Alright people who supposedly get full on 1200, how do you do it?
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azulvioleta6 wrote: »LeslieB042812 wrote: »Okay, first of all, I also find it odd (and insulting) that so many people think it's impossible to be satisfied on 1200 calories. Of course, if you're 5'10 and active, then you'll be hungry on 1200 calories! But, as a 5'2" female, close to goal weight with a desk job I can absolutely feel full on 1100-1200 calories (and yes, that's with weighing in grams!) and that does not leave me with a huge weight loss, on average .5-.8 lbs/week. The first, and most important thing is for you to identify what makes sense FOR YOU. Don't pick 1200 calories because that seems like the fastest, most extreme way to lose and don't pick a higher calorie goal because people say that 1200 is crazy low.
With that said, to answer the OP's question, I did used to be starving on 1200 calories until I found the food combination and eating style that worked for me. Like WBB55 said, experiment and find what works for you because it is different for everyone. For me, whole foods that are full fat and high protein work best to fill me up, along with high volume foods. I discovered this when I played with going "Paleoish" for a month, following some of the principles of Paleo but not all and still measuring and tracking calories. I'm not a Paleo follower and I don't have any off limits foods now, but that month really helped me understand how filling avocado, chicken thighs and steak are, rather than chicken breast (which doesn't taste as good to me) but I used to eat because I grew up in the "low fat" crazy days. I learned that fat and protein help me feel full and refined carbohydrates do not (again, contrary to what I learned 20 years ago). Previously, when I was trying to "diet" to 1200 calories, I would eat a lot of 100 calorie packs of crackers, bread thins, and other "low fat" and those things would just make me hungrier.
So, what I eat now to feel full: soups (bone broth is awesome--high protein and low calorie) and salads for volume, meats, vegetables, fruits, greek yogurt, oatmeal, avocados, eggs, almonds, kashi bars (be careful with bars, look for high protein and high fiber), etc.
I am 5'10" and very active. I did 1200/day for several years. Yes, I am capable of tracking accurately.
People have different levels of hunger. Not everybody needs to eat like a pig. Some people have WAY more self-discipline than others. It is POSSIBLE to eat at that level if you want or need to do it. It does require careful pre-planning and it will not work if you are spending a lot of your calories on processed foods.
Lots of vegetables, lean proteins and some whole grains work well. Staying hydrated is also important.
What does that have to do with eating over 1200 calories? Is someone reaching for 1500-1800 instead of 1200 now eating like a pig?
When I started on here, I was only barely active. I exercised 3 times a week. I'm older, I'm short... yada yada.
I was on around 1200 calories. I was satisfied with that because it was enough food for someone with that activity level of my age.
Well, as I've lost weight, my health and fitness have improved. I exercise 6 days a week now. I lift 3 days and water jog 4-5 times a week for an hour. I get an average of 22,000 steps a day, and a good deal of them are at a brisk pace (most of them are done as purposeful exercise).
You'd better believe I've happily upped my caloric intake to fuel all that activity, because that activity is helping to fight a medical condition I have. I'm also losing weight more rapidly than before and might have to eat even more if it doesn't level out soon.
More calories isn't about gluttony, it's about energy.
I find the statement that prompted your question beneath comment.
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manymanymore wrote: »I do at least 300 cals worths of exercises a day. I would also eat a big plate of salad as lunch that is filling at maybe only 300 cals, adding normal breakfast (about 400 cals) and normal dinner (500 cals). I'll add about 200 - 300 cals of snacks, and then am not hungry throughout the day. The key is to add some exercises.
No the key is moderation and portion control, knowing how much you eat and eating less than you burn
And creating a deficit.
Now for a lot of people i would say dont go that low...why should you if you dont have too. I had to because of some medical issues
Some people are petite
But for losing fast???? nahhh just create a normal deficit so you are comfortable in your weight loss journey. Much better and helps you keep it up.
Exercise is only the add on...the extra you do.
But you can lose all your weight without exercising. Even with eating a higher amount of calories....as long as you eat less calories than you burn..that is the key!
