1200 cal/day - is it possible?!

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  • jennibear8504
    jennibear8504 Posts: 46
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    I'm 5'4, about 150/149, I do 1200 on days I dont workout or do lots on activities. On days that I do workout and what not, I probably do closer 1500, depending on what i do. 1200 is very do able if youre smart about. Stay away from fried, starch/carbs, and basically calorie dense food. My biggest problem when i first started was portion control, sometimes it still is. Feel free to add me.
  • satanmullane
    satanmullane Posts: 7 Member
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    Just dont eat dough, dont eat pasta, dont eat rice, dont eat sugar and dont kid yourself. 1200 is tough at first but if you pay attention you can do it. I do it for weeks at a time and I lose consistently without starving myself. Water is essential and lifting heavy, whatever that means for you, will accelerate your results. Good luck.
  • ChangingAmanda
    ChangingAmanda Posts: 486 Member
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    If you're truly hungry it's a sign your not eating enough. I plugged your numbers into the BMR calculator at fat2fitradio.com which calculated your BMR (basic cals needed if you were essentially in a coma) at 1350. Lightly active is 1850. Try upping your calories 1500 (lightly active -20%) and see how you feel after a couple weeks.

    For a 4'11'' female? Try your calculator again because I'm taller and heavier than her and my BMR is 1200.

    I double checked and got the same numbers. Using the same calculator for your numbers, I get a BMR of 1375 and lightly active of 1900.

    The calculators will vary depending on the method used. Since I don't know your body fat percentage, it used the Harris-Benedict formula. For grins and giggles, I put in different BF% from 17.4 to 33.3 to get results of the Katch-McArdle formula. A BF% of 17.4 gave a BMR of 1400. BF% of 33.3 gave BMR of 1200.
    No its just a sign that dieting is hard, you do not get a good feeling of a nice meal when your body uses its fat reserves.

    Huh?
  • TonyStark30
    TonyStark30 Posts: 497 Member
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    The reason people feel crap at 1200 is because it doesn't feel good. Nothing to do with health or being to little, the fact that MFP states the number as its minimum means its never too little. Food makes us feel good, if you eat less you won't get that, can't be overweight and think eating less is gonna feel the same, we got pounds of fat to shift, that's all the food we ain't eating!
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,741 Member
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    Hey, im on a 1200 calorie net goal for mfp. feel free too look at my food diary for ideas :) am a pescetarian tho so no meat for me.I guess its about portion control really ,I like to save a lot of room for dinner lol so have a smallish breakfast and lunch and try to minimalise snacking ....but this probably isnt the best idea

    Agree with the no snacks, or minimal snacks!

    I am still over 200 lb, and I'm tall...so I'm currently at around 1400-1500 calories daily, but it is pretty easy for me to eat 1200 calories as long as I don't snack much.

    I am pretty satisfied with 200-300 cal breakfast, 400-500 cal lunch, 400-500 cal dinner. I know everyone's different though! Some people need snacks and more frequent mini meals, but for me that is the quickest route to feeling hungry and unsatisfied. If I ate 6 200-calorie mini meals I'd be starving. I like 3 meals per day :-)
  • Fullsterkur_woman
    Fullsterkur_woman Posts: 2,712 Member
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    The reason people feel crap at 1200 is because it doesn't feel good. Nothing to do with health or being to little, the fact that MFP states the number as its minimum means its never too little. Food makes us feel good, if you eat less you won't get that, can't be overweight and think eating less is gonna feel the same, we got pounds of fat to shift, that's all the food we ain't eating!
    Congratulations on your success with the weight loss! You don't by any chance happen to have DEXA scan or Bod Pod results to show your lean and fat mass from before and after, do you?
  • Monkatzya
    Monkatzya Posts: 4 Member
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    Very possible. What works for me is choosing lower carb options. For example, instead of having rice or pasta or bread, I have pumpkin, butternut squash, or sweet potatoes. I also avoid liquid calories in the form of tea or soda or even fruit juice. I take water instead. Snacking adds a lot of calories. I avoid it as well.
  • harpere87
    harpere87 Posts: 142 Member
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    Burn more calories- my calories a day before exercise is 1200 - but I usually get at least a minimum of an extra 150 from calories burned, on days i really work out, up to 500-600 more. and i always eat them back. In 3 months I've lost 13lbs this way. I am not incredibly strict, and at least once a week I go well over, a "splurge" day if you will... but it's doable.
  • itsjustdawn
    itsjustdawn Posts: 1,073 Member
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    This site automatically suggested I should eat 1,200 calories a day to reach my goal, but I had to manually set it to 1,600, I did try 1,200 for a while, but really just breakfast and lunch nearly fills it all up, saves very little room for dinner, I when well over 1,200 each time.

