new ideas to stay at 1200-1300 cals

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13

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  • nashtyone
    nashtyone Posts: 36
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    Feel free to look at my diary, I do this pretty easily and not feel hungry, and I'm a 6 ft tall 190 lb dude.
  • Pooterly
    Pooterly Posts: 61 Member
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    First look at what you are eating. There could be simple things you could cut out like pop, candy, and fast food. If you've already done that, go for fruits and veggies. They are usually low calories and high fiber. Fiber and protein fill you up and burn longer. But beware of peanut butter. Popcorn might help while you're still adjusting. Or sugar free jello.


    Edit: Or like the above people said. Workout so you can eat more. I'd suggest starting with Jillian Michel's 30 day shred if you don't already have a plan.

    Why beware of peanut butter?
  • tiffloy
    tiffloy Posts: 7 Member
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    I also work out to "buy" myself more calories. It's awesome when a bike ride means my steak never happened!

    Also I lovee the laughing cow cheeses (30 cals a wedge) with Special K whole grain crackers (60 cals for 12). I don't crave sweets when I diet so I look for savory snacks to satisfy me.
  • bluemixer
    bluemixer Posts: 8
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    Hi, I only started this on Monday. I have to stay at 1200 calories a day. I keep going over. Its very hard to stay at that number. Thank you for the great tips on fruit and veggies. I knew this week would be me learning what I am eating thats not good. There is this exercise that I heard about I want to try. Its called punk rope. I guess its with a jump rope. Have you tried it or heard of it? I hope I can get some support on here. I don't really have any.
  • Pooterly
    Pooterly Posts: 61 Member
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    Feel free to add me, I am on 1200 calories and manage to stay under it without getting hungry so you are welcome to look at my diary and see what I eat!

    It took me time to figure out what kept me full the longest that was still within my calorie range ie I was originally having cereal for breakfast but was starving by 11am, so I swapped to a Wheat Free bread and have toast and am satisfied until lunch time and both breakfasts have around the same calories :-)

    Hang in there, you will get there :-)

    Yeah, I don't eat cold cereal for breakfast anymore. It really doesn't fill me up and sometimes I can't eat lunch til later...
  • islandjumper
    islandjumper Posts: 369 Member
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    I have to work to hit 1200 calories...like last night when I had 800 calories left at 7pm. Fresh fruits and veggies are great but don't forget to incorporate protein. I use tofu, beans, nuts and as of last night quinoa...i'm vegetarian so I can't tell you much about best meat choices, but I'm assuming things like skinless chicken and fish are your best options.
    I do my best to drink at least 2 cups of water before every meal, my breakfast is oatmeal (plain, not from a package) and I add what I like (berries, bananas, cinnamon, honey, the combos are endless). I don't eat pasta very often, and only when I have a lot of calories left over. I love bread...but I only eat whole meal options which keep me fuller longer, I don't say no to peanut butter and high calorie nuts, but moderation is key. Overall I'm a pretty "clean" eater....that's how I stay around 1200 cals
  • mes1119
    mes1119 Posts: 1,082 Member
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    Foods that are low in calories but high in quantity. Vegetables, fruits. I eat foods high in protein as well because it fills me up. Personally, I have a hard time getting 1300 calories, especially when I work out. It's odd but the more I work out, the less I want to eat and less time I can find to eat.
  • bikiniready201
    bikiniready201 Posts: 54
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    I would suggest replacing nuts with fresh fruit and veggies, carrot sticks, cucumbers soaked in vinegar, peppers, etc.
    I switched to skim milk to save on calories as well :)
    Good luck :)
  • nashtyone
    nashtyone Posts: 36
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    Hi, I only started this on Monday. I have to stay at 1200 calories a day. I keep going over. Its very hard to stay at that number. Thank you for the great tips on fruit and veggies. I knew this week would be me learning what I am eating thats not good. There is this exercise that I heard about I want to try. Its called punk rope. I guess its with a jump rope. Have you tried it or heard of it? I hope I can get some support on here. I don't really have any.

    Feel free to check out my diary as I've been eating under/around 1200 cals a day.
  • HotKanye
    HotKanye Posts: 103 Member
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    Hello everyone...

    I started on MFP 4 days ago... I have been having some issues staying under the required 1300 cals per day.. what a challenge it has been...

    Any ideas? how did you guys end up doing it? Any advice would be greatly appreciated

    Please add me for some motivation!!!

    My advice is...don't.
  • mes1119
    mes1119 Posts: 1,082 Member
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    First look at what you are eating. There could be simple things you could cut out like pop, candy, and fast food. If you've already done that, go for fruits and veggies. They are usually low calories and high fiber. Fiber and protein fill you up and burn longer. But beware of peanut butter. Popcorn might help while you're still adjusting. Or sugar free jello.