Now i dont horayyyy not exercising because it sure helps out a lot...getting fitter. The feeling good etc and you can eat even a bit more.
But it is not the key to weight loss.
The recommendation MFP gave to me is 1200 cals per day, and that I will lose weight at a snail pace with that, so I have to add some exercises, or else I would have to think about food all day long, and that's not sustainable.
I am using Classpass to do exercises everyday, and walk while watching TV after dinner. I usually have deficit.0 -
foreverslim1111 wrote: »
I know its mostly water retention and find it's not to hard to get back off. It almost always happens when I'm on a trip or vacation. And now I'm going to look up rest. menus online before hand. Part of my problem is I adore salt. My favorite treat is chips. I love to cook so CICO is perfect for meforeverslim1111 wrote: »foreverslim1111 wrote: »Lest you think only small people eat 1200 cals per day - I'm 5'9" and I have been on 1200/day for the last 5 months and have lost about 16 lbs in that time. I started at 1400 cals/day and could not lose weight at all at that level. I get a gym workout 3 days/week and walk & lift free weights the off days. I have a feeling it has a lot to do with my age - 70. And most people that I know who are around my age have had to eat around 1200 - 1600 in order to either lose or maintain a normal body weight. If I eat just one big hefty (you might call it a normal size - say 600 cals) meal - the next day the scale jumps by 2 lbs.
I'm quite happy with my weight loss. I'm at 159 and my next goal is 150. I'm finally in my normal BMI range, thanks to my 1200 cals/day.
Do you weigh all your food on a scale?
Yes, and measure all liquids.
Just asking
But the 2lbs weight gain is water weight nothing to really worry about
I do know that salt is my killer in this matter
i eat low salt when i eat a bit to much ( above 1500mg a day) i gain too...but lose it right away again because it is water weight.
You only gain 1 pound when you eat 3500 calories SURPLUS. So dont think you ate 7000 calories plus the normal 1200 which isn't even your maintenance level.
But it seems like you are very sensitive like me.
oh me too
I love salty foods...crisps etc
jerky
But learned to stay away from it as much as possible..sometimes i have 10 crisps and they get logged..doesnt seem to harm me.
But going out is the biggest problem indeed
I cook from scratch ( was a former chef and owned a restaurant) love to cook. But used to the no salt. I use a lot of herbs and spices..which is good for the potassium intake which is always around 3000mg or higher for me.
But sometimes that is my graving...some crisps or other salty foods
I dont give in to it btw...not worth it.
I am easy going with that.
and when i want crisps i plan them...log them and eat them lol
It has to fit in my daily calorie allowance
this way i was never or rare hungry in the last 10 months. Ate all i wanted only less.
It is pretty simple to me and not hard at all.
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manymanymore wrote: »manymanymore wrote: »I do at least 300 cals worths of exercises a day. I would also eat a big plate of salad as lunch that is filling at maybe only 300 cals, adding normal breakfast (about 400 cals) and normal dinner (500 cals). I'll add about 200 - 300 cals of snacks, and then am not hungry throughout the day. The key is to add some exercises.
No the key is moderation and portion control, knowing how much you eat and eating less than you burn
And creating a deficit.
Now for a lot of people i would say dont go that low...why should you if you dont have too. I had to because of some medical issues
Some people are petite
But for losing fast???? nahhh just create a normal deficit so you are comfortable in your weight loss journey. Much better and helps you keep it up.
Exercise is only the add on...the extra you do.
But you can lose all your weight without exercising. Even with eating a higher amount of calories....as long as you eat less calories than you burn..that is the key!
Now i dont horayyyy not exercising because it sure helps out a lot...getting fitter. The feeling good etc and you can eat even a bit more.
But it is not the key to weight loss.
The recommendation MFP gave to me is 1200 cals per day, and that I will lose weight at a snail pace with that, so I have to add some exercises, or else I would have to think about food all day long, and that's not sustainable.
I am using Classpass to do exercises everyday, and walk while watching TV after dinner. I usually have deficit.
