Is 1200 really the minimum?

Thank you all for the advice, but again, mixed information. I have been bumping up my calories quite a bit and lifting weights. But the things about just lifting weights and all: I've been told time and time again, as well read, that if you don't diet to lose weight and burn off those areas that fat is present, regardless of where/how little it is, you are not going to see any kind of muscle definition because your muscle is going to stay hidden under your said fat. For me, I want to look lean and possibly have abs. I'm not out to go a body builder route or anything.

I've even watched videos by well-known professionals/body builders and the like that say you're not going fix any fat problem unless you cut calories and exercise consistently.

As for protein; I'm getting plenty of it. Most of my meals consist of lean (I despise/gag on fatty meats regardless, so it works) chicken or turkey, sometimes beef, as the main dish. And I've been eating one or two (depending) 20g protein bars every other day. Even my go-to low cal snack is 1 or 2 oz of turkey jerky.

It's true that your transition would be very slow. But you can recomp by eating at or close to maintenance and lifting. Over the past year my weight has stayed the same but I've lost 2 pants sizes.

If you've got weight to lose then the best approach imo is to eat at a small deficit and lift. But if you're already bordering on too light then recomping is a good strategy.

When you say "plenty" of protein what does that mean? How many grams? And how many grams of fat?

If you want to look lean you need to preserve your muscle. Even if you don't think you want to look like a body builder, you still most likely want to look fit, especially if you're thinking you might like to have abs. These two guys have about the same amount of fat. But they look vastly different because one has more muscle.

The subjects of the Minnesota Starvation Study ate 1570 calories a day with only 3 miles of walking each day as their exercise. At your age, you should definitely be eating far more than 1200 calories.

Yes, and I'd encourage you (OP) to read what happened to them.

Among the conclusions from the study was the confirmation that prolonged semi-starvation produces significant increases in depression, hysteria and hypochondriasis as measured using the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. Indeed, most of the subjects experienced periods of severe emotional distress and depression.[1]:161 There were extreme reactions to the psychological effects during the experiment including self-mutilation (one subject amputated three fingers of his hand with an axe, though the subject was unsure if he had done so intentionally or accidentally).[5] Participants exhibited a preoccupation with food, both during the starvation period and the rehabilitation phase. Sexual interest was drastically reduced, and the volunteers showed signs of social withdrawal and isolation.[1]:123–124 The participants reported a decline in concentration, comprehension and judgment capabilities, although the standardized tests administered showed no actual signs of diminished capacity. There were marked declines in physiological processes indicative of decreases in each subject’s basal metabolic rate (the energy required by the body in a state of rest), reflected in reduced body temperature, respiration and heart rate. Some of the subjects exhibited edema in their extremities, presumably due to decreased levels of plasma proteins given that the body's ability to construct key proteins like albumin is based on available energy sources.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minnesota_Starvation_Experiment

With the extremely low amount of cals you are eating you could very well be losing at a 50/50 ratio of fat to lean muscle. That is why your body shape does not seem to be changing. If you had been eating at a smaller deficit and lifting heavy weights you could have preserved more of your lean muscle mass. So, let's say your stomach is an issue and you've got some extra fat there, if your shoulders and chest had gotten bigger through lifting heavy weights the extra fat at the midsection is not going to be as noticeable. Plus, by keeping your lean muscle you are keeping your metabolism burning at a higher rate. By actually adding muscle all of the benefits would be even greater. If you want to lose weight, yes, you need to be at a deficit. But, you have already said you don't need to lose weight, you just want to lose fat. You can do that by eating at maintenance and lifting heavy weights. That's the truth. There is no controversy about that. You are applying things that people have said to people who are not in your situation. You don't need to lose weight. So, don't . Eat at maintenance and lift heavy weights.