Skip lunch

You can split your calories up any way you wish. Just keep in mind that you are sitting at the bare minimum someone should eat to maintain a healthy body. So make sure you dont eat less.

I don't eat my first meal until 6pm so I can stretch my 1200 calories further. I then have a nice, nutritious and large meal, followed by some not-so-nutritious snacks in the evening Works really well for me.

You don't really need lunch, so if you want to skip it go ahead! I'm doing 1200 calories right now and could never skip my lunch regularly! But on days when I know I'll be eating a huge dinner, I'll skip lunch or snacks to save calories.

I do this sometimes when I'm in a deficit on my lower days.. I will eat from 7am-12pm, then not eat from 12-6pm. Or cut out the snacks.. Or have a post workout protein snack, cut out lunch and save my cals for dinner. Whatever works for you.

Skipping makes things worse for me. I'm ravenous when I get home & end up eating cheese & crackers before dinner.

What helps me (when I'm good) is grazing & drinking a lot of water. When I feel hungry I try to drink a bottle of water before reaching for food. Sometimes that does the trick. I'll have a small breakfast (7 a.m.), then eat a lo-cal snack around 11 a.m. (fruit, a yogurt, string cheese) I'll have lunch between 1-2, then another snack around 3-4 (for a while my favorite was the 90 calorie Fiber one brownies which helped curb my chocolate cravings) . My husband has long commute so we rarely sit down to dinner before 8 p.m. When I can keep that high protein I seem to do OK.

Sojo15 wrote: »

BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »

Are you a particularly small person? You can probably eat more than 1200 and still be successful.

But sure, there's nothing wrong with skipping lunch if it helps you keep your deficit. I skip breakfast usually for the same reason.

I am 5.5! I usually end of with 1250 or 1300 though. Losing ca 1.5 lbs per week currently.

That's not particularly small for a woman. You might want to adjust your rate of loss to 1 pound a week. I know it's easy to want to lose as fast as possible, but if you're struggling with a 1200-1300 goal (which makes sense, because it's really low!) a pound a week is still very respectable and may be more sustainable long-term. I'm 5'2" myself and have made it a goal never to average under 1700 net - those last ten pounds are going to take months, but the first 41 didn't hurt nearly as much as they could have.

This isn't very popular but I swear by it. I need something to eat in the morning, so I have a small breakfast. Then I skip lunch and go for a walk or do something to keep me occupied so I'm not thinking about food. It's amazing how much the mind tricks you into thinking you HAVE to eat because once everyone is back from lunch (if it's a work day) my hunger isn't even there. Then I get to go home and have a meal with my family that isn't necessarily a "diet" meal...sometimes it's super healthy/low cal and sometimes it's pizza! But because I skip lunch I can afford it and I consistently lose weight. It's easier for me to eat this way than spread my calories out over the day because I don't like having to "diet" at dinner. I like to enjoy that meal with my family. I still have to be mindful and count it, but it just seems easier to me. I have googled "skipping lunch" but not much comes up except doom and gloom OMG YOU ARE PUTTING YOUR BODY IN STARVATION MODE...balogna. Well, you know what? I was putting my body in FAT MODE by eating all dang day. hahaha! Do what works for YOUR body and don't worry about anyone else.

I eat a late breakfast (10am+) and skip lunch, have an earlyish dinner (4pm+) and a snack in the evening. Much easier to stick to calorie allowance that way and I don’t miss that meal at all.

Just do what works for you. Meal timing really isn't very relevant, unless you're fueling a workout or something. I eat "breakfast" when I get home from work and roll my eyes internally when people tell me I'm ruining my metabolism.