Calories per meal.

mdamodio
mdamodio Posts: 3 Member
edited December 2024 in Food and Nutrition
For a 1200 calorie daily intake, what is the best calorie breakdown amount per meal and snack?

Replies

  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Whatever works best for you. 1 meal or 17, it doesn't matter. If you're in a deficit, you will lose weight
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    edited July 2016
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    Whatever works best for you. 1 meal or 17, it doesn't matter. If you're in a deficit, you will lose weight

    Agreed. It's all in what makes you happiest and gets you through the day.

    For example, I'm not a big breakfast eater so I have a 200 calorie protein bar when I get to work at around 7am. I have a 300-400 calorie lunch somewhere between 11am and Noon. I'll usually have a snack in the mid-afternoon and a 300-400 calorie dinner at around 6pm. Whatever I have left goes toward my evening snack; I always save calories for that time of day because I almost always want something at around 8pm.

    On weekends I usually don't eat breakfast at all and eat a bigger dinner.
  • ehine1
    ehine1 Posts: 28 Member
    Since 1200 isn't a lot to work with, I would suggest not going too overly high on any particular meal and that might give you some room for snacking later in the evening when the hunger starts to set in.
  • mdamodio
    mdamodio Posts: 3 Member
    That's pretty much how things have been going. Just thought if there was a way to tweak things a little more, I would. Thank you for your reply.
  • mdamodio
    mdamodio Posts: 3 Member
    This is all good advice. I appreciate it
  • TxTiffani
    TxTiffani Posts: 799 Member
    I'm also shooting for around 1200 cals/day due to being 5 ft and only having around 20lbs to lose. I've been only eating between 12pm-8pm (intermittent fasting). I have 2 coffee drinks in the morning before I eat. For each drink I use one 10oz Keurig coffee, 1 cup unsweetened cashew milk (25 cals:) and Splenda to taste. It keeps me full until lunch then I get to eat my cals in the afternoon. I find I have a big appetite later in the day whether I eat bfast or not so now I just cut it out;)
  • SophieSmall95
    SophieSmall95 Posts: 233 Member
    Since I don't eat breakfast (yes my doctor approved it and no it isn't hurting my metabolism) I can afford to have my lunches and dinner up to 400 calories each rather than 300 and then just fill the rest of the calories with snacks.

    Honestly it's different for everyone. Some people get on better with eating big meals, others prefer to eat little and often. I'm sort of in between. I like my meals to have some bulk to them but low in calorie and I like to have a few snacks in the day.
  • LisaKay91
    LisaKay91 Posts: 211 Member
    I think generally mine are 200-350
  • phrunch
    phrunch Posts: 115 Member
    I eat around 1200 and I tend to have two meals per day around 400 cals and then save the rest of my calories for random snacking.
  • socalrunner59
    socalrunner59 Posts: 149 Member
    It's an individual decision. I eat big in the morning as I workout mid-day. Lunch and dinner are much light.
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