1200 calories

miss_melissa_
miss_melissa_ Posts: 70
edited September 24 in Health and Weight Loss
Hi Everyone,

I am brand new to the site but I have been doing the 1200 calorie diet for a few days. I am dieting and seeing a personal trainer 3x a week.The only problem is, I often feel hungry when I go to sleep. Should I up my calories? I am desperately trying to loose weight but the lack of food is giving me headaches. I am also not use to cooking. Is frozen food such as healthy choice and lean cuisine bad? Any advice is welcomed!

Replies

  • tritta01
    tritta01 Posts: 311
    Are you eating back any of your exercise calories? Try having a healthy snack, such as fruit or almonds. There was a post on here that a lady quit eating frozen meals and lost a bunch of weight in 6days from the sodium the frozen meals are PACKED with lots of sodium.
  • girliegirl1822
    girliegirl1822 Posts: 164 Member
    bump
  • eillamarie
    eillamarie Posts: 862 Member
    Well, fresh is always best. But I live alone so frozen veggie and fruit mix bags are ideal for me. Lean Cuisines are better than those Hungry Man Dinners and also better than whatever junk we all used to eat lol 1,200 calories would be WAY to low for somebody like me (see my stats in my "signature")...either try moving your supper a little bit later, or have a low cal snack 1-3 hours before bed (if it's less than 2 hours make sure it's really low fat or you'll store it all).
  • tritta01
    tritta01 Posts: 311
    Here is the post I mentioned above, search it and see the difference it made. TOPIC: The effects of watching my sodium...
  • karen415
    karen415 Posts: 55
    no they are not bad once in a while, however if you look at the sodium it is alot. try more veggies steamed, it will fill you up and you will stay under your calories and feel better drink a glass of water before each meal and along with it. Steaming vegtables takes around the same amount of time as the lean cusines and those frozen dinners, you can even buy veggies in steamer bags and put in microwave as well if you take it with you to work or what ever. they are yummy. good luk
  • Mrsbonno
    Mrsbonno Posts: 38 Member
    Frozen meals are LOADED with sodium. so be careful with those. If you are feeling hungry, listen to your body. If you stay hungry, you could put yourself in starvation mode and your body will start to PUT ON weight, not shed it! I LOVE APPLES! High fiber fruits and veggies are a great way for you to feel full without a ton of calories.
  • iamanne
    iamanne Posts: 67
    Looking at your diary, you are clearly not eating enough. You do not seem to be eating your exercise calories and on some days far below the 1200. You need to eat more for sure. Count your exercise calories and then eat them. You will feel so much better and be so much healthier. :flowerforyou:
  • eating4balance
    eating4balance Posts: 743 Member
    Healthy Choice and Lean Cuisines are not necessarily unhealthy a few times a week, but they are extremely high in sodium, and somewhat small in portion sizes. However, they are mostly lower than 300 calories so they are good for weight loss.

    As for the headaches, those should go away soon, but I would try to up your water drinking (I found that helped a lot when losing weight).

    For feeling hungry, maybe you need to space out your meals better, and have one of your snacks about an hour before you go to bed. Also, look at the quality of the food that you are eating. For example, an apple is much more filling than 2 oreos, but they still have the same amount of calories.

    I hope I helped!
  • ratkaj
    ratkaj Posts: 166 Member
    After taking a look at your diary, you aren't eating all of your calories. You seem to be a few hundred under most days.... this is sending you body into starvation mode and you will have a very very very hard time losing weight. Once you do lose weight, you will start gaining again once you go back to eating like normal. You need to be eating your 1200 calories to be "healthy" and resist the urge to be under.

    If you are looking for ways to get closer, eating peanut butter is a good way to tack on some extra calories without filling up on carbs too much.

    Frozen meals are marketed to people that don't cook but the sodium is super high!! just making a chicken breast instead will save you boat loads of sodium in your daily intake.

    best of luck!!
  • shules82
    shules82 Posts: 23 Member
    I am not a nutritionist. But speaking from personal experience, I can assure you that extreme caloric reductions in the short term may provide fast results temporarily; yet, in the long run, they are not sustainable and usually result in "relapse". This is a vicious, demoralizing and unhealthy cycle.

