I currently weigh 210, and I want to be under 200 when I go to London next month on September 27th. I've tried for weeks to keep my calories at 1400, but I always wind up going over. I feel like if I set it at 1200, I'll have to be more conscientious and stick to it, and will be more likely to meet my goal.

But for some of the more seasoned calorie counters out there, am I being unrealistic? Is 1200 calories too low?

I dunno, if you are always going over 1400 then I don't think setting the bar lower is going to help...

How long have you been calorie counting - is the 1400 a new thing or have you been at it so long you're feeling a bit deprived? How much are you going over? 100 extra calories a day or 1000? Are you going over on mini-binges or portion size?

So many questions... but I really don't think 1200 is your answer to any of them....

I would not go below 1200, you have over a month to lose 10 pounds, I think you can do it, but don't cheat ! In 6 weeks I think you can lose 10 pounds. I think 1400 calories would be a good amount of calories, but you have to stick to it. Exercise will help you to reach your goal.

I totally agree with Vladadog. If you are having trouble sticking to 1400 cal/day it's pretty certain dropping them isn't going to help. Why don't you start by committing to stick to the 1400/day. No plan will work if you don't commit to sticking to it.

I think 1200 is very low- when you go over 1400 how much over? Just by my own quick calculation I figure you should be eating around 1575 calories a day.

210 lbs x 10 calories/lb x 75% of calories (.75) = 1575.

That's just the formula I go by- even though I'm more of a carb counter. I eat around 1350-1500 calories a day.

Hey -- thanks for the advice.

Most of the time, I get into "eff it" mode - where when I go a little bit over (like, let's say it's dinner time and I'm at 1200 calories), I'll just eat wildly over. So most days, I probably hit around 2000. I think I'm going to aim for about 1500, then, and hopefully that's enough to keep me satisfied, but low enough to ensure weight loss.

I think that my biggest problem is mindless snacking, to be honest.

Journaling before I eat anything definitely helps me with mindless snacking. I just don't like seeing it written down. Maybe you could meet yourself halfway and commit to dropping your calories by 250 to 1750/day and burning an extra 250 every day = ~1500. You'll probably do lots more walking on holiday in London, so you could think of the extra exercise as trip prep.

I do The Daily Plate, and it definitely helps to see everything I've eaten right there on the screen with all of the nutritional breakdowns, because it makes me more responsible. I have to say that I did 1575 yesterday exactly and dropped 3.5 pounds. Of course, it was also the end of TOM, but I don't usually bloat up *that* much, so I'm very, very pleased. And wound up feeling very satisfied.

I feel like 1750 would let me get away with too much. I think 1575 (or thereabouts as I lose weight) is just enough to make me feel like I'm getting enough food without giving me license to go overboard.

And yeah, I'm looking forward to London for a lot of reasons, but mostly because the last time I went, I was walking an insane amount and in two weeks I dropped around 12 pounds. And kept it off all summer. It felt great.

Oh yes 2000 is much higher than 1200! No wonder you are going crazy at dinner.

I used to snack a lot also- I read "conquering your food addiction" and how a lot of times we do things out of habit. I got a hobby, I had some coworkers who crocheted so I learned how and since you need TWO hands to crochet and don't want to get food on your lovely projects you don't eat while you crochet

I also drink water before eating if I'm hungry- sometimes the body mistakes hunger for thirst.

Good luck! Looks like the 1575 already helped after a day- glad you felt satisfied

Every 10 lbs lost re-evaluate that number- that's what I would do. When I first started I was eating around 1800 calories a day (at 235) and now I'm down to around 1500.

Beerab, is "Conquering You Food Addictions" a book? If so, I need to read it. I really like the idea of getting a hobby that can be done at home.

Hmmm -- earlier in the day, can you eat more veggies than carbs or protein? It could fill you up more and leave your before-dinner calorie count lower. Even for snacking, if you have a baggie full of sliced bell peppers, carrots, and snow peas, that could also help.

Yup! It's called "Conquering your food addiction" by Caryl Elrich. It does have a diet plan but I didn't read any of that- she talked a lot about behavioral issues that cause us to overeat and snack and binge- I read it twice it was so helpful for me

I agree- I took up crochet and omg it's been great- it's not too expensive and you can just take your time and I found it to be a great stress reliever- of course there are tons of other hobbies but I found the ones that keep your hands busy work best And I love giving my projects away- I gave a handmade baby blanket to a coworker who LOVED IT. I made scarves for christmas gifts, I made a purse for my sister's friend, and now I'm working on a blanket for my sister and it's tons of fun!

I just wanted to come back and say thank you to you guys again.

I'm down to 203 now, eating 1500-1700 calories.

Good for you! It's nice to be able to actually eat AND lose!