering it's a little weight from your feet, hands, arms face, stomach, etc... If you are just looking to cut some fat, you want a moderate deficit (1/2 lb per week) and do some heavy weight training.

Agreed. If you only have 10 pounds to lose, you should be aiming to lose half a pound a week. It's slow, but it's more likely to last because you aren't starving yourself. Try calculating how much you should be eating:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

eat a lot of protein. it makes you feel full and curbs hunger longer.

I sit almost all day at work but i workout mostly cardio ( elliptical mostly) I have healthy eating habits too!

I am looking to lose 10lbs total. Last year I did it on a 1200 calorie diet but obviously my results did not last long and I was always hungry then too! I went up to a 1500 calorie diet and slowly weight creeped up. I do eat a lot of whole grain / wheat proucts...so maybe the carbs? But i thought carbs give you energy?

Thanks for the advice everyone!

if you fail before, why repeat the same cycle. Eat more and weight train. Not only does WT increase your metabolic rate, it sustains muscle. Depending on how often you workout, you should be between 1600-1800 calories. Also, adjust your macro's to around 35/40/25 (c/p/f). Lowering carbs will help reduce water weight, but more importantly, the additional protein will help maintain muscle.