On 1200 calories, meals and other tips?

gonnadoityeah
gonnadoityeah Posts: 22 Member
edited November 24 in Success Stories
Hello! Ashley here, 24 female, 5'8 and currently 188. My goal is 125/135 or whenever I feel most comfortable again. I'm currently working out, p90x2, and work a sit down medical job.
Looking for friends tips, and recipes to stay in my 1200 calorie goal.
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Replies

  • kratschie
    kratschie Posts: 30 Member
    Try to eat clean. No sugary beverage. I personally think 1200 calories is under your basal metabolism.
  • gonnadoityeah
    gonnadoityeah Posts: 22 Member
    Maybe, I'm taking it slow and listening to my body just to make sure. If it's too low, I'll be increasing it.
  • jb32hss
    jb32hss Posts: 23 Member
    Feel free to add me. I tend to stay at or under 1200 each day and eat normal people meals not rabbit food
  • jb32hss
    jb32hss Posts: 23 Member
    And my diary is open to view. Jen
  • hdawood85
    hdawood85 Posts: 25 Member
    Few suggestions:
    -lean meats (maybe grilled).
    -fat free dairy
    -low fat / low sodium snacks (crackers and protein bars)
    -healthy fats (almonds)
    -vegitables and fruits (fresh and steamed)
    -cut sodas and greasy snacks. Minimize unhealthy food, but if you have to, eat as little as possible
    -keep logging your food to keep track of your progress!
  • amynb524
    amynb524 Posts: 73 Member
    edited September 2015
    .
  • bluedelrey55
    bluedelrey55 Posts: 21 Member
    Eat things for breakfast that are filling like oatmeal and other fiber filled foods. That will help you from crashing and binging during the day. When you feel hungry drink water and wait 5. If you are still hungry eat a flavorless snack like some almonds.
  • sfinsc
    sfinsc Posts: 169 Member
    I'm also on 1200 cals except for the days I exercise and can do it quite comfortably. Feel free to view my diary. I eat a lot of fish and whole wheat pasta. I also eat a good bit of my calories in small snacks throughout the day, as I feel these can be managed a bit better. Never let yourself get hungry or you'll tend to overeat.
  • IsaackGMOON
    IsaackGMOON Posts: 3,358 Member
    kratschie wrote: »
    Try to eat clean. No sugary beverage. I personally think 1200 calories is under your basal metabolism.

    Clean? What is this arbitrary term? What is it going to do for weight loss? Nothing.

    OP you weigh 188. You can definitely eat more than 1200 calories and be more comfortable with a higher caloric intake...


  • RosieJaynee
    RosieJaynee Posts: 12 Member
    Sweet jacket potato, one salmon fillet (Grilled) mixed with garlic&herb philidelphia & a little bit of butter to mash the potato up abit! It's different, so yummy & keeps you full & very healthy & not a lot of calories!! :smile:
  • CurlyCockney
    CurlyCockney Posts: 1,394 Member
    jb32hss wrote: »
    And my diary is open to view. Jen

    Just curious--what kind of spaghetti is that? 2 ounces (or 56g) dried spaghetti (a standard size in the US) is about 200 calories, so I'm curious about what they do to it to lower the calories so much.

    Nutrition labels in the UK give the calories for cooked weight on dried spaghetti http://groceries.asda.com/product/spaghetti-tagliatelle/asda-smartprice-spaghetti/392270

  • kratschie
    kratschie Posts: 30 Member
    kratschie wrote: »
    Try to eat clean. No sugary beverage. I personally think 1200 calories is under your basal metabolism.

    Clean? What is this arbitrary term? What is it going to do for weight loss? Nothing.

    that's true, if it's just for the weight loss.
  • rwhyte12
    rwhyte12 Posts: 204 Member
    Include good fats (olive oil, canola, tahini). It's more filling and good for you.
    Whey protein is likewise filling while bringing up your protein so you can hold onto your muscles. I eat around this amount as well. Good luck with your weight loss.
  • avonvermont45
    avonvermont45 Posts: 2 Member
    Clean eating: elimate processed food, try to shop at farmers market so u eat food without the use of chemicals in the growing process. Shop on the outside isles of the supermarket. See Clean Eating magazine web site. Get chemicals out of ur diet
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    edited September 2015
    Hello! Ashley here, 24 female, 5'8 and currently 188. My goal is 125/135 or whenever I feel most comfortable again. I'm currently working out, p90x2, and work a sit down medical job.
    Looking for friends tips, and recipes to stay in my 1200 calorie goal.

