struggling with a 1200 calorie allowance

I have been on a 1200 calorie diet before. Back in 2009-2010 I lost some weight ( although it turned into disordered eating and my weight became very low ) I was on a 1000-1200 calorie diet. I ate anywhere between 1000-1299 calories a day. Everyday. I didn't exercise much. Maybe 30 minutes a few days a week. I dropped almost 20 lbs in a few months.

1200 is a little on the low side for me. I CAN do it but it brings me back memories of when I restricted a lot back in the day. I eat anywhere between 1200-1600 calories a day today. I do not eat a "set" amount everyday. I just eat what I like and I plan what I eat in the morning. I mainly am focusing on portion control, especially with things that are to be eaten in moderation, like cookies for example.

Today I had 1400 calories. A few days ago I had 1200 calories. A couple days ago I had over 1500 but under 1600, but that was when I had Chipotle with my friends and didn't want to be weird by not eating it with them.

I've been averaging a couple pounds a week, although I am sure it will slow down in a month or so.

sugar is sugar.

You need to start somewhere.....i ve been back at this for 5 days and each day i went over but it's less everyday....you won t lose 50 lbs in 3 weeks just Don t get discouraged and if you are tracking your progress use it to motivate you

hey guys, ive been doing the 1200 cals a day for about a year now - but i allow myself atleast one blow out cheat meal a week! think it stops me from going insane. i also dont eat back the calories i burn off,
i find really good foods are eggs, tuna, skinny pasta, loading bologneses/stir frys/chillis with LOTS of vegetables and small amounts of meat! i also weigh pretty much everything as it is so easier to go over the weight of pasta etc.

there are some days when im starving and some when im stuffed! very strange.

keep at it produces amazing results. xxxxx

Isn't this a bit misleading? aren't you consuming a lot of your calories that you burn in your one cheat meal?

no, i burn on average around 600 cals 5/6 times a week. my cheat meal is normally 1000 max. i never eat back the calories i burn, even if i burn 800 i will still only consume 1200.

So the day you have a 1,000 calorie meal the rest of the day you only eat 200?

Whatever works, but holy cow only netting 400 calories a day, :explode:

Same here. But here is what I did. Added a tbsp of cinnamon to your cereal in the am. It will help resolved the shakes. Plus I added a piece of fruit in the am between breakfast and lunch.

You will get people saying 1200 is not enough but it depends on age height and activity. I am 5'2" 54 years old and don't move much. 1200 is fine for me and I am losing although slowly. If I want to eat more I move more but I try to net 1200 calories

This.

1200 works for me - but I never actually only eat 1200. I exercise and eat them back. When I first started I was extremely sedentary, working from home and hardly moving at all. I needed an 'eating back' system to convince myself that getting up off my *kitten* was worth it. Now I hula hoop every day

^^^ This also...
I'm super happy on 1200 cals and try to eat 6 times/day, (add me, my diary is open!) also this year I started eating paleo which has already helped LOTS!
My start weight was 198 and for my first 20 lost just about all of my exercise was 1 hour of hula hooping/day!! haha

I plan my meals ahead of time, sometimes I use my diary to figure out of what I want to eat will make me go over and then I adjust what I plan to eat accordingly. Once you get the hang of planning it simplifies things.

This!

I do the same. Over my morning coffee I plan my food for the day, so that I can balance calories throughout the day. i am on 1200 and I exercise 400- 550 calories 5 out of 7 days. I do not eat all my exercise calories back, but if I go over 1200, I make sure wit's within the range. I normally end up on 1200 - 1400 not counting exercise calories lost, but normally nearer 1200.

Now that I am thinking about what I am going to eat ahead of time, rather than randomly stuffing food in my face, I am finding that not only do I enjoy what I eat so much more, but I need much less.

I used to snack in the evening in front of the TV. Now, even though I leave myself a calorie allowance to do so, I rarely feel the need!

I just joined so I will let you know!:happy:

I do the same. I'm on 1250 this week because at 1500 I was losing but still eating rubbish. Now I have to earn my rubbish

This might explain your headaches too. And being on 1,000mg of metformin (for PCOS) while only eating 1200 calories is NOT SAFE.

The only way I can cope with 1200 cals is if I exercise and eat the cals back

Exactly this! Just do a bit of exercise, even a brisk walk will earn you extra calories, an hours running and I earn an extra 650 calories, so over the week it evens out, some days I'm over, some under. But I can't do the 1200 without exercise. Its too hard long term and unsustainable.

I can stay around 1200 a day as long as I eat very clean. There is no room for extra splurges which right now and maybe forever is a good thing because a splurge for me often leads to a total loss of control. I will eat back some of exercise calories but not all of them. I would not worry about going over a little if you feel good. I eat small meals/snacks every few hours to avoid getting starving and losing it in the afternoons. My highest calorie meal is dinner but I don't eat after 8 pm...only water. A big glass of water before a meal really helps me feel like I've eaten enough and keeps my energy level up. I watch that my carbs don't go over the recommended level on the diary but I don't worry about the sugar because if I have 2 pieces of fruit in a day that puts me over. It is the added processed sugars I think you need to watch out for so I eat very little bread and no chips, crackers, cookies, etc. I have done things this way for a long time and it works for me and I lose weight. My problem is getting about 1/2 way to goal and losing my motivation, feeling like it's taking too long, getting too busy with other things in life which cause me to have less time to cook and plan meals etc. I have to cook healthy and plan meals in order to feel good and stay on this plan. I hope some of this is helpful and every one is welcome to friend me. I need friends to help keep me motivated and support me when I get to the 1/2 way point and beyond. I hope that I have something to offer to support my friends as well!

Everyone says you are starving yourself at 1200, but I am doing just fine with it!. In fact that's where my doctor said I would need to be if I wanted to lose any significant weight. I drink a TON of water (8+ cups) and if I want to eat extra I try to get in some exercise. It's not impossible! After a week or two I got over the hungry feeling and it became easier.

My MFP is set at 1200 calories, but I always eat around 1600, give or take. I exercise daily.

You need to eat your exercise calories back. It's not hard to stick to, as long as you're eating whole, healthy foods.

Its interesting that many of you say you don't worry to much about the natural sugars in fruit. I used to do weight watchers ( lost 50lb, but its maintaining where I fall down ) and on the weight watchers plan mostveg and fruit are considered free to eat I.e. not counted in your food intake and it used to work too. So the question question is... Is fruit andveg worth counting/should you count it? Any thoughts?

everything must be accounted for if you can, natural sugars in fruits are also carbs, if you eat it 'free' everyday the extra calories in there could mean the difference bet. you think you are in a deficit or not. I track basically all the foods that comes in my body.