Daily 1200cal ideas

Small, small amounts of everything, lots of veggies and fruit to keep you full, whole wheat, no sugar, little processed food. I go 100-200 calories above 1200 because I workout so much. My diary is open. Make yourself 5 meals a day, otherwise it's really hard and you are hungry all the time.

The reason it has your goals set to 1200 is because you have it set to lose to much weight. Set it to one pound a week and you won't be satting yourself up for failure by having such a low daily calorie count. You don't have to eat that little to lose weight. My wife is 4'10'', older then you, and she loses weight eating 1500. If your shorter then that then maybe i am wrong, however i am willing to bet you just put in a weight loss goal of 2 pounds a week and did not put your activity level in correctly.

Every one is different and you have to find what works for you. If you try this 1200 stuff and your hungry then stop and take a better more long term approuch that will not only bring you results but not leave you feeling hungry and that will allow you to keep the weight off even after you start eating like a normal person again.

Set yourself to lose 1lb a week, and sedentary, then eat back all your exercise calories. MFP reset me to 1240 when I'd lost 20lb but that was way too low 9even with crazy exercsie) so its now set to 1400 plus eating exercsie calories, and I'm still losing.

Save for later.

1200 cals per day only does one thing, sends your body into starvation mode!!

No it doesn't.

For lunch, I usually eat salmon and cucumber sandwiches = two slices bread, 7g of spread, 50g of tinned salmon and four slices of cucumber. With my packed lunch is also two medium sized apples and three hard-boiled eggs.

The total for all of that is 613 calories.

That leaves 587 calories for dinner and breakfast.

I am seriously not hungry when I eat that way.

You aren't hungry because you are crashing your metabolism!

What with over 600 calories for lunch??? Give me a bloody break, where do you get these broscience ideas from.

I have lost 33lbs and 41lbs on two separate occasions in the past on 1200 per day, so DON'T try to tell me how to suck eggs ok because you haven't got a bloody clue!

I put weight back on because I ate like a fricken pig and stuffed my face.

My metabolism is just fine thanks, I see that because I lose weight on it and continue to do exercise. Do some research and then you can tell me what to do, until then, I really am not interested in your guessing games.

The reason it has your goals set to 1200 is because you have it set to lose to much weight. Set it to one pound a week and you won't be satting yourself up for failure by having such a low daily calorie count. You don't have to eat that little to lose weight. My wife is 4'10'', older then you, and she loses weight eating 1500. If your shorter then that then maybe i am wrong, however i am willing to bet you just put in a weight loss goal of 2 pounds a week and did not put your activity level in correctly.

Every one is different and you have to find what works for you. If you try this 1200 stuff and your hungry then stop and take a better more long term approuch that will not only bring you results but not leave you feeling hungry and that will allow you to keep the weight off even after you start eating like a normal person again.

This is a big assumption. You even said yourself "Everyone is different" yet you are comparing your wife with the OP. MFP also gave me a daily goal of 1200 and it is NOT because I set to loose too much weight. I have tried to adjust the weekly goals using different amounts from .5 lbs per week to 2 lbs per week and no matter what I change, my daily goal is 1200 without exercise. (My TDEE is 1700) 1200 is the correct starting goal for some people. Of course, I can exercise a lot more and eat more but I am sedentary due to my job and a knee injury. I eat 5-6 times per day and I am never hungry. I'm not setting myself up for failure, I can eat this way long term and will actually eat more once I hit maintenance.

May I add that everyone is different. What works for one person may NOT work for another. I don't do the 1200 as I use the Tdee 20%...but that doesn't mean that someone else has to do what I do.

