Anyone at 1200 cal/day?

Hello, I am finally starting to count my calories so the yo-yoing can stop and I can finally lose a few pounds.  According to the different tools on this site, I need to eat 1200 calories a day.  The first couple days I did alright with this, but now I am feeling very discouraged and very hungry.

For those who keep their daily total to 1200, how do you do so and what do you eat to keep your calories so low?  I try to eat small things spread out.... but by the time I get home from work I feel like giving up and giving in!   

I am at 1300, but most days only eat around 1000!  I just eat a standard breakfast...1/2 cup Special K Fruit and Yogurt with 1/2 cup skim milk, two pieces of bacon with the grease sponged off, and one piece of whole wheat toast...usually every day.  Then I eat 1/2 an apple for a snack, lunch and dinner vary depending if I'm at work, I just watch my calories though, and usually a slim-fast optima snack bar for a second snack.  When feeling those moments to give in...drink a big glass of water.  The craving is typically a couple of minutes and then you'll be fine...good luck and let me know how it goes

I do :)). I did it by eating lots of fruits and vegetables. I exchange my eggs with egg beaters (1/2 the calories). And I ate low-cal filling foo, such as tofu and whole wheat bread :). I f u like rice, its even better, I usually make vegetable soup, brown one or two slice of tofu, and half cup of rice.. 

Ah and one more, if u like salad (ex: ceasar with grilled chicken breast), DO NOT pour the dressing, dip ur fork in the dressing everytime u fork ur vegetables, it makes a huge different (u can check in the back, usually a big package of salad with dressing is twice the calories)

boomer,
you know your body needs at least 1200cal/day just to function, right?
Eating 1000 per day is too little.

Watch out eating too few calories--you will trick your body into slowing down your weight loss progress. It's never a good idea to try to lose weight too quickly--the liklihood of you keeping it off is slim (no pun intended, and just look at Oprah the first time she did the liquid diet--her weight yo-yo'ed for years until she learned to eat healthy). However, if you find yourself hungry enough to eat the siding off of a house, I recommend foods high in protein, low in fat (tuna is a good one, however not too often) as that will keep the hunger at bay.

just eat more fruits and veggies. soups are great cause they're low in calories yet fill you up.

I use the 1200 calories as a starting point and zig zag 15 to 20% above and below that, then back to 1200 for a day.  Yes, it is VERY hard to achieve that magic number, but I will listen to my body and adjust for what I need, especially if I exercise that day.

I try not to go below 1000 because its just plain stupid!  If I do, its not often and usually because of unavoidable circumstances like long work hours.  Drinking water helps for cravings but if you're hungry go for some protein instead of junk.

Hang in there!

I'm on 1450, but most of the days I eat less than 1400, I'm trying to up my calories comsumption tho.

Anyway, I have a relatively big breakfast in the morning - a medium apple, skim milk with half tbsp honey and a pb sandwich with reduced fat cheese.

I bring my own lunch to office, on most days I made a full box of salad which contains only veggie and beans and 1 tsp olive oil along with 2 slices of whole wheat bread, I'll also grab a coffee from Starbucks.

Dinner I usually eat out, I'll have a half veggie burger or a full veggie wrap at Subway!  Tell ya what girl, load your wrap with lots and jalapeno and all veggie won't give you extra pounds you don't want!

After balanced diet and moderation are the keys to lose weight!

you can check out my most recent post, it's about how can I add calories. I have a whole day's meal plan listed. it here. http://www.calorie-count.com/forums/post/2083 3.html 

I normally feel stuffed when it's time to eat. My day normally gets an A also and it's close to 1200cals.

hey there,

I try my hardest to eat about 1200 a day. i usually have a bowl of cereal for breakfast I usually have a lean cuisine for lunch (drinking lots of water before hand) before and after lunch i snack on: 1 gogurt bag of baby carrots 10 calorie jello pack 100 nabisco pack

they are usually enough to stop a craving and hold me over til the next one. when i get home from work i drink lottsssss of water, then start to make dinner. usually some turkey dogs, a healthy choice meal, morning star chicken patties, or a small cold cut sandwich. drinking a lot of water beforehand usually causes me to fill up by the end of dinner.

then between dinner and bed i can grab a piece of fruit or another 100 calorie pack to snack on.

all that comes to about 1000-1100 calories, so it leaves room for giving in to another snack!!

hope this helps a little!!! don't worry you'll get used to it! good luck!!! :)

As a man according to the system i need to eat 2500 cals a day.

