How to go from 1500 calories to 1200

Hi everyone!  I weigh 143 and am 5'3".  CC said that in order to get down to 120 I should be eating 1200 calories a day.  I set my activity level at sedentary and have just started exercising (adding manually) around 3x a week.  I got a little confused in the beginning and thought my calories should be 1500 which I have been doing.  I have been starving and now I don't know how I could cut an additional 300 calories.  Any suggestions?

Low-calorie, water-packed foods!  Frutis and vegetables.  When you're bored, munc on them.  Most people consider this to be negative calorie anyway because it takes more calories to digest them than there are in them.  They should fill you up just fine.

Negative calorie foods is a myth.

So might want to stay away from snacking on too many things like that (they still add up).

Salads are always great to help replace part of a normally larger meal.

Negative calorie foods are like eating back your calories after working out.  Some people go for it and some people don't.

Still, snacking on veggies is a great way to keep you full for a few calories.  Like a salad, only.. no, both are veggies...

 If you eat lots of fruit and vegetables you should have no problem sticking to 1200 calories a day.  There's nothing that you can't have, you just have to eat less of it.   Make salad your friend.  Eat it either as lunch and dinner, or eat a small salad before hand to make you feel full so you won't want to eat as much after.

There arent any foods that take more or as many calories for you to digest as there are in the food itself (thats normally what people talk about when they mean "negative calorie food"). Other then ice i guess...

Go for high volume foods like acorn squash, celery, cucumber, pickles, and zucchini. They take up lots of space in your belly for relatively few calories. 

SOUP!

Mousebouse has a great suggestion with soup, just make sure you don't get cream-based soups because they are not a calorie watcher's friend. Go for broth-based instead.

Basically the foods you want to eat will be high in water content, which also means you'll feel fuller while actually eating fewer calories.

Progresso has a lot of vry good tasting soups at 100 calories per serving .Just be careful because some have a lot of sodium . Homemade soups are easy and you can make and freeze large batches.

vegetables are the best way to fill out meals so you feel more satisfied.

a medium tomato (ok, technically a fruit, i know) is only 26 calorie. cut up a couple and add them to your meal and you'll be more full with about 50 calories.

steamed broccoli is great too - 2 cups for around 100 calories - that'll fill you up and add lots of good nutrients to your diet.

zucchini : 1 cup = 40 calories.

cauliflower : 1 cup = 30 calories.

I also make lots of homemade soups and freeze.  I KNOW whats in them when I make them myself.  Just put the recipe in the recipe calculator and the number of servings and presto there are the calaries in your homemade bowl of soup.  Between eating my various soups (I'll never get through all my recipes!) and walking 45 minutes every day, I' ve lost 15 lbs.

I have a REALLY hard time going under 1500 calories as well. So, instead of eating less, I try to burn at least 300 calories at the gym (very easy to do, you can just walk for an hour or do the elliptical for 20 minutes (this is an estimation)). Anyway, I have been maintaining under 120 pounds and I am 5'4 doing it this way. . . .. Good luck, I find if I go under 1500 calories I binge. . . .

Great suggestions: soup, vegies and you're smart to start exercising. Keep water at your fingertips all the time. Have a cup of decaf hot tea or coffee in the evening instead of a snack.

If you haven't already, try and get used to not getting FULL at meals. Decide how much to eat ahead of time. Eat that, clean up and put things away before you decide whether you really want more. I always worry about people eating tons of even vegies.  Part of what makes us overweight is not knowing when we're satisfied vs 'full'. When I've tried dieting by eating mega-quantities of vegy's, when I strayed, I'd stray in a big way. Now I really just can't eat that kind of volume anymore.

Similar to Chris1208's suggestion, I know, but you could try eating the same meals but just cutting your portions down. Instead of eating 200g of potato or rice for instance, have 100 or 150g. And serve your meals on a smaller plate. I find that it doesn't matter how much food is put in front of me, if the plate is full my brain feels that its a full meal whether its a small or large plate or I have 100g or 200g of potato. I never seem to notice being more hungry later on with a smaller portion either. My brain and stomach are fooled.