I'm set there as well - but I almost always eat more from exercise. I think it's fine to use it as a goal, but if you're hungry at the end of the day and out of calories, eat something good and healthy and don't worry if it says 1309

Things I've found that are super 'cheap' for my calorie budget:

Roasted carrots - I can't stand raw carrots, but roasted carrots go with just about any main dish.
Egg whites - I often have a 3 egg white omelet with fat free cheese = about 81 calories
Chicken breast - yeah, everyone knows this
Strawberries - you can eat SO many for so few calories
Peaches - just 70 cal ea!
Sweet Potatoes - again, roasted and they're great for you in moderation
Green veggies - of course
Extra lean beef - great for burgers or mix with ground turkey and egg whites for meat loaf or meatballs
Baked fruit - if you have a sweet tooth (I do), baked apples and cinnamon with splenda or sugar if you're willing to take the extra cals - it's pie without the shell! Also works with cherries and blackberries
Pancakes - no really, I found a great recipe for low cal high protein pancakes. Blend 1 cup oats, 6 egg whites, 1 cup cottage cheese, 1 tbl sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 2 tsp vanilla. It's about 75 calories for a 4-5 inch pancake. Top it with that baked fruit and it's heaven

Good luck and hang in there!

The reason it has your goals set to 1200 is because you have it set to lose to much weight. Set it to one pound a week and you won't be satting yourself up for failure by having such a low daily calorie count. You don't have to eat that little to lose weight. My wife is 4'10'', older then you, and she loses weight eating 1500. If your shorter then that then maybe i am wrong, however i am willing to bet you just put in a weight loss goal of 2 pounds a week and did not put your activity level in correctly.

Every one is different and you have to find what works for you. If you try this 1200 stuff and your hungry then stop and take a better more long term approuch that will not only bring you results but not leave you feeling hungry and that will allow you to keep the weight off even after you start eating like a normal person again.

This is a big assumption. You even said yourself "Everyone is different" yet you are comparing your wife with the OP. MFP also gave me a daily goal of 1200 and it is NOT because I set to loose too much weight. I have tried to adjust the weekly goals using different amounts from .5 lbs per week to 2 lbs per week and no matter what I change, my daily goal is 1200 without exercise. (My TDEE is 1700) 1200 is the correct starting goal for some people. Of course, I can exercise a lot more and eat more but I am sedentary due to my job and a knee injury. I eat 5-6 times per day and I am never hungry. I'm not setting myself up for failure, I can eat this way long term and will actually eat more once I hit maintenance.

If your TDEE is 1700, then .5/week weight loss would be 1450 cals, NOT 1200 :flowerforyou:

I try to net around 1200 calories, so with exercise my daily count is around 1500. High density, low calorie foods are my friend:

- Add watery fruits and veggies into your meals....watermelon, strawberries, cucumber
- Protein in the morning from eggs, cottage cheese, or shakes
- Lunch: Big salads with spinach, peppers, tomato, cucumber and a little cheese with red wine vinegar dressing;

I usually aim for 300 cals at breakfast, 400 at lunch, 600 at dinner, and then allow room for snacks based on my exercise of the day.

I hoard my calories for dinner, which may not be everyone's ideal, but I've lost a lot of weight through sheer patience and dedication so I feel confident saying this works for me. I usually eat about 500-600 calories during dinner alone. Drinking lots of water, hot tea, and having low calorie snacks available helps me stay on track. And the fullness from dinner helps me avoid my late night snacking weakness.

Is that the only thing wrong with what I posted? The point was don't tell someone 1200 is wrong

Even if they are wrong? You WERE wrong. Okay lol. Everybody is right! So sorry! 1200 cals for everyone!! Whooo hoooo

This is funny but I'm glad you're "So sorry" Apology accepted LOL And again, you missed the point, 1200 cals is NOT for everyone but for some it is fine. Whoooo Hooooo.

Check out my diary. My goal is actually 1600 calories per day but I usually eat about 1300 - don't look at this weekend, I was camping/at a festival lol. I always have an egg white whole wheat muffin and coffee for breakfast and eat either steak or chicken with veg for lunch.

A lot of lean protein and fruits and vegetables. I usually do an egg white omelet with some spinach and low fat cheese for breakfast. Lunch will be leftovers from the night before or a salad or something. For dinner I'm obsessed with zucchini noodles. You just make them using a julienne peeler. I throw them in a pan with some olive oil or cooking spray and some garlic and put them with some chicken or shrimp or whatever. It's really filling but really low cal.