How is 1200 Calories working for you?

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fitnwhole
fitnwhole Posts: 227
in Health and Weight Loss
Do you feel deprieved? How do you stretch them (calories)?
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  • modernfemme
    modernfemme Posts: 454 Member
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    Couldn't do it. I had to be perfect every day and there was no room for fun. That's just me personally.
  • vkpmusic
    vkpmusic Posts: 343 Member
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    I find that when I eat fiber rich foods and higher protein I'm fine. When I eat higher carbs, I'm hungry.
  • sheila1951
    sheila1951 Posts: 2
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    My doctor said to not go below 1500 calories a day....1200 is just too hard to do and you DO feel deprived. When I feel that way I just eat more!
  • jazzie1030
    jazzie1030 Posts: 1
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    its working ok for me so far... i usually go over because my workouts give me extra calories.
  • Dom82
    Dom82 Posts: 235
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    I actually have a hard time reaching 1200 calories a day :blushing: And i pretty much eat what i want just watch my portion size. but i love salads so i find it easy :)
  • Centerstagekris
    Centerstagekris Posts: 57
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    I was doing 1200 a day when i had my goal set to lose 2 pounds a week. I couldn't do it. It was too low and I felt hungry. I changed my goal to lose 1 1/2 pounds a week and now can eat 1390. Those 190 extra calories make a big difference to me for some reason. Haha. Good luck!! :o)
  • jenneyd
    jenneyd Posts: 308 Member
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    oh I work out to take care of my calories, otherwise I would be over nearly every day!
  • tjreyes
    tjreyes Posts: 2
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    1200 is too low, you're bordering the line that drives your body into starvation and slows your metabolism (at least that's the line for me according to this site). I rarely have time or breakfast, so my lunch and dinner are usually 700 each and that keeps me energized enough with a snack somewhere in the day. I usually do about 1500-1600. When I go too hard on myself I end up relapsing into constant over eating.
  • KcFitCoach
    KcFitCoach Posts: 135 Member
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    I was given 1200 calories a day with my goals, too. On days I work out hard I can handle it (and I do eat my 'earned' calories). On days without exercise (I'm trying to only take one day off a week)...like today...I feel kind of hungry!
  • ZacFields
    ZacFields Posts: 62 Member
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    Well I have to eat 1,500 at least since I am a male (my goal is actually about 2,000), but my fiance is eating around 1,400. I made her change from 2 pounds to 1 pound per week because I wasn't comfortable with her using 1,200 as a goal.

    But I will say this: There are many days where I have to struggle just to get UP to 1,500 calories. Here is a quick analysis of what I've eaten today....

    Breakfast: about 500 calories. I had a piece of sausage, some oatmeal, a banana, and a glass of milk. (this is a big breakfast for me).

    Lunch: I sauted some vegetables in 1 T of extra virgin olive oil. It was a BIG bowl full of veggies for about 200 calories.

    Afternoon: I went on a 1-mile jog and burned 150 calories.

    So there was my day before dinner. When dinner came around, I had a net of 550 calories, and that was with a breakfast about 200 calories more than I normally eat. If my goal were 1,200 calories, that'd leave me 650 calories for dinner.

    In short: find healthy alternatives that you can enjoy and you'll do great! I'm a 220 pound male and I could easily do 1,200 calories if I wanted to.
  • iamdesiderata
    iamdesiderata Posts: 95 Member
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    Lots of fiber and lean protein. You'll find you will naturally eat less. And eating 1200 calories worth of real and raw foods is SOOO much easier than eating 1200 calories of "Low-fat, Sugar-free diet foods."

    Hope this helps :)
  • cynthiaj777
    cynthiaj777 Posts: 787 Member
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    I do the 1200 calories a day, and I find that I'm overly fully most of the time. I have this no carb, all veggie, lean meat or seafood thing I do. A few months back it made me lose 20 lbs in 8 weeks. Doing no carb, you really have room for TONS of food. For example, you can eat your weight in asparagus but not be over your calories. You just have to pick the right things to eat. I'm doing the no carb, all veggie/lean meat/seafood diet again until Christmas. Since Halloween, I've packed on about 5 lbs. I'll be back down to my lowest by Christmas then enjoy the holiday without feeling like I'm slipping even more off the bandwagon. I'll probably try to keep up the strict diet at least until Valentine's Day or so....