That all depends on how much you have to lose
Do you have medical issues, your age, sex and do you weigh all your food on a food scale
For most people 1200 calories is what they chose because they want to lose 2 pounds a week at least
but when you dont have much to lose it will be slower, and harder.
But weighing your food on a scale is the key were it all starts
What do you really eat?
From there it is indeed do you want to add exercise or not?
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You only gain 1 pound when you eat 3500 calories SURPLUS. So dont think you ate 7000 calories plus the normal 1200 which isn't even your maintenance level.
When I first started counting calories, I realized I was eating close to 10000 calories a day. I blame the pints of Ben and Jerrys and the pound of bacon with breakfast... =/0 -
btw i couldnt walk when i started
I had to build it up
I too burn now at least 300 calories a day through exercising. Because i want too...because i like it. I feel fitter and i am more active.
I started walking 2 to 5 minutes a day..some days i could some days i couldn't But i sticked to it because i wanted too.
Now every day at least 60 minutes of swimming and 30 to 60 minutes of walking and if i want and my leg holds up i even jog.
But without the exercise i lose the weight too when i started out
Now 10 months later, and doing exercise it helps for eating extra hehehehe0 -
You only gain 1 pound when you eat 3500 calories SURPLUS. So dont think you ate 7000 calories plus the normal 1200 which isn't even your maintenance level.
When I first started counting calories, I realized I was eating close to 10000 calories a day. I blame the pints of Ben and Jerrys and the pound of bacon with breakfast... =/
lolll wow but yeah i could eat a whole pound of ice cream if i want to.
To be fair i always ate very balanced and healthy
own garden organic food own egss and fruit etc
Still when you get injured like me and become from very active 7 days a week to totally sedentary and not be able to walk and not cutting back your food intake...you gain weight lol
I love milk and buttermilk but danggg that adds up when you drink 2 liters a day.( beside my food intake)
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During the weekdays I typically eat 1200-1300 per day and I am completely fine with it. Although I do this because I am trying to create a bigger deficit so that I can splurge on the weekends. When you include in the weekends I average 1550 calories per day. I've been doing this for four and a half months now and I consistently lose 2 pounds per week. It works for me because I like to go out to nice dinners on the weekends or to family gatherings and I can still eat what I want and still maintain my 7000 calorie per week deficit. When you are on a 1200 calorie day there typically is no room for any treats. Assuming you want to actually provide proper nutrients for your body. I simply do whole foods, fruits and vegitables...and a protein shake for breakfast. I do three equal size meals with fruit as my inbetween meal snacks. I do exercise 4-5 times a week and don't eat back my exercise calories. Over the last four months I have found that I need those high calorie weekends because I do like to eat out at high end restaurants. This weekend I am going to Vegas so I'm definatley going to be going over again. 1200-1300 days during the week helps me to be able to live the life I like to lead and still be able to lose the weight at the pace I want to.
that never worked for me
And not that it doesnt work but i fluctuate than...all water weight because the more salt intake too.
It seems my body likes the consistency.
It is also when i go out for dinner, i can bank all i want...keep my calories low and than go out so i can eat some more...but bamm 4 to 6 pounds ( yes ones even almost 10 in one week we went out twice) all water weight i lose it very quickly again..but sure enough my body dont want or like the salt. lol
Now i must say i have a medical issue that causes this. So i know it.
Sure I am probably retaining water because of high sodium on the weekend but I've been doing it since the start and so consistently I don't seem to notice anymore. I'm pretty sure you can only retain so much water anyways. I'm not really worried about water weight just the fat. If I ever go to a bikini contest I'll cut out the sodium for a week and probably drop 5 pounds really quick. 0 -
I don't feel hungry on 1200 .... I just crave some food
I use Indonesian rice for lunch ...it helps me feel full.... Of course boiled
I use oat flakes for breakfast .with skimed milk.... It often helps me feel full for about two hours then I have my snack
I used to add protein to my snack beside carbs e.g yogurt or boiled egg in addition to a fruit0 -
I've always been overweight. I was the fat kid in gym class that the teacher always tried to get to exercise. I remember having to run the mile in 3rd grade and throwing up everywhere because my fat little body just couldn't handle it.
