Only 1,200 calories! Ugh

If you're trying to lose faster than 0.5 pounds a week, then slow down and eat more. It's time to start taking the gradual off-ramp to maintenance calories and beginning to practice something closer to maintenance eating. Besides, now that you have less to lose, you have less fat "in the bank" to draw on safely.

Not only does exercise burn calories, but so does daily life activity. Consider this thread:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10610953/neat-improvement-strategies-to-improve-weight-loss

Best wishes!

I'm currently trying to lose weight, but I'm a serial yo-yoer and have lost 70+ pounds in the past. The closer you get to your goal the harder the weight is to lose. It doesn't matter if you do everything perfect, its going to come off slow unless you are unhealthy about it. Honestly I would just surrender and count every .1 as a victory. Eat more if you want, you'll still lose the weight at say, 1,400 calories. It'll come off. It'll just be slow and steady.

ericaf7 wrote: »

I only 7 more lbs to lose but really struggling to to stay withing the 1,200 calories guideline! Anyone else?! Seems like to I can do 1,400 but that's a good day! Need to workout more to offset but struggling to find the time with the kids soccer schedules right now!

1200 is pretty tough for most people. If you are not very short, old and sedentary you can probably lose more comfortably eating more.
As others have said your rate of loss should be set for .5 lb a week if you only have 7 lbs to lose. You would be reducing your intake by 250 calories a day or 1,750 per week. 250 calories does not mean you have to drastically alter your diet. It might be rethinking a single food or drink choice that day or just tracking and adjusting all portions sizes more in line with your goals.

Maybe you do not have your activity level without exercise correct. Are you really sedentary? Getting less than 5,000 steps a day or spending almost all of your time sitting would be sedentary. If this is not you then you might choose a different activity level without exercise.

If you do exercise then log it and eat more.
Bulk out your meals with low calorie vegetables. Plan and prelog your food for the day.
Log as accurately as you can. Use a food scale and check that the entries you choose are correct.
Looking at your food diary could help you see where reducing portion sizes or limiting intake of some foods or drinks could be helpful. Maybe switching to a lower calorie version of a product you normally consume?
I increased my activity level by wearing a simple pedometer and gradually increasing my steps. I think it is easy to fit walking more in throughout the day. I don't get tons of extra calories from it at the level I do but moved from sedentary to lightly active at least.