    Actually the site suggested you should NET 1200 calories day, not EAT.
  • phred_52
    phred_52 Posts: 189 Member
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    Doable? Yes Difficult? At times I'm up and down on calories, usually down, but I've managed to drop 17 lbs since july 25th. Gosh I miss my 'tater chips. :sad:
  • Danicalifornia3
    Danicalifornia3 Posts: 20 Member
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    I'm currently eating about 1200 calories a day and not eating back my exercise calories. It's by far the best method for weight loss I've tried so far. At first it seemed like I was still hungry at the end of the day, but after a week or so your body gets used to it. I work a lot on my feet all day and it can be stressful at times, which actually causes me to be less hungry overall. However, the best diet is the one that works for you. It's better to maintain a slightly higher calorie diet than to eat 1200 a day and just give up completely. If anyone would like to add me to their friends, feel free. :) I've been on MFP for awhile but this is actually my first forum post haha.
  • agoonia1
    agoonia1 Posts: 8 Member
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    I'm 5'3, 59kg, on a 1200 cal diet and also a pescatarian (I only eat fish out of all meats). I have learned to eat more veggies on a daily basis and drink my two litres of water a day. Now I almost never feel hungry and I am usually somewhere around my calorie goal, even if I let myself have a little sweet treat every once in a while. I also feel more energetic and motivated to just live. Check out some vegan recipes, they are usually low-cal, really healthy and filling.
    Good luck :)
  • kimd2090
    kimd2090 Posts: 28 Member
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    Hi! I am also on a 1200 cal diet, and I can tell you that it is nearly impossible for me UNLESS i do excercise! Strength training is good, but maybe in between reps do some sort of cardio to get the heart rate up...If you can't "jump around" (I struggle with that too!), try setting into a light squat position (not really deep squat so it's not so hard on knees) and doing fast cross body punches. Those will really get your heart pumping and then you will burn more calories since you have incorporated strength with your cardio. Feel free to add me too, and when you do on your homepage you can see what your "friends" have done for they day including viewing their diets! Good Luck.
  • BrendaLee
    BrendaLee Posts: 4,463 Member
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    I can't do 1200 calories/day. It just isn't enough food for me to work with. I do, however, do okay most days on 1350.
  • hulahoopmama
    hulahoopmama Posts: 140 Member
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    I aim for 1200 and usually make it, but I do eat around 1500 and workout 300cals a day.. so not sure if that is 1500 or 1200

    Over the past 2 weeks I haven't gone down at all and its very discouraging so I tried to mix things up by overeating for a day, ahha... I guess I j ust wanted to feel over "full" for once to remember, to let go, say goodbye.

    Now its back to the 1200cals. Sometimes I wish I could just fast instead! Eating nothing is so much easier then eating right. :\
  • jayrudq
    jayrudq Posts: 475 Member
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    I apologize upfront, but from your description, you should be able to eat 1200 calories. What are you eating everyday? And how much? You sound like you are pretty restrictive from the get go, so I am a little confused.
  • PinkkCamel
    PinkkCamel Posts: 47 Member
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    I'm pretty restrictive with what I eat. There's pretty much nothing processed in my diet apart from cottage cheese/ yoghurt if you can call that processed..? I rarely have bread (maybe 1-2 times a week if lucky and it's usually just 1 slice as 1 serving). And whole wheat or normal couscous. I've set my diary to public. Sometimes I get really fed up with counting calories and stuff and dont log. I seriously hate calorie counting with a passion because you end up becoming so miserable and obsessed with food. Since I've had an eating disorder in the past (and over-recovered...) it's really bad for my mental health I think. However it seems to be the only way I can keep semi-on track at least (although today I went a bit over :l ) but yeah.