    Using the tools on this site, I recommend you set a moderate weight loss goal (I.e. 1 lb per week), do three 45 min cardio sessions weekly (Leslie Sansone does WONDERS for me) and enjoy a healthy path to your ideal weight. You will enjoy the ride, feel great, and be MUCH more likely to stick with a healthy lifestyle change for life. Happy trails!! :)

    P.S. This is a big one: EAT YOUR EXCERCISE CALORIES! :)
  • janakcarlson
    janakcarlson Posts: 8
    If you're logging your personal training sessions and eating the calories that mfp is telling you, you should be ok.

    If you're feeling hungry maybe you could try eating more food, that has less calories. E.g. I pretty much just snack on raw veges constantly - carrot, celery, red capsicum, cucumber. When I have a main meal I try to fill up on protein (eggs, tofu, beans, seafood, meat) as this keeps you feeling fuller for A LOT longer than if you just eat carbs! Another tip would be to fill up on water or green tea!

    When I first started I thought I was starving on 1,200 calories too but it only took about a week for my stomach to shrink and feel full on what i'm eating now.

    To be honest, I couldn't stomach any frozen food personally but I know that some people love the convenience but tritta01 is right, they are full of sodium (and probably a lot of other nasties like preservatives). My best advice would be to just eat NOTHING that comes in a packet whenever possible! Veges, fruit and grains woo!
  • Ms_Natalie
    Ms_Natalie Posts: 1,030 Member
    Looking at your diary, you are clearly not eating enough. You do not seem to be eating your exercise calories and on some days far below the 1200. You need to eat more for sure. Count your exercise calories and then eat them. You will feel so much better and be so much healthier

    I agree!

    Also, try drinking water when you're feeling hungry..sometimes we can mistake thirst for hunger.

    Get those calories up though...starving your body will bring no positive results. :flowerforyou:
  • carollane
    carollane Posts: 39 Member
    yep you do have to watch the sodium level in the frozen meals. If you are feeling that hungry you may need to up your calories. It depends on your height, current weight and your goal weight. Just think of the calories you would normally consume when you are not on a diet. Any reduction is a plus for weight lose!! If you are starving yourself your body will hold on to the pounds. Hope this helps. You can do this!!!:flowerforyou:
  • carollane
    carollane Posts: 39 Member
    yep you do have to watch the sodium level in the frozen meals. If you are feeling that hungry you may need to up your calories. It depends on your height, current weight and your goal weight. Just think of the calories you would normally consume when you are not on a diet. Any reduction is a plus for weight lose!! If you are starving yourself your body will hold on to the pounds. Hope this helps. You can do this!!!:flowerforyou:
  • jen31889
    jen31889 Posts: 121
    It will get a ton easier as time goes on. My first week of 1200 calories, I was starving. I'm 3 weeks in and can barely force myself to get there usually.
  • miss_melissa_
    miss_melissa_ Posts: 70
    Thanks so much everyone. I am trying to get eat 1200 without over eating. it is hard for me. I am learning to cook so hopefully those frozen meals will be decreasing soon. I appreciate all of the great advice.
  • neyes67
    neyes67 Posts: 161 Member
    Definitely need to increase your caloric intake and eat back some if not all of your exercise calories on some days if not every day. You may want to also consider increasing the amount of water you're drinking daily to at least 8 glasses per day for starters and watch your sodium intake. Frozen meals and some Chinese foods, expecially fried rice, can also be high in sodium, hence the need to drink more water. I've reduce my sodium intake to below 1500 although I'm allowed 2500 and drink at least 10 glasses of water per day and I definitely noticed a difference in my results.
  • sbcadam
    sbcadam Posts: 1
    When you get hungry, especially when you are working out, you MUST eat. Your metabolism has increased and 1200 calories may not be enough to rebuild your muscles or recuperate as a whole. Speak with you personal trainer about protein intake, amino acids, and different foods they eat and/or recommend.If you are doing the 1200 calorie diet then it would be in your best interest to do it right, which is by making the meals yourself and getting rid of that sodium. Try to eat periodically throughout the day, maybe like every two or three hours. Try fruit, nuts, popcorn, rice cakes, dry cereal.....whatever you can. Mix it up so that you do not get tired of eating healthy.

    Good luck!
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