Only 400 cal for dinner??

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PeachyDoLL27
PeachyDoLL27 Posts: 4 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So I've been trying to cut my intake the last couple of days and found that even though I try to eat low calories or "healthier", I still have only 400 calories left for dinner.. then end up going over. I've been having cereal for breakfast and sandwich for lunch with snacks in between. Any advice or meal/snacks suggestions on how to cut calories? I'm ending up with 1900+ cal/day even when I think i'm doing good..
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  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
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    What do you normally have for dinner now? Can you just have smaller portion sizes of what you're having now? And what are your dietary restrictions? Vegan, paleo, low carb, no dairy, etc. etc. etc.

    For 400 calorie dinner, you could fill have your plate with vegies, then a quarter of it with meat, and the last quarter with a starch like sweet potato or lentils. I also like stew for dinner. Huge bowl, little calories. BIG spinach salad with grilled chicken. Depends on what kinds of food you like.

    edit for spelling
  • JAMtwinsmom
    JAMtwinsmom Posts: 6
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    A lot of times if I know that I want a certain meal for dinner I will add it to myfitnesspal diary in the morning. This way I have already accounted it for the day when deciding what I want for lunch. Just helps me, especially on nights when its something special happening or I have to eat out.
  • LaurenBrooke1843
    LaurenBrooke1843 Posts: 73 Member
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    I eat a ton during the day and I only eat around 400 lol (definitely don't reccomend this btw, I have issues) it's all about your choices!

    Do you like peanut butter? PB2 is amazing! A normal day for me would be something like:
    Breakfast- egg whites, turkey sausage link, 35-calorie slice of toast
    Lunch- PB&J sandwich with 35-calorie bread, sugar free jelly, and PB2
    Dinner- HUGE salad with 2-3oz of chicken, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, reduced fat feta cheese

    That keeps me around 400-450, so to hit a healthy goal you could multiply that times 4 and be good!
    Think of foods you like and figure out the lowest possible calorie options to make it. Zucchini noodles with spaghetti sauce are really amazing too btw! ;)
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
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    400 calories is my usual dinner. I like to eat most of my calories early and my typical dinner is a piece of lean meat and steamed vegetables. You could also change up lunch by wrapping your sandwich filling in lettuce instead of bread. For breakfast I have found an egg on a piece of whole wheat toast or cottage cheese and fruit to be way more filling than cereal and therefore I have decreased my snacking. You can do it.
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
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    400 for dinner is a good bit. Salad with a little light dressing/2% cheese and plenty of greens, etc. is easily 100-125 or less. And bulky. 4-6 ounces lean meat is another 150-200. Add another veggie. Cauliflower & zucchini steamed or baked w/ parmesan cheese and seasonings is awesome.

    For the sandwich, 200 calories is high for the bread. Personally I use a light white or wheat bread that is in the range of 35-45 calories per slice. Be sure to weigh them though, because they're often 10% more grams than they're supposed to be. Avoid mayo, go for mustard or use a light mayo.

    You could switch to fat free milk/breakfast. Be sure and weigh your banana. I eat lots of fruit for snacks. Sometimes cheese, protein bar.
  • CariJean64
    CariJean64 Posts: 297 Member
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    A lot of times if I know that I want a certain meal for dinner I will add it to myfitnesspal diary in the morning. This way I have already accounted it for the day when deciding what I want for lunch. Just helps me, especially on nights when its something special happening or I have to eat out.

