Hard time eating 1,200

Someone who is only looking to lose 16 lbs should be aiming for .5lbs lost per week.

Also, the lowest MFP will recommend is 1200. So even if you needed to eat 800 calories per day to lose 2lbs per week, MFP would still recommend 1200 calories since that is the lowest that is generally considered "healthy" (though this is debatable). That is why it didn't change when you upped your calories.

Even if you don't eat meat, nuts, beans and whey protein are good ways to get protein in.

Full disclosure, 1500 is super hard for me. I don't think I could ever to 1200

The calories MFP recommends is based on the info you put in. You probably put sedentary as your activity level, which you are likely not. Also, you should be eating back 1/2 to all your exercise calories. Add me if you like.

I have actually had this app, different accounts (deleting then getting back). I've had this one for a while now, and my eating habits have never been like they are now (recently) i'm suddenly less able to control what i eat haha. if i just want to maintain my weight (as i dont really want to lose any) at 8 stone which is what i am now, how many calories do you think i can eat? I've set it to 1200 but I've been eating more like 1400 a day this week or 2. I am 5 foot 5

Sometimes 1200 calories just isn't for everyone. Or counting calories for that matter. For me, staring at the computer and plugging in my food all the time actually made me more hungry because I was constantly thinking about food. I would tend to then go over my "goal" intake, feel like I failed myself, and gorge in whatever. Like you, I would say, "I'll try again tomorrow" but they cycle continued and I'd have a good week, then a bad week, then a bad week, then an ok week.....It wasn't working for me. I decided to only log my weight and exercise and eventually just my weight.

I am also a vegetarian, well moving towards vegan, and so I understand what you mean when you say it's hard to put meals together. It's definitely a process and takes time. For me, my biggest success has come from mostly cutting out animal products (I eat cheese, etc but only a tiny amount and not everyday). Usually I eat as many fruits as I want until I'm full (for breakfast, usually in the form of 30-48 oz of fruit smoothies), a huge salad for lunch (whole head of romaine, handful of spinach, handful of mixed greens, green onion, 1/2 pint of grape tomatoes, small zucchini and 1/2 cucumber) with 2T of what ever dressing I want (thinned out with about 2T water). By dinner I'm usually still full and grab a tea saucer as my dinner plate. I fill it with whatever is for dinner and as much as will fit on that tiny plate and enjoy. I probably eat around 2000 cals with minimal organized exercise and continue to lose weight. I think for my body, it understands clean, whole foods better and so the body spends less time digesting the food, giving it more time to burn fat, even if I'm not doing much.

Those are just some of the things I have done and seen success. I have an idea of what the calories are, but I don't physically input them. If your body is telling you you're hungry after 1200 cals, then you probably are. Fill up on F/V and don't worry about their calorie content. No one has ever gotten fat eating fruits and veggies.

Good luck. You will find what works for you and when you do, the weight will fall off.

Not knowing what you are eating, I can only suggest you check your portion size on your rice, potatoes and pastas. If you're used to eating large portions of starches as fillers, it could be disproportionate to your proteins and fats, which are what is going to make you feel satiated.

Hi I'm Beth and I just got back on this site after being off it for 6 months. I've lost a total of 18 lbs and have another 30 lbs to go to be at my goal.

I started drinking a lot of water and now I go to the gym 4 days per week. I also have trouble eating all of the calories

I find that eating enough protein and fat is key to staving off hunger. I don't really watch my macro totals, but I find that I'm consistently over the recommendation for fats and proteins and under the recommendation for carbs, and I do just fine at 1200 calories. I'm a lazy b____, so I don't exercise, so it's a reasonable tally for me. And some days I might go up to 1300 if I just want another snack. When I eat too many carbs, it just makes me hungrier. I don't avoid them entirely though, I'm not doing Atkins or anything.

When I changed my weekly loss from 2 pounds to 1 pound it actually switched to 1420 or 1570 kcals - I can't recall which was, because it depends on the level of activity you set either.

If you're at the beginning 1200 might be way too little, try eating 1500 and it should work. You're still at a deficit, no way you could gain weight.

Anyway I'm also a vegetarian, if you need any idea for less than 500 kcals meals!

It looks like this person gave up, the account is now showing as deactivated.

On my low cal days, I set the goal of hitting bodyweight in protein (very filling), starting mainly with protein source and vegetable (2 cups of spinach is only 20 cal). After imputing that and calculating, plus exercise there is always leftover calories. Use the leftover for fun stuff, and take a multi vitamin in case I missed anything. For instance a chicken breast is approx 200 cals, this means you could eat five plus a salad with each meal (without adding in earned exercise calories). That is probably way more then you want to eat, so lets say 3 meals with a protein vegetable base, approx. 700 calories, leaving 500 to play with (without exercise added). When on a low cal day, watch out for fruit, bread, and high fat, it will zap your calories without being very filling. That being said, I recently had a philly cheese steak on a low cal day, Just make it fit. Dieting doesn't have to be miserable. That works for me, maybe it will help you. Best of luck reaching your goals

Pack your meals with protein. Protein is what fills you up. There are a lot of vegetarian protein alternatives. Try finding a vegetarian fitness group on Facebook or something for great ideas and motivation. I started using Herbalife back in May and have had great success with it. And now that my stomach is smaller, it's easier to not over eat and my food selections are healthier because ice learned about better nutrition along the way.

When you go over on calories, use that as motivation to up your activity. Get a pedometer so you can track all of your activity and log it. You'd be surprised at how much you burn with just regular walking around (to the printer at work, the bathroom, etc). We don't log that type of activity and so we forget about it. I just got a Fitbit and was surprised how much I burn just by living. Lol

You're off to a great start by posting here and asking questions. You can do it, stay confident in yourself!