I think that starting out healthy and getting fat would have been a much harder journey for me, because I would have went looking for every excuse possible. You look great, by the way!0 -
During the weekdays I typically eat 1200-1300 per day and I am completely fine with it. Although I do this because I am trying to create a bigger deficit so that I can splurge on the weekends. When you include in the weekends I average 1550 calories per day. I've been doing this for four and a half months now and I consistently lose 2 pounds per week. It works for me because I like to go out to nice dinners on the weekends or to family gatherings and I can still eat what I want and still maintain my 7000 calorie per week deficit. When you are on a 1200 calorie day there typically is no room for any treats. Assuming you want to actually provide proper nutrients for your body. I simply do whole foods, fruits and vegitables...and a protein shake for breakfast. I do three equal size meals with fruit as my inbetween meal snacks. I do exercise 4-5 times a week and don't eat back my exercise calories. Over the last four months I have found that I need those high calorie weekends because I do like to eat out at high end restaurants. This weekend I am going to Vegas so I'm definatley going to be going over again. 1200-1300 days during the week helps me to be able to live the life I like to lead and still be able to lose the weight at the pace I want to.
that never worked for me And not that it doesnt work but i fluctuate than...all water weight because the more salt intake too.
It seems my body likes the consistency.
It is also when i go out for dinner, i can bank all i want...keep my calories low and than go out so i can eat some more...but bamm 4 to 6 pounds ( yes ones even almost 10 in one week we went out twice) all water weight i lose it very quickly again..but sure enough my body dont want or like the salt. lol
Now i must say i have a medical issue that causes this. So i know it.
Sure I am probably retaining water because of high sodium on the weekend but I've been doing it since the start and so consistently I don't seem to notice anymore. I'm pretty sure you can only retain so much water anyways. I'm not really worried about water weight just the fat. If I ever go to a bikini contest I'll cut out the sodium for a week and probably drop 5 pounds really quick.
yeah well the problem with me is that my kidneys will shut down from al the salt my BP goes over 200 lol
and i feel miserable lol
so learned my lesson the hard way.
I stay away and be careful and this goes good now. BP is excellent for the last 6 months now. Better keep it that way
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When I first started on this site I too went for the 1200 calorie mark. Like many, I wanted this weight gone as fast as possible and being older and sedentary it was the number MFP gave me. For about the 1st 18 months all was OK....like others have said there is an inherent challenge to make sure you are getting the best bang for your buck with 1200.
For me I found that as I lost weight and increased my activity maintaining satiation and continuing to get the best out of my exercise was getting harder and I was getting very tired. That said I still continued for a very long time at 1200 - I fiddled with the macro levels and found that increasing protein wasn't the most helpful but increasing my carbs were. Maybe it was because of the type of exercise I was doing (stenuous bushwalking 6-8 hours at a time 3-4 times a week)....I found like another poster exercise killed my appetite, but I forced myself to eat back a portion of the calories because my body needed them even if my mind thought otherwise.
Experimentation with meal timing, frequency, macros are all worth a shot if you wish to continue and fell OK with the 1200 number.
If you can't find a sweet spot for the long term at 1200 look at other options - increasing your CO is certainly one way to go. Unlike another poster here has said eating at the 1200 mark does not make you a superior disciplined wonder woman neither does eating over this mark make you a "Pig"!!!!!
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btw when you do feel hungrier...which i have on rare occasions..i eat a frozen jello Again i like ice hehehe
But some frozen jello and drinking water helps me.0 -
I do 1200. TBH, the first few weeks were tough until my stomach/appetite shrunk a bit... but after that, just lots of leafy greens and veggies, some fruit, a few grains/starches, nonfat dairy, and lean protein. It's totally possible. And I weigh and measure everything. Down almost 50 lbs since May 1st with little to no exercise. Bottom line: do what works for you. Regular exercise is unsustainable for me right now, but diet is easy. It may be the opposite for some. Every body is different, but it all comes down to CICO.0
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@BWBTrish I am in awe of the pictures of your meals they really do look delicious
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HippySkoppy wrote: »When I first started on this site I too went for the 1200 calorie mark. Like many, I wanted this weight gone as fast as possible and being older and sedentary it was the number MFP gave me. For about the 1st 18 months all was OK....like others have said there is an inherent challenge to make sure you are getting the best bang for your buck with 1200.