    Just remember: if you pick low calorie food, meeting 1200 is easy. On my diet, I'm usually around 800-900 calories a day, and I've had PLENTY of food.
  • tammietifanie
    tammietifanie Posts: 1,496 Member
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    Lots and Lots of Veggies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They have fiber so it fills you up with little calories!
  • DeepSeaDoc_Wife
    DeepSeaDoc_Wife Posts: 112 Member
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    I am fine with it like some said eating raw food like a spinach salad with salmon, legumes, fruits and veggies. Eating whole grains, fiber rich and superfoods in general is what I eat and I feel great.
  • JaneZv
    JaneZv Posts: 200
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    Can't do 1200. But i have great admiration for those who can.

    I've been here for a month and usually hit 1200 by lunch, if i force myself to stay within such low calories i'll feel frustrated and deprived which is what i do not want, i want to change and maintain a healthy lifestyle! I used to eat at least 3000 calories a day now i maintain it at 1800. At 5'1" i could maintain my weight but will need to exercise to lose weight.
  • dwyadygwyad
    dwyadygwyad Posts: 46 Member
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    Ive only been at it a week, but it's been surprisingly ok...

    Since I'm trying for this not to be a "diet", I'm trying to eat how I'd like to eat forever, including days that I go over, as well as under. Haven't had too many "under" days in the past, so it's taking some getting used to.

    Plus things taste a lot better when I'm hungry, and it sometimes *not always- takes less to feel satisfied if I'm genuinely hungry, not just wanting to eat more.

    So I am going to go easy on myself when I go over 2,3, 400 calories, but I'm going to try not to go over as part of my daily routine.

    Also, I graze and pick a lot, so the lower calories have been helping me put myself in a mindset of if I'm going to eat something, I'm going to really eat it, not eat a little bit and pretend it didnt happen, which is where a lot of my calories come from.
  • jessicayoung82
    jessicayoung82 Posts: 157 Member
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    I find it not too bad on days when I workout but rest days like today I am constantly hungry because I was affraid of going over. I ended up at 1280 today so I didn't do bad, but was not satisfied all day until after dinner.
  • cbirdso
    cbirdso Posts: 465 Member
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    I can't do it, even for a few days. The minimum I can do and not feel deprived and hungry is 1400. Like another poster, for some reason the 200 extra makes all the difference in the world. Also, I get some form of exercise every day to the tune of at least 250 kcals so that usually I'm at least around 1650 and that has been working fine.
  • MaggieGiamalvo
    MaggieGiamalvo Posts: 397 Member
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    My daily goal base is 1200 calories. There are some days I have a hard time reaching 1200 and other days where I go way over that. On days that I go over, I just workout and the extra calories that I've eaten were burned off. Just make sure you're loading up on vegetables, fruits, whole grains and protein. Soups that are broth/water based are pretty filling, too. I just made a batch of turkey vegetable soup that's about 700 calories, 6 cups and plenty for a meal and a snack. Make sure to drink lots of water throughout the day. I'm finding out over the past 2 weeks that 8 cups of water isn't enough for me. I'm feeling dehydrated (hands are dry and cracking). I'm going to start upping that to 10 cups of water a day.

    And stay away from convenience foods/pre-packaged items! (I have a hard time with this, but I'm working on it.)
  • charmed2570
    charmed2570 Posts: 48
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    I try to eat ALOT of fiber, and I still have some non healthy stuff sometimes. I usually have a problem eating the 1200 a day. But, it is because if you eat the extreme fiber, you are so full all the time that you have to force yourself to eat usually by dinner. I recommend if your hungry eat more fiber, one trick I have learned is blueberries and blackberries will Kill any hunger pain, wash it down with water, and just give it a few and it works. Fiber is your best friend, try it!

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