    The other thing is that some days I find it difficult to maintain this sort of eating style when I'm in fully control. Hence when it comes to meeting friends to go out and eat, or someone brings in food to share for a special occassion at work/uni or something; counting becomes impossible almost and in my head I feel like I've stuffed up the entire day and then just go all out eating :l And then I hate skipping meals so I'd just end up eating too many calories -_- Making healthy choices in restaurants and stuff is easy for me but I still feel like I completely stuff up my diet for the day if I don't know exactly what's in the food I order. I know some people say accept when you eat too much/eat bad stuff of whatever and move on. But my brain doesnt work like that -.-

    I guess maybe it's just issues I need to somehow work through and try to figure out how to get around these mental obstacles ):
  • KMMRN
    KMMRN Posts: 104 Member
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    A few tips:

    -If you increase your activity level then you can increase your calorie intake a bit. (If your not trying to loose weight you can also increase it)
    - Try to have one protein at every meal so that you stay fuller longer I know you said you don't eat meat except fish, so try to eat fish, beans, tempeh, nuts or other meatless protein alternatives.
    - Look up healthy foods that take longer for the body to digest so that they keep you fuller longer.
    - Try to drink at least 8 glasses of water per day (Before meals so you feel fuller faster and still have calories to use for snacks in between meals when you feel hungry and drinking water in between meals can help you feel less hungry too.)
    - Eat your calories don't drink them, try to just stick to water and an occasional glass of juice if needed 100% natural fruit juices if possible.
    - Try to stay away from processed foods (breads, junk food, anything deep fried) these tend to be highest in calories and don't give your body the energy or nutrients it needs to stay full or energy to operate at its best.

    Hope this helps!

    These are great tips! I'd like to add that it is hard to eat while you are doing cardio, so if you increase it you will have less time to eat, and some people find that their stomach shuts down for a few hours after cardio (no appetite).
  • staps065
    staps065 Posts: 837 Member
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    I try to maintain a NET calories of 1200, That means I eat more than 1200 calories I just exercise and eat back most of, if not all of the calories I burn from exercise... Has worked well for me for the last 31/2-4 months. Hard to do when I don't exercise and have little calories to eat back, so I exercise almost every day...
  • jayrudq
    jayrudq Posts: 475 Member
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    I'm pretty restrictive with what I eat. There's pretty much nothing processed in my diet apart from cottage cheese/ yoghurt if you can call that processed..? I rarely have bread (maybe 1-2 times a week if lucky and it's usually just 1 slice as 1 serving). And whole wheat or normal couscous. I've set my diary to public. Sometimes I get really fed up with counting calories and stuff and dont log. I seriously hate calorie counting with a passion because you end up becoming so miserable and obsessed with food. Since I've had an eating disorder in the past (and over-recovered...) it's really bad for my mental health I think. However it seems to be the only way I can keep semi-on track at least (although today I went a bit over :l ) but yeah.

    The other thing is that some days I find it difficult to maintain this sort of eating style when I'm in fully control. Hence when it comes to meeting friends to go out and eat, or someone brings in food to share for a special occassion at work/uni or something; counting becomes impossible almost and in my head I feel like I've stuffed up the entire day and then just go all out eating :l And then I hate skipping meals so I'd just end up eating too many calories -_- Making healthy choices in restaurants and stuff is easy for me but I still feel like I completely stuff up my diet for the day if I don't know exactly what's in the food I order. I know some people say accept when you eat too much/eat bad stuff of whatever and move on. But my brain doesnt work like that -.-

    I guess maybe it's just issues I need to somehow work through and try to figure out how to get around these mental obstacles ):

    Wow, I looked at your Diary and you are doing great.

    I am sorry about the counting...we are all different. I, personally, kind of like it. It is a game I play in my head figuring out calorie counts. I am also not super strict about it and give myself a fair amount of leeway.

    Have you tried pushing your calories back, if you are hungry at night? I rarely eat breakfast, and at that, it is midmorning and almost exclusively a high protein meal. Because I enjoy eating with my family, I reserve the majority of my cals for dinner (including wine). I have gotten used to it and go all day without eating much fairly easily.

    I wish you the best of luck.

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