For me I found that as I lost weight and increased my activity maintaining satiation and continuing to get the best out of my exercise was getting harder and I was getting very tired. That said I still continued for a very long time at 1200 - I fiddled with the macro levels and found that increasing protein wasn't the most helpful but increasing my carbs were. Maybe it was because of the type of exercise I was doing (stenuous bushwalking 6-8 hours at a time 3-4 times a week)....I found like another poster exercise killed my appetite, but I forced myself to eat back a portion of the calories because my body needed them even if my mind thought otherwise.
Experimentation with meal timing, frequency, macros are all worth a shot if you wish to continue and fell OK with the 1200 number.
If you can't find a sweet spot for the long term at 1200 look at other options - increasing your CO is certainly one way to go. Unlike another poster here has said eating at the 1200 mark does not make you a superior disciplined wonder woman neither does eating over this mark make you a "Pig"!!!!!
Very good point about experimenting with meal timing and macros. When I was still doing 1200 calories, I found intermittent fasting with a small window and adjusting my macros really got me past a period of feeling very, very hungry.
One interesting thing I found was that when I first started dieting, I thought I was a volume eater. I always ate a fairly high amount of protein, and I sacrificed fat to be able to fill up on masses and masses of veggies to satisfy that whole volume requirement.
Then I hit that hunger wall and something had to give.
I scaled back on both the protein and veggies (just in somewhat small increments) to allow for more fat calories, and found that really helped with my hunger. It turns out that I am not a volume eater after all.
Different macro balances will work best for different people, and different macros sate different people best.
For everyone doing 1200 calories, it pays to experiment a bit to find something workable for them.
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HippySkoppy wrote: »@BWBTrish I am in awe of the pictures of your meals they really do look delicious
ty i love to make photos of all my foods. Do it daily and post them lol
Weird hobby, but fun
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@PeachyCarol I couldn't agree more.....
Can I ask what sort of fats did you introduce that helped you. I am asking due to now time tinkering with macros myself.
Hope the question isn't taken as a thread derailment!!!0 -
Well, I'm an ovo-lacto vegetarian, so the first thing I did was to switch from non-fat dairy to fattier versions. I still eat 2% Greek yogurt since I can't find the full-fat version around here, and even if I could, I don't think I'd be happy with the ratio of protein for calories that I'd get. My cottage cheese is full fat.
I used to eat a cup of both Greek yogurt and cottage cheese, now I eat 3/4 cup and feel just as sated (of course, this is measured in grams when I go to serve myself).
I started adding 5-10 grams of butter to my veggie servings.
I found out that 1/4 of an avocado is usually about 60 calories and can easily work its way into my salads.
I stopped using cooking spray with my roasted veggies and started tossing them with a little olive oil.
Just small changes like that to incorporate more fat.
I still eat lower fat cheeses of some types due to preference, though, but they are still a source of fat.0 -
I can do 1200 a day consistently, I wasn't logging for months and started recently and found I was at 1175 consistently and have since bumped it up to 1200-1300 a day, I have plenty of energy now, never drink coffee or energy drinks like I used to and can go longer and harder than I used to, long story short protein is key. My typical day has 95-110g of protein, less than 56g of fat, 100-210% on iron and vitamins, carbs are usually around 90-110g there normally close to protein. All that from 1200-1300 cals a day. I have 3 eggs with sliced lunch meat in it scrambled every morning, than protein bars and some fruits or vegetables later in the day, After breakfast I eat every 2-3 hours depending on how hungry I am, it doesn't fully cure the hunger but takes the edge off to make me forget about it. At my heaviest weight I would fix 4 blocks of Ramon noodles, 4-5 slices of sliced lunch meat or 2-3 sliced hotdogs, 3-4 slices of cheese and I would fix all that together and eat it in one sitting, lol how many cals was that? I prob wouldn't want to know0
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