Is anybody else eating 1200 calories per day?

I'm on a 1200 calories a day plan. I have a shake for breakfast and one for lunch each shake is 200 calories and contains at least 15 vitamins and minerals so I'm having a good intake.

It leaves 800 for drinks and dinner. For dinner I have all homemade food, no ready meals of any kind. Eg chips, burgers etc.

If I want them I make from scratch so nutritional value is a lot better.

Reducing the calories at the start was pretty tough as I went from 2000 to 1200 and I guess I didn't really appreciate how easy it was for them to add up without thinking about it.

Just persevere it gets easier

Mary x

My calorie goal is also 1200. I have a dog that I walk several times a day, so when I type in my exercise I get some extra calories. So my average calorie-intake is about 12-1300 a day, which works fine for me, some evenings I actually force myself to snack more because I have eaten less than I should during the day. It helps to postpone your breakfast a little bit, that makes you less likely to go hungry during the day. I don't deny myself any particular kinds of food. I just eat the required amount of calories (although I do not eat lots of candy, which is filled with empty calories). I never had any problems adjusting at all. I guess it is different for each person.

My calorie goal is also 1200. I have a dog that I walk several times a day, so when I type in my exercise I get some extra calories. So my average calorie-intake is about 12-1300 a day, which works fine for me, some evenings I actually force myself to snack more because I have eaten less than I should during the day. It helps to postpone your breakfast a little bit, that makes you less likely to go hungry during the day. I don't deny myself any particular kinds of food. I just eat the required amount of calories (although I do not eat lots of candy, which is filled with empty calories). I never had any problems adjusting at all. I guess it is different for each person.

How can you possible get to your macro requirements on 1200-1300 calories/day while eating "lots of candy". I'm currently struggling to reach a reasonable protein and fat level at 1970ish calories.


ETA: Aha, I think I just figured it out. You're using MFP's default macro settings, aren't you? (And by MFP's default, I mean, ridiculously too low protein and slightly too low fat.)

great article. explains why i have not been able to lose lately, dspite all the excercise

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I did this for most of year while losing. HOWEVER, I eat back my exercise calories (from walking), which meant that I usually ATE more than that, even though I netted it.

Things that helped me were protein at every meal (yogurt or eggs at breakfast, lean meat at lunch, meat for dinner, nuts and ice cream for snacks) and lower (40%) easy to digest carbs.

Every time I was hungry I'd have some (5) cashews or almonds. Around 9, after dinner, I'd have 1/4 cup ice cream.

Drop things you don't care about - for me it was milk and bread - and eat small quantities of filling things when you're hungry.

If you're feeling hungry in the evenings, why not save up some calories during the day to have a bigger dinner? If you're using them all up during the day then try a more filling breakfast. On the days I have a big bowl of porridge with banana for breakfast I usually won't be very hungry again until dinner. This leaves me with plenty of calories for dinner and snacks. Also, don't waste calories on drinks. Just drink water and use your calories on food to fill you up

Ive been doing this diet for 3 weeks and Im really happy with the results In 3 weeks i went from 121 to 116, I havent been that light since grade 9~
Im pretty short (4'10) so im not that thin, i need to lose a bit more
I usually burn 510 calories in one hour on the treadmill about 4 times a week

See post below.

My calorie goal is also 1200. I have a dog that I walk several times a day, so when I type in my exercise I get some extra calories. So my average calorie-intake is about 12-1300 a day, which works fine for me, some evenings I actually force myself to snack more because I have eaten less than I should during the day. It helps to postpone your breakfast a little bit, that makes you less likely to go hungry during the day. I don't deny myself any particular kinds of food. I just eat the required amount of calories (although I do not eat lots of candy, which is filled with empty calories). I never had any problems adjusting at all. I guess it is different for each person.

How can you possible get to your macro requirements on 1200-1300 calories/day while eating "lots of candy". I'm currently struggling to reach a reasonable protein and fat level at 1970ish calories.


ETA: Aha, I think I just figured it out. You're using MFP's default macro settings, aren't you? (And by MFP's default, I mean, ridiculously too low protein and slightly too low fat.)

I said I DO NOT eat lots of candy! I actually don't eat candy at all except maybe during the weekends but not always. Please read more thoroughly next time

But I was right about the default macros right?

How has your adherence been to 1300 daily calories for the past month?

I started off eating 1200 calories, but I was always hungry and thinking about food, so I adjusted my goals to around 1400. The higher amount works much better for me, personally.

I started off eating 1200 calories, but I was always hungry and thinking about food, so I adjusted my goals to around 1400. The higher amount works much better for me, personally.

It's amazing the difference just a couple hundred calories makes to attitude/adherence. During my current cut, I started at 1971 net calories and later bumped it to 2100. Only slightly more than a hundred daily calories, but made a huge difference. (It was the difference between having nothing at the end of the day and having a tiny snack.)

I hope this works for me I just started today. I am way over on calories. I also usually eat more. I thought I was eating well when I started but I guess not. Hope I can make the 1200 calories tomorrow. I hope everyone else can keep up the good work.

I'm surprised to read that so many people are budgeted 1200 calories by MFP. I guess I'm a big girl since my budget is 1680! But many days like today I eat good-for-me food and still come in under 1200. But I'm not yet on an exercise regime. About all I can say for myself is that I stand up all day (including at the computer).

I was at 1200, this week upped it to around 1475. I'm still struggling to net 1200 lol...with exercise days especially, it's easier on regular days.
It is difficult balancing feeling full and calories...like last night I absolutely felt stuffed after dinner, because I ate a very large quantity of veggies that were low cal.

I'm sort of tempted to try and work out a mock day ahead of a day, where I work out all the calories and fit them into the macro goals, and then eat that and see how I go.

Pre-planning/logging is a great tool to use. It takes away the "I'm hungry right now and need a solution right now" problem that leads to eating too much/not hitting your macros...and it also ensures you'll hit your macros, which isn't always easy to do when you're winging it. (It's sad to get to the end of the day, have X amount of calories left, and they need to be all protein and fat to reach your minimums. Well, okay, "sad" may not be the right word...but it can be challenging.)

And if you're having trouble reaching your 1200 net, I suggest eating more calorie dense food. Falling short of 1200 consistently is *not* a good thing. Undereating leads to a number of problems, from long-term adherence to decreased energy. Fortunately, your pre-logging idea is a way of dealing with that. Good luck.