    I do this, too, and it works quite well.
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,647 Member
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    I like to eat at NIGHT!! Breakfast is wheat toast with 1/4 Hass avocado, lunch is a low calorie protein shake. I will usually snack late in the afternoon w/ Trader Joe's sesame melba crackers and laughing cow cheese wedge. The point being - I have calories to spend at night. Exercise helps to "buy" you more calories, too (I'm sure you already knew that. But, hey, a brisk walk around the block before dinner could add a few more calories to your plate.)
  • ka97
    ka97 Posts: 1,984 Member
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    -To help "budget" your calories better, you could plan out all your meals for the day, and pre-log them. You can always edit later if something changes, but this will give you an idea if everything fits into your calorie goal. If you have a higher calorie dinner in mind, then you'll know how much you need to cut out of the rest of your meals.
    -Eat lots of veggies! If you can make half your meal veggies, then you can fill up for a lot less calories. When I make something with rice or pasta, I try to cut the serving size in half, and replace it with vegetables. I still get that filling bowl of food, but a lot less calories. For a snack try a piece of string cheese or a hard boiled egg with some raw cucumbers or peppers or broccoli. Or raw vegetables with hummus or even guacamole.
    -I did peek at your diary, and it looks like you've only been logging consistently for the last few days. Take some time to just focus on logging everything and making that a habit. It's hard to know what to change until you have an accurate baseline. Make sure you are weighing your food with a kitchen scale (don't rely on measuring cups for anything other than liquid). Once you have a week or two of consistent logging, go back through your diary and think critically about what you could eliminate or reduce, and what you are willing to eliminate or reduce. Could you cut back on the mayo on your sandwich? Cut out some of the meat or the cheese? Try a different bread (Arnold deli thins - 100 calories - love them!!!). Switch to nonfat milk in your cereal?
    -I'm not even close to perfect, and I certainly have off days, but I do average about 1600 calories. My diary is open if you would like to some ideas. Sometimes you just have to experiment with different flavors and combinations to find what works for you. As I've said, veggies are great. At least half my grocery cart is fresh produce, and I spend Sunday evening chopping all my veggies so they are ready to go for the week.
  • Swiftlet66
    Swiftlet66 Posts: 729 Member
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    Looked at your diary for the past few days; I suggest cutting down (or eating smaller portions) of your current snacks or swapping your snacks for something with larger quantities and lower calories and saving more calories for your meals, especially at night since most people tend towards a habit of bigger meals at night. That or at least pre-logging all meals and snacks and stick to it. As for me, what works is that I pre-log most meals with no snacks in between. I used to be a constant grazer/snacker but I realized I wasn't actually hungry at times and other times, I found that I was eating too little at meal times. But eating this way now has helped me keep my calories in check. Hope this helps!
  • bcerk
    bcerk Posts: 41
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    Try using unsweetened vanilla almond milk for your cereal in the morning. I promise you won't regret the swtich. So delicious. I agree with everyone else about the bread. Look for the 45 calorie whole wheat bread. I just started using it and love it! It's nothing like the good, 12-grain stuff, but it works! if you miss the denseness of the orowheat bread, try toasting the 45 calorie bread. So good!
  • PeachyDoLL27
    PeachyDoLL27 Posts: 4 Member
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    thanks for the tips all. I'll focus on:
    1) Cutting my snacks and eating more veggies/fruits for snacks
    2) Switching to almond milk for my cereal
    3) Looking into 40 cal bread .. didn't even know they had that stuff
    4) Eating veggies for dinner

    Let me know if there's anything else I should work on .. thanks guys! :)
  • pinkraynedropjacki
    pinkraynedropjacki Posts: 3,027 Member
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    Only 400 cal? My dinner is about 100 cal on the days I eat. Veggies and chilli
  • gromithere
    gromithere Posts: 172 Member
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    Another option is to use a lower calorie tortilla at lunch and make it a wrap, which would essentially cut your "bread" calories in half. Other suggestions may be to look for some lower calorie options for cheese and mayo.

    My food diary is open if you want some ideas. Now, I keep much more simple on my meals, but it could still give you some things that may work for you. :)
  • nicsflyingcircus
    nicsflyingcircus Posts: 2,483 Member
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    My dinner is 479 cal tonight (pre-logged) counting:

    170g broccoli
    115g(1 serving) tomato and cucumber salad
    122g(raw) petite sirloin steak
    8oz fat free milk
    7g spreadable butter

    200g mixed strawberries and raspberries
    5 tbsp sugar-free cool-whip

    Not counting the "desert" it comes in under 400.... 343 to be exact, lol.

    I had to fiddle with it, dropped the starch I planned on after I went out for lunch with a group of friends. Still, the above I find super filling!
  • joepage612
    joepage612 Posts: 179 Member
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    I know this sounds horriable but lean cuisines are around 250-350 calories. I use those if i don't have enough calories left in the day and don't want to measure-count-calculate dinner.
  • errollmaclean
    errollmaclean Posts: 562 Member
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    A lot of times if I know that I want a certain meal for dinner I will add it to myfitnesspal diary in the morning. This way I have already accounted it for the day when deciding what I want for lunch. Just helps me, especially on nights when its something special happening or I have to eat out.

    I do the same. Veggies (I use frozen for convenience) are very low calorie and they are really filling.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
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    I like to save or earn 700-800 calories for dinner. I would rather be a little hungry mid-morning and not snack than eat a petite dinner.

    My avg breakdown:

    Breakfast: 100-150
    Lunch: 500-600
    Mid-afternoon snack: 90-150
    Dinner: 700-800

    My daily calorie goal is 1,570. Some days I skip my snack. I find that coffee and tea (no sweeteners/cream) really help me make it from breakfast to lunch.
  • Numberwang22
    Numberwang22 Posts: 213 Member
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    It's possible to make a very decent portion of veg curry for less than 175 cals per portion and have a small bit of rice or fish with it. I eat like that most evenings and no issues being hungry!!
  • TimTomakin
    TimTomakin Posts: 23 Member
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    So I've been trying to cut my intake the last couple of days and found that even though I try to eat low calories or "healthier", I still have only 400 calories left for dinner.. then end up going over. I've been having cereal for breakfast and sandwich for lunch with snacks in between. Any advice or meal/snacks suggestions on how to cut calories? I'm ending up with 1900+ cal/day even when I think i'm doing good..

    Cut out the cake and BBQ peanuts you have every night.
  • Rita619
    Rita619 Posts: 4
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    Think outside the box for breakfast - you don't have to eat cereal. Try a hard boiled egg or egg white omelette with tons of veggies in it. Eat a side of fruit and a mini baby bel cheese. Add more protein to meals helps keep full longer.

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