Is it going to get easier?
Options
Replies
-
I've eaten at 1200 net calories for over three months and I've lost weight at a steady 6 lb per month. You can do it, but it takes careful planning:
First, don't drink anything with calories in it -- just water, tea, coffee.
Second, eat plenty of protein and fat because they help you feel satisfied for longer.
Third, there's very little room in a 1200 calorie diet for fruit and sweetened foods, because they'll use up calories and leave you hungry afterwards. Every bite you take has to be super-dense with nutrients so that your body's daily nutritional needs are met. Green leafy vegies, nut butter, meat, cheese, whole grains, yogurt, beans.
Fourth, budget your calories to last the whole day. Eat about five times a day so you don't have long starvation times.
Fifth, expect to be slightly hungry most of the time.
If you want to be more casual about what you eat, and leave room for a wide range of food choices without feeling hungry, then make a plan for more calories and slower weight loss. We're all different, and we each have to find the approach that makes us happy.0 -
You really have to be pedantic about the lifestyle/eating changes and stick with if for a very long time before it gets easier. (For me anyway) It was 9 months before I felt like I could do this without thinking so hard every second about what and how much I would eat.
I finally feel like I am in control now - but then again I was 61 when I started this change so my bad habits were very ingrained.
Be consistent and patient about weight loss - don't try to lose too much too soon or it's just not sustainable. Do whatever you can to make life changes not just quick changes.
I actually eat whatever I want as long as I log every bite and stay within my calorie deficit each day. I never do a weekly deficit because that leads to too many mistakes.
I also eat a huge variety of foods so that I am getting all the nutrients that I need from my food rather than from pills.
It has really worked for me. I am now down nearly 60lbs.
Good luck.0 -
LiveLaughLoveEat1 wrote: »I've eaten at 1200 net calories for over three months and I've lost weight at a steady 6 lb per month. You can do it, but it takes careful planning:
First, don't drink anything with calories in it -- just water, tea, coffee.
Second, eat plenty of protein and fat because they help you feel satisfied for longer.
Third, there's very little room in a 1200 calorie diet for fruit and sweetened foods, because they'll use up calories and leave you hungry afterwards. Every bite you take has to be super-dense with nutrients so that your body's daily nutritional needs are met. Green leafy vegies, nut butter, meat, cheese, whole grains, yogurt, beans.
Fourth, budget your calories to last the whole day. Eat about five times a day so you don't have long starvation times.
Fifth, expect to be slightly hungry most of the time.
If you want to be more casual about what you eat, and leave room for a wide range of food choices without feeling hungry, then make a plan for more calories and slower weight loss. We're all different, and we each have to find the approach that makes us happy.
why not (to the bolded part).
Because drinking calories isnt going to make you feel full, and it will be harder to sick to your calorie goal. If feeling full isnt an issue, you can go ahead and do it, but if you are always feeling hungry you should use the calories for more food.0 -
1200 works for me and I haven't been exercising. It isn't the amount you eat, it's WHAT you are eating.0
-
I'm going to second all that except I'd add fiber to #2.I've eaten at 1200 net calories for over three months and I've lost weight at a steady 6 lb per month. You can do it, but it takes careful planning:
First, don't drink anything with calories in it -- just water, tea, coffee.
Second, eat plenty of protein and fat because they help you feel satisfied for longer.
Third, there's very little room in a 1200 calorie diet for fruit and sweetened foods, because they'll use up calories and leave you hungry afterwards. Every bite you take has to be super-dense with nutrients so that your body's daily nutritional needs are met. Green leafy vegies, nut butter, meat, cheese, whole grains, yogurt, beans.
Fourth, budget your calories to last the whole day. Eat about five times a day so you don't have long starvation times.
If you want to be more casual about what you eat, and leave room for a wide range of food choices without feeling hungry, then make a plan for more calories and slower weight loss. We're all different, and we each have to find the approach that makes us happy.
I deleted #5 because I'm not hungry most of the time. Some mornings I hate waiting for breakfast, but other than that, I'm not hungry.