Im trying to stick to 1200 cals a day or as close as i can, and im finding it easyer than i thought. i have slit my eating into 5 times a day,

1, breakfast ( 2 slices of toast with spread) or special k with skimmed milk)

2, Mid Morning snack (a peace of fruit, apple orange banana or grapes)

3, lunch a bowl of soup, (i vary it but as long as its under 200cals)

4, afternoon snack (a peace of fruit, same as morning snack)

5, evening meal ( the evning meal is to use up the remainder of the 1200 cals in most cases that gives me about 600-700 cals to use which is a nice meal)

I find this works really well because im always eating every few hours i dont offen feel hungree and it keeps my matabalisum burning calaries.

I play sport 2-3 times a week and on a sport night i have a fruit smoothie for dinner as i cant eat befor i play.

I have been doing this diet since the 1st and i have gone from 98KG to 94.3KG which is not bad i think :) 

hi im at about 1300 a day and not finding it too hard mind you i only started 3 days ago. i tend not to snack atall save the calories for a nice glass of wine. i have just been having 1 slice of toast with butter and a cup of tea for breckfast. whitch is about 133 calories.

my lunch tends to be a sandwitch or a pasta salad whitch ends up around the 350 mark.

tea i have mostly potatos there great really fillin and only 70 calories per 100g witch means you can have plenty. and plenty of veg.

i try to stay clear of chips as there are too many calories and too little chips

if your craving try to do something like phone a friend or go for a walk by the time you have finished the craving will have gone and if it hasnt a large glass of warter should do the trick. just try not to think about how hungry you are and think about how good you will look at the end of it all good luck.

I usually just have some eggbeaters in the a.m. with an mulit grain light english muffin, then around 9:30-10 am i have about 25 almonds, then either a lean pocket or cereal for lunch, a protein bar around 3pm then maybe a salad and a peice of chicken breast and a serving of brown rice with hot sauce. oh and a peice of dove dark chocolate to keep me going. that is about 1200 calories. Also to be able to eat more I go to the gym every other day and then I can eat up to 1450 calories, which allows me to eat a little bit more for lunch and snacks!

I range between 1250 -1350, but on the days I know I'll be over 1250 (which is where I'm supposed to be without exercise), I go do a little activity to burn off the extra calories.  So, as long as the difference between the number of calories I eat and the number of calories I burn is about 500, I'm still on track to lose my target weekly weight.  My point is, on the day that you feel extra hungry and want to sneak in a snack or two, try going for a walk, or do some kinestetics at home.  :) Hope that helps! 

Thanks for the ideas!  Sometimes I just need to look at the big picture and realize it is doable. 

Honestly, I've been sticking to about 1400-1500 calories per day.  This is completely manageable and I do not feel like I am starving myself or getting cravings all of the time.  My weight has been slowly but surely coming off for about 4 months now.  I'm probably dropping about a pound and a half every two weeks or so.  This may not be the quickest method, but it certainly is the easiest to stick with.  I'm about 400 calories or so below my daily expenditure, so it's both healthy and effective.  I've been able to stick to this calorie intake simply by controlling portion sizes and and not going back for "Seconds" at home-cooked meals.  I still eat basically whatever I want within reason. Portion control mixed with an effort to work in fruits, veggies, and whole grains really works! It's as simple as that.

You can do it.

I find that 3 meals and 3 snacks a day keep me full.  It all depends on your day..when it starts...what you doo etc.

Jump start yourself with a morning snack. Within 20 minutes of getting up.  Weather it be a fruit or yogurt.  Followed by a room temp (or warm) glass of water with lemon.

Then by breakfast you can have oatmeal, cereal, eggs whatever it is you eat.