    OP, I am 5'4" 135 and twice your age, and I am currently eating @ 1600 cals and losing slowly. And I'm not doing anything like P90X. So eat more! Set MFP to lose 1 lb a week and eat those calories. It won't be as difficult to stay at your calorie goal if you allow yourself enough calories to fuel your body properly.

    I found making sure I was getting enough protein really helped me feel satisfied with my diet. I don't worry about eating "clean" or shopping in a particular place or any other trendy theory. I just eat yummy mostly nutritious food, weigh my portions, and log everything. Including pizza and ice cream and chocolate when I feel like it. I just make it fit!

    Good luck!
  • generallyme2
    generallyme2 Posts: 403 Member
    Hi Ashley :) I added you as a friend. I stay around 1200 cals and I do eat back about 30-50% of my exercise calories, so it is a bit higher some days. My goal weight is 125 atm. If you do p90x, it's okay to add back a few cals- that's how mpf is set up.

    Make sure you have a few 'go-to' meals that taste good and fill you up. For me, it's chicken fajitas with salsa and greek yogurt or greek yogurt with nuts and fruit added to it. Makes life a bit easier and you have no excuses :) I eat dessert every day, just in smaller portions and I eat the same food I make for my family. You can do it, girl!
  • generallyme2
    generallyme2 Posts: 403 Member
    Also, agreed with pp- weigh everything! Seriously makes such a difference.
  • Loddieconnor975
    Loddieconnor975 Posts: 14 Member
    Need help
    Also <<<<
  • Marcus_2015
    Marcus_2015 Posts: 119 Member
    kratschie wrote: »
    Try to eat clean. No sugary beverage. I personally think 1200 calories is under your basal metabolism.

    Clean? What is this arbitrary term? What is it going to do for weight loss? Nothing.

    OP you weigh 188. You can definitely eat more than 1200 calories and be more comfortable with a higher caloric intake...


    So here is why I think clean eating is the right thing to do for weight loss; you can eat more volume, feel fuller and keep your calorie count where you want it to be.

    When you add processed stuff and even complex carbs, the quantity generally goes down.

    R
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    edited September 2015
    Rhyalus wrote: »
    kratschie wrote: »
    Try to eat clean. No sugary beverage. I personally think 1200 calories is under your basal metabolism.

    Clean? What is this arbitrary term? What is it going to do for weight loss? Nothing.

    OP you weigh 188. You can definitely eat more than 1200 calories and be more comfortable with a higher caloric intake...


    So here is why I think clean eating is the right thing to do for weight loss; you can eat more volume, feel fuller and keep your calorie count where you want it to be.

    When you add processed stuff and even complex carbs, the quantity generally goes down.

    R

    NO to this... I personally do not eat "dirty" food..

    Although processed foods are a no no for me, you can still loose weight eating these boxed or pre-prepared meals. And for some on a budget or single these work.

    So pick and choose your foods that you already like to eat and just eat less of it, depriving yourself of the foods you grew up to love, will only hinder progress in the long run. I personally try to eat as if this is the way I will eat for the rest of my life ... with only exception of exercising and training... my diet and way of eating changes for fitness.

    Clean eating... not this again..
  • RosieJaynee
    RosieJaynee Posts: 12 Member
    Hello, have you tried 'bootea'? it's great! You get a meal plan with it too which is actually really good :smile:
  • ChiliPepperLifter
    ChiliPepperLifter Posts: 279 Member
    Hello! Ashley here, 24 female, 5'8 and currently 188. My goal is 125/135 or whenever I feel most comfortable again. I'm currently working out, p90x2, and work a sit down medical job.
    Looking for friends tips, and recipes to stay in my 1200 calorie goal.