I'm with the last two posters.  I've been hearing lately about having a day where you eat at maintenance (1900 cals for me) instead of at your limit for losing weight (1400).  It's supposed to jump start your metabolism, so I thought I'd try it yesterday.  I ate whatever I wanted, omelettes, shrimp, bread and butter...and at the end of the day I was still only at 1500.  I was just so full, and I was shocked that I literally couldn't eat more.  So, yeah, getting used to eating a little less than your stomach wants will go a long way to being satisfied on less than you're used to.

there are so many ways to reduce your calories in a healthy way. 1st off don't eat out! make FRESH meals high in veggies and lean meats. Steer clear of sauces, and creamy anything!

Whether you stick to your calorie count or not, just MOVE as much as possible. Go for short walks at work, fidget... just move! It will help you burn extra calories!

if'n you want, you can post a typical day's worth of food . . .  then  maybe we can make specific suggestions of what to cut and how to replace!

regards,

guy 

I found tons of recipes that are great for your lunch time meals on Sparkpeople.com.  I always start my day out with a portion of oatmeal, half a banana & 4 oz. of skim milk.  That is the best breakfast that I have found so far to keep down the calories & not have any hunger pains.  Then for lunch a homemade entree that is low cal along with a lettuce salad with low fat dressing & then about 5 oz. of lean protein i.e. turkey or chicken.  A snack in the afternoon that I have is either sugar free pudding or lite yogurt with an apple.  Dinners are one of the lean cuisines or smart ones with a salad and a couple kinds of vegetables with 2 tb. of low fat dressing and a slice of whole grain bread toasted.  The deserts that I have come up with are from lowfat cottage cheese with 1/4 cup of pineapple to a lite yogurt with some fruit.  I have also made the rice pudding that you can use splenda, skim milk and lite margarine.  Finding the right foods to keep the furnace burning the calories is working for me.  I have gone from 202# down to 174# in a few months.

I've found something that fills me up, is full of nutrition...and keeps the calories down.
I put 1/2 banana (35 cal) - or a whole if I'm really hungry (70 cal)1/2 c frozen blueberries (40 cal)4 frozen strawberries (about 1/2 c when thawed) (40 cal)1 c soy milk (100 cal)1 scoop whey protien powder (100 cal)3/4 c crushed ice w/a bit of ice water
Put it all in a blender and it's a fantastic tasting meal.  The nutritional value is great...and it gives you PLENTY of the oh so important protein that's going to keep you feeling full long after it's gone.
Now I know this is about 350 calories, but because I use whey protien, it's fluffy and thick, and makes two very large glasses.  I can drink one, and save the other for later..so I'm only getting about 175 calories...which is great for a meal.
If I know I'm going somewhere, and won't have access to food for a while, I'll drink the whole thing...and it satisfies me for a good 4 hours.  The beauty of this meal is the staying power...you're not hungry in an hour like you would be if you ate an apple or a bowl of fruit or veggies.

I'm at about the same place you are, weight 142 (lost 8# in 4 wks) 5'5" and trying for 125, or 133 by Christmas.....

Here's what I have for two of my meals most days, with little variations.....I love creamy soups, but "cream based" is out, so I put low sodium chicken broth (its low calories) brocolli and cauliflower in pot, cook til almost tender, then blend it til smooth (I have a good Oster blender)......I keep it in a couple of jars, in fridge for couple days at a time.....when I want chunky, I just don't blend it smooth.

the other meal< I use egg substitute (Egg Creations, but others will do) and make an egg foo yung omlette or veggie omlette, with LOTS of veggies......I use a quick squirt of pam to keep it from sticking, and there's usually celery, bean sprouts, shredded lettuce, and bits of lean ham, or chicken or beef, and Mrs. Dash no salt for flavor.  Before I flip it, another quick squirt of Pam.......Its filling, with very few calories.

I'm not eating bread (I have a couple of melba toast once or twice a day, or rye crunch) and no potatoes, but I've been having some of the great winter squashes.

Dinner is 3 oz protein, and veggies........and I have raw veggies or fruit for snack, and diet jello for dessert.  I am under 1200 calories day, and I'm never hungry, and the best part, NO cravings.......occasional tempted to have more rye crisp....

Keep us posted on how you're doing!!  More exercise is key!!