Then a mid morning snack again fruit or yogurt usually do the trick.

A lunch have something like turkey on whole wheat with carrot sticks on the side.

Your afternoon snack can be just about anything...fruit, yogurt, cheese stick.  Have it late enough in the day that it'll hold you over until dinner.

And of course dinner...can be anything just watch the carbs.  It takes them longer to breakdown at night.

Then save you snack/dessert until after dinner is done and cleaned up.  That way you don't feel cheated.

DRINK YOUR WATER!!!

That's what has worked for me.

Good luck and don't give up.

I'm on 1200 a day, but do vary between 1100-1400. I'm never hungry, in fact I have to find stuff to eat as fillers most days (generally nuts). You can view my food journal at http://www.fitday.com/WebFit/PublicJournals.h tml?Owner=MaryHM

In addition to what's in the journal, I drink about 100oz of water per day and do about 10-15 miles a week on the treadmill. 1.5 miles in the morning before breakfast (make sure you drink water though!), and then a mile or more later in the day when I have time. I take 1-2 days off on the weekends, both from exercise and calorie limits. On those days, I hit 1500-1800. Keeps the body guessing. I started this a month ago and have lost almost 10 lbs. Last year, I did the same thing and went from 150 to 121 in about 6 months. Unfortunately, a bunch of crazy life changes happened in the past 9 months and caused me to gain everything back. But I'm determined to get it off and keep it off this time!! You can do it- just stick with it. Even when you mess up, don't let it sabotage you. And remember, a binge day every once in a while is not going to kill you or your diet. Just get through the day, accept it for what it was, and get back on track the next day.

i start out with 200 for bkfst (cheerio's skim milk piece of fruit...) lunch about 300 (salad, sometimes subway) and that leaves room for the "over the hump hour" i like to call it.  i have lowfat yogurt or a V-8 or a big one for me is low sodium trisquits.  i love the garlic flavor and i don't feel like i'm getting cheated.  i feel full and it gets me to dinner without feeling like i want to eat everything when i get home.  i keep these garlic trisquits with me and munch on them whenever i feel hungry.  i try to do some form of exercise in the evening and have a weight watchers desert or something.  it all fits in my budget also of 1200 and it keeps me going.  good luck!  lots of water helps...

I'm at 1,000-1,100 calories most days, occasionally get up to as much as 1,400 on weekends.

I get up around 8 a.m. and have a cup of coffee and an apricot or half of an apple or pear while my husband has breakfast.

When he's off to work, I have a bowl of Golean high-protein cereal with a half-cup of skim milk. Then I go for my 30-minute walk, after which I fix dinner to put in the fridge for hubby and have a small portion myself for lunch -- lean meat, like London broil or grilled chicken, and two cooked veggies (no potatoes or rice, because my husband is a type 1 diabetic). And a 16-ounce bottle of water.

Off to work at 12:30 p.m., taking a 16-ounce bottle of water to drink on the way (hour and a half commute) and a piece of fruit or a Tupperware bowl of raw veggies like cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices for a midafternoon snack.

For dinner, I hit the company cafeteria and have two side orders of veggies, like broccoli or succotash. If the entrees include a lean meat, like sliced turkey or grilled fish, I will sometimes have an entree, but the entrees tend to be breaded and fried or covered in gravy, so usually I stick to veggies.

If the veggie choices aren't to my liking (eggplant or summer squash -- yuck), I have a fat-free yogurt instead, and add some soy isolate from a container I keep in my desk.  And another 16-ounce bottle of water.

When I get home around 11:30 p.m., I check the day's intake on CC. I don't eat anything unless my protein intake is under 40 grams. In that event, I'll have another fat-free yogurt or maybe a handful of peanuts (as long as the fat intake stays under 30 grams). And two 5 ounce glasses of white wine with another 16-ounce bottle of water.

And to bed by 1 or 1:30 a.m.

I'm never hungry on this diet, although I do often find myself wanting something salty.  If the craving is intolerable, I'll have a handful of pretzels.

The downside is that I'm not losing any weight on it, although I'm not gaining, either, which for me is quite an accomplishment.