Anyone else really struggle with 1200 calories a day?

[cindarellashoes]

I'm current,y trying to stay at 1200 calories a day but finding it very hard. Todays diary is:

Breakfast:
2 x coffee's with milk (just home ones)
Watermelon

Lunch:
Heinz tomato soup
2 x Ryvita sesame thins with extra low fat cream cheese on top

Snacks (throughout day):
Strawberries
Apple
1 x fruit winder

Dinner:

Small portion of homemade chicken curry with sauce(sauce 100 calories), no rice or bread.

I'm constantly hungry 😩 does anyone else struggle with 1200 a day even when doing it for weeks? Usually my main meal of the day is a salad but had the chicken for a change.

Yu are probably burning WAY more than 1200 cals hence you are hungry. Focus on nutrient dense and filling foods with low calorie value, fruits, veggies, meats, carbs etc. Unless you are very very slim 1200 cals is not enough. I calorie count although I'm a big girl, I eat 2100 cals a day and consistently lose 2lb a week.

Also quite low protein snacks - hard boil some eggs and have one instead of fruit perhaps for a snack, or try tuna on corn thins for example. Protein dense food is better even if you go over slightly on calories. Also try herbal tea or a low cal hot chocolate in the evening if you're ravenous x

What's your current weight, goal weight, height?

Very unlikely it's enough food

Is it that 1200?

It sounds like less

That does seem very small amount of calories OP - where did you get the 1,200
figure from ?

You're not getting much fibre. Also more fat and protein will fill you up, you don't have much of that either. Maybe a main meal of lean protein, green veg and a drizzle of olive oil. 1200 isn't much though !

Instead:

B. 3 scrambled eggs, greek yogurt, low sugar apple compte

L. Homemade lentil and veg soup, cottage cheese. An apple/grapes/an orange

D. Grilled chicken, roast veg, jacket potato

I normally have to have 1200 calories to lose slowly, according to my fitness pal. I find it hard at first then get used to it. 1500 cal has me gaining weight.

You need slow release carbs and protein. I am not a big eater but I would be ravenous if that was my daily food. I love watermelon but it’s not a meal. It’s really just something to refresh you when it’s hot.

Look at having oats for breakfast and an omelette for lunch. A decent enough sized bowl of oats with skimmed milk will only set you back about 250 cals. If you can’t do the omelette at lunch due to work, have that for breakfast and take oats in for lunch. This would leave you with 700 calories for snacks and dinner.

that looks like way less than 1200 calories.

i would be starving if thats all i ate too.

i think you need more protein.

i dont count calories ever on slimming world but always loose weight and eat way more calories than this, and never feel hungry

I usually have 1200 and eat

B: 100g protein yoghurt, small banana, strawberries
L: tomato soup, couple of slices of wholemeal bread, apple, orange
D: meat or fish, vegetables and a small portion of carbs of some kind

I don't use calories on snacks as I prefer more at mealtimes. 1600 is maintenance for me so I need 1200 to lose.

And yes, what you've posted is much less than 1200 calories.

5'7
10st 8lb

HUGE stomach fat, subcutaneous rolls on rolls, it's honestly huge.

Goal weight: 9stone 2lb.

I weighted it and MyFitnessPal says it's 1199 so 1 cal off.

My standard dinner is a salad with lettuce, tomatoes, red pepper, cucumber, 30g of feta cheese, a poached egg and either lean chicken or tuna from a can.

The example you’ve given is very high in sugar, which is the worst culprit for belly fat. Heinz soups (and any tinned soups) are laden with salt and sugar; they’re so bad for you. You need to opt for berries over sugary fruits too.

Agreed that the Heinz soup is the culprit.

its may also be that 10 stone or 10 stone 8 is your natural weight for how tall you are. 58kg at your height is very skinny, with a BMI of 20. A bmi of 18.4 is underweight, so I think it will be hard getting to that weight.

I manage on 1200 quite well and I eat loads more than that. I only started a month ago and have found it much easier than I expected. I use the Neutra Check app which I love.

I have started roasting vegetables - peppers, tomatoes, onions, sweet potato, courgettes. You can eat mountains for a couple of hundred calories. Add some roast chicken or salmon and it's so satisfying.

I also manage to fit chocolate in every day.

9st 2 is so little! Is that even possible at your height?! I'm just under 10 stone at 5'4" and am a size 10.

Fruit, can soup and premade curry sauce are full of sugar. Fruit sugar is ok but...
Same as normal sugar, once it wears off you will be extra hungry.
Try avoiding sugar, limiting simple cabs (as they also cause hunger spikes) and eat, protein, vegetable and fat as they do not cause it.

I see what people are saying about the sugar.

The thing is, I'm 10stone 8lb and my stomach is huge. Not hard, just rolls of soft fat on top of each other and I'm desperate to slim it down I've been doing 2x exercise classes for 4 months and it doesn't seem to have toned me at all

Change what you eat and the fat will go away. What you’re eating is crap and won’t do much for your belly. Belly fat like that is usually 100% sugar.

I'd find 1200 hard to stick to susbtainably.

I've got my goal set to 1200 in Nutracheck, which is the lowest it allows (I'm 63 and 5'1" so TDEE is very low) , but the app is linked to my Apple Watch so gets a reasonable estimate of exercise cals. We usually walk about 8km a day (DH is retired, I'm part time - obviously this isn't possible for many people). So I can eat more and still be 'in credit', resulting in slow but steady weight loss.

So, exercise that steadily burns calories may be helpful. I'm not sure about 'toning' - Pilates is great for your core and also posture.

Totally agree with PP re what you're eating. Less sugar, more protein and veg.

Try porridge in the morning, or low fat greek yogurt with banana and berries; they're Slow releasing and will make you feel fuller for longer.
snack on things like nuts, carrot sticks, hummus, cucumber.
and if you're going to have soup or curry make it yourself from scratch. Ultra processed foods will only contribute to your belly fat.
what kind of exercise are you doing? HIIT and cardio like swimming, running are good for belly fat.

I joined a fitness nutrition group, they said my fitness pal is way off on Calories and is not sustainable. No one should really be on 1200 cals (this is what I was given on my fitness pal). I was 5ft 2 and around 10.8 stone and I think my cals were about 1900.
Have a look at tdee calculator or similar and it will give you the correct calorie for your height and weight and you can edit it in your settings of my fitness pal app

I'm not far off your height and 8 and a half stone and my diet is nothing like that - would drive me insane! Today I had:

B: Protein shake including spinach, banana and peanut butter

2 Weetabix with flax seed and oat milk

L: tempeh and mixed bean salad on toast with avocado

Snack a small amount of yoghurt and fruit

D: stir fry with tofu and pesto

Could you try cutting out /down meat? Plant based has truly changed everything for me.