    Edit: Or like the above people said. Workout so you can eat more. I'd suggest starting with Jillian Michel's 30 day shred if you don't already have a plan.

    Why beware of peanut butter?

    Agreed, peanut butter is awesome. High in calories but if you watch your serving it is a good source of protein and necessary fats.
  • pander101
    pander101 Posts: 677 Member
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    I had a really hard time staying at 1200-1300 when I first started. I was always hungry. Eventually you get used to that amount of food and you learn to budget the calories. I started eating tons for fruit and veggies which helped a bit. If I had carbs I used them for one meal, usually dinner. But if you're hungry, eat.

    Or I just work out a lot...
  • bluemixer
    bluemixer Posts: 8
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    I am not sure how to add Friends. lol Could you add me? Thanks
    Feel free to add me, I am on 1200 calories and manage to stay under it without getting hungry so you are welcome to look at my diary and see what I eat!

    It took me time to figure out what kept me full the longest that was still within my calorie range ie I was originally having cereal for breakfast but was starving by 11am, so I swapped to a Wheat Free bread and have toast and am satisfied until lunch time and both breakfasts have around the same calories :-)

    Hang in there, you will get there :-)

    Yeah, I don't eat cold cereal for breakfast anymore. It really doesn't fill me up and sometimes I can't eat lunch til later...
  • KLEALEE71
    KLEALEE71 Posts: 33 Member
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    At lunch I have been making delicious sandwiches, using Josephs flat brad (only 50 calories a serving), load it with veggies (baby spinach instead of lettuce, onions, red/green peppers) ham or turkey. Along with sugar snap peas on the side instead of chips. It gives you a good "crunch" satisfaction that you would get if you were eating chips.
  • FromMama2MILF
    FromMama2MILF Posts: 8 Member
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    Ditto to the ditto!:drinker:
  • mysticwonder
    mysticwonder Posts: 39
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    Portion, portion and PORTION! You don't have to deprive yourself of everything, remember that. Just make sure you portion what you do eat and you'll have no trouble staying under your calorie goal. : ) (Now, that's not to say that you should toss healthy eating out the window, of course!) ; )

    Definitely this! Get yourself a good food scale. I have a digital one and measure your portions! When we eat pasta, we only do 1 serving and it's a small SIDE, not the star of our meal.

    Try to eat as clean as you can. When I first started it was so difficult, but I agree with the posters who said that 100 cal snacks are ok. I also realized that those aren't all that wonderful, so I slowly replaced them with fruits and veggies. This process took about a month to get used to. So that's 2 servings of fruits and veggies a day.

    Hang in there. Everyone is different. Good luck!
  • FireTigerSoul
    FireTigerSoul Posts: 274 Member
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    I eat lots of veggies, and because I'm a vegetarian, I eat a lot of veggie 'meats'. They're really low-calorie, so they help a lot. If you're okay with the taste, they can definitely help you stay in the 1200-1300 range! :)
  • Allegra289
    Allegra289 Posts: 48
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    I like to drink skim milk with whatever I eat...it helps you stay a little more full, and more satisfying than water. Which really is the key to staying low calorie - find foods that are satisfying and energy dense, because if you snack on carrot sticks all day you'll always be hungry and never stick to a plan!
  • tarajeand
    tarajeand Posts: 10 Member
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    My favorite thing (found on pinterest) is a buffalo chicken egg roll. On an egg roll wrapper, put some broccoli slaw, chopped chicken (seasoned with red hot), and a little bit of blue cheese. Wrap it up, spray with Pam, and put on a rack in the oven. They are only 100 calories each and are amazing! You can have 2-3 and feel really full for not too many calories. LOVE them!
  • slimbetsy
    slimbetsy Posts: 2
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    This is a really dumb thing, but it has been working for me. I make my own parfait things. I put the kashi original granola stuff, chobani greek yogurt (plain, nonfat), lite cool whip, a tiny amount of mini chocolate chips, and a whole lot of frozen fruit (unsweetened).
    What really works about this for me is that I hate eating cold fruit. So it takes me a long time to eat it because I am waiting for the fruit to thaw while i snack on the other stuff in it. I also hate the greek yogurt, but it is so high in protein that i figured I should probably adjust to liking it. I put the cool whip in so that I can't taste the yucky yogurt:) I add the chocolate chips because I do not allow myself any other junk food so this is a little indulgence for me.
    I do this as a meal and it is pretty filling.
    Also, do you have your weight loss set to -2 lbs a week? If so, try changing it to -1 a week. You will get more calories that way. At first I really struggled with finding creative ways to stay under my calorie goal of 1650, but now I never even reach it. Like someone else said, cut out the junk and soda. That was so hard for me to do, but it was soooo helpful.
    I hope any of this helped:)
    Betsy

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