    Hey, so I plugged in your stats, and your TDEE (what you burn each day to maintain your weight, assuming you do p90x 3 to 5 times a week and work hard at it) is 2500. Which means you are massively undereating at 1200 and would lose more than 2 pounds a week. You are barely in the overweight category for your height. PLEASE take it from me that eating about 1800 or 2000 calories a day would be much better for you, and would result in MORE FAT LOSS and LESS MUSCLE LOSS. You will burn so much more muscle if you continue undereating. Please please listen to us that this isn't a great idea, your 1200 calorie goal.
  • maggierenee88
    maggierenee88 Posts: 352 Member
    I agree with everyone else. 1200 is too low. I was in you boat did it for 3 years. Lost the weight yep..killed my hair and nails at the same time.
  • shrinkbaby
    shrinkbaby Posts: 7 Member
    I'm 49, 5'4" weigh 158 and also wand to get to 125-130. I'm eating "clean" except for two rice cakes in the morning with almond butter. Everything else is mostly fish, fruit and veggies. I am also eating at or close to 1200 calories a day. I'm not doing p90x, but I am doing TurboFire by Beachbody. The fish and vegetables are so low in calories that I am eating quit a bit of food. I definitely don't feel hungry although my calories are low.
  • rosej31
    rosej31 Posts: 189 Member
    Give it a try when your body feel hungry for more food add more food and go up on your calories
  • Roxannehcarter
    Roxannehcarter Posts: 28 Member
    I am 5'6 180lb. I'm at 1390 calories, I walk a lot, do Tae Bo, I track etc. I keep going back up to my beginning weight, I've barely lost a thing.
    I was losing cms, but now that has stopped too...
    I need some info from you guys. I'm not eating "clean" again, that did not work well for me last time, and caused me to get very sick.
  • Roxannehcarter
    Roxannehcarter Posts: 28 Member
    I am 5'6 180lb. I'm at 1390 calories, I walk a lot, do Tae Bo, I track etc. I keep going back up to my beginning weight, I've barely lost a thing.
    I was losing cms, but now that has stopped too...
    I need some info from you guys. I'm not eating "clean" again, that did not work well for me last time, and caused me to get very sick.

    Starting your own thread may help. People will have these questions:
    1) What's your age? (helpful in calculating TDEE)
    2) Can you open your diary? I see your diary is actually open. How much are you using a kitchen scale to weigh your solids? (helpful in pinpointing possible logging errors)
    3) are you eating back exercise calories, and if so, how are you calculating them (again, helpful in pinpointing errors)
    4) What do you mean by "barely?" How much weight did you lose over what period of time? (helpful in assessing whether your expectations are reasonable).

    I am 27, I use kitchen scales religiously, I use endomondo as my sports tracker. I lost 1.4kg over 2.5 weeks. Last 2 weeks I keep going back up to my original weight. I log everything I put in my mouth and every time I exercise.
  • fiddletime
    fiddletime Posts: 1,868 Member
    I'm 5'2" and weigh 133. GW is 120. I eat 1200 calories and do T25 daily. To the OP, it seems like your calories are a little low. I plateaued for 2 weeks and went from 1100 to 1200 after reading a lot on these boards. I started losing again, about a half pound a week. Why don't you do 2-4 weeks at 1200 and see how it goes. You can always add calories back and see how it goes.

    As for friends, feel free to add me and you can check out my diary. I try to eat healthy foods and lots of veggies and turkey breast meat from cost co. I sometimes eat junk, like today, but it isn't that common.
  • KrisiAnnH
    KrisiAnnH Posts: 352 Member
    I've been playing around with my calories recently but I was on 1200 for a while, its all about finding what works best for you, so you may need to experiment a bit. As I work long shifts (in a kitchen of all places) I find that I prefer to eat most of my calories before work, so I'll have a large meal (say 600-800 calories) and then a snack at work (100 cals) and use the other 500-300 calories either earlier in the day or after work. If I'm not working I tend to have a small breakfast (200cal) and larger dinner (600), or just have 'brunch'.

    What has helped me a lot is getting my snacking under control- I used to be a 'grazer' and could easily go through a bag of sharing popcorn in one sitting. I find that keeping snacks in the house that are all under 150 cals I can just grab one if I'm hungry without worrying too much about the calories. Things like jelly pots (sugar free are only 5 cals), 2x oreo snack pack, kit kats, lowcal crisps (Pom bears if you're in the UK), cereal bars, 25g popcorn etc are all under 150 cals and can just be kept in the cupboard :)

    Another thing that's helped me stick to 1200 cals is to find substitutes for high calorie things I eat a lot- things like cheese I get 50% fat, low cal bread ('Danish' varieties are usually about half the calories of normal at 60 cals a slice), light mayo (10 cals instead of 90 per tbsp). It may seem silly replacing a few things but it all adds up and it means I can have more of those things for the same amount of calories :)

    Also if you aren't already, get onto Pinterest. It's a great resource for healthy and low calorie meal ideas :)
  • gonnadoityeah
    gonnadoityeah Posts: 22 Member
    Thank you everyone for all these responses! I'm not the best at remembering to log every meal here but I'm making alerts and it's helping :)
    I'm really working hard, I used to actually model here and there and I really let myself go forward a few years, I'm fighting to get that body back! It's not for anyone but myself, so I found out it's easier for me than for everyone else. I also finally bought a scale, and on top of that measuring tape for my body.
    I also got rid of crap foods in my home, and have been eating better variations of things I love, and working my way through that. To be honest when I for back on track it was shocking how much better low cal foods I could eat for the same calorie intake of one fast food run! lol
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