0 -
I eat 1200 calories a day and I'm never hungry. I eat clean (I'm OCD like that) so I sometimes have to force the food down my throat to reach 1200. I don't use sugar (I never really did). I eat oatmeal, farina, egg whites, chicken breast, fish, tofu, beans, olive oil, fruit, veggies, hummus, greek yogurt, yams, high protein shakes. Generally speaking, I follow a bodybuilders diet. I also eat 5 meals a day. I think your issue is the quality of calories and also the time between meals. If you eat 5-6 meals/snacks 2.5 to 3 hours apart, you will likely not be hungry. And also, I OD on water (so much so that I go to the little girls room ever friggin' 15 minutes). No hunger here. I also do cardio and strength training 5x a week. I've been successful doing this in the past but sabatoged myself when I broke my ankle and gained a ton of weight back in a very short amount of time. I'm sure some would say I should eat more but I'm OK at this point. I have to actually force myself to wake up early on weekends (not working) to start eating to get in my 1200 calories. And I log, weigh and make EVERYTHING myself (OCD, hehehe).0
-
I'm 5'5", 36, I've lost 81 pounds and I've never eaten less than 1600. I guess it depends on how active you are though, but if it's too little food... move more.
It's still not 'easy', don't get me wrong, but much easier than 1200 calories - there's no way I could do that.0 -
You have had enough people tell you that you need to eat more that I think you've got the picture, by now. Once you get THAT worked out it will be easier, but not easy. I found that after the first 30 days of eating better, logging everything and exercising on an almost daily basis, it became much easier. Like a habit. Like brushing your teeth or combing your hair. I also set myself small goals. I had 75 lbs total to lose. I set my goals in 10lb increments and every time I hit one I got a non-food treat. Manicures. Movie out alone. Concert tickets for me and hubs. New video game. You get the picture. Each goal was a reason to celebrate and I did. Also, after your body adjusts to eating fewer calories at each stage, you don't feel as hungry any more. That lasts a little bit and then you go through it again. I lost my weight at a rate of 1 lb a week because I want to KEEP it off and it gave me time to adjust to healthy new habits. Now that I have less than 10lbs to lose I changed it to lose .5 lbs a week. It will take longer, but it isn't a race. I want my weight loss to be permanent or what's the point? Hope this helps.
0 -
I had a problem with the 1200 calorie count but made sure that what I ate was good calories and I started using the 21 day fix and yu know what it took the guess work out of measuring and thinking about 1200 calories. I have lost 10lbs since I started using it. I have to have knee surgery so I have not been able to use the exercise dvd but it is working. Eat every 2-3 hours. Nothing after 8. Drink your water
0 -
Are you sure you calculated your calories right? It sounds low. But could be right....I'm 5'8 and active, so I always gasp at 1200 calories.
Better food choices, drinking enough water, getting enough sleep, reducing stress, increasing exercise, and letting your body adjust to your new lifestyle will help make things feel easier. It is still work, but it gets easier once you figure some of those things out.
I have found my body tends to throw a temper-tantrum for a few days when I change something on it. For instance I'm dealing with a back injury and the lack of exercise for the past week has made me miserable.
Best of luck, you can do it!!!0 -
I'm not active at all, and I don't see that changing. I never really got into the idea of exercising to earn calories. It's a slippery slope for me.
Thanks for all the wonderful advice, everyone. I bumped my calorie limit to 1325 for the day and I'm feeling a lot better today 0 -
If you do TDEE ..look at the activity settings. Move more..eat more.. that's my advice. That's the main reason i exercise so much so i can eat more. 1200 a day sucks.0
-
LiveLaughLoveEat1 wrote: »why not (to the bolded part).
Because someone who is overly hungry trying to maintain 1,200 calories a day doesn't have wiggle room to consume things that aren't filling.LiveLaughLoveEat1 wrote: »well, like most people, if I want a soda during the day, I'll fit it into my calories.
That's great for you, but you're not the one making a thread about how you spend all day starving on 1,200 calories.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.7K Introduce Yourself
- 43.5K Getting Started
- 259.7K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.6K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 394 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.7K Motivation and Support
- 7.8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.3K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 943 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.3K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions