I was on a strict low carb, high protein, zero sugar eating plan with very low calories (between 800-900) and have lost over 30 lbs.

I have plateaued for the past 3-4 weeks and have realized that with the amount of exercise I do, I am just not getting enough calories and therefore, my body is holding on to what it has. Also, I had become very cranky!

I have decided to count my calories and aim for 1200-1400 per day which I know is still on the low end, but in previous years, I have always had success at this range.

Anyways, today is day 1 and I have entered all of my food for the day in Sparkpeople and I only am at 1000 calories and it's a TON of food!

Any suggestions on how many calories per meal I should be aiming for? And, if you can give me an example of your daily menu, that would be awesome too!

thank you!!

I try to aim for 3 meals and 2 snacks. I def. think 800-900 is way to low, you are right, your working your body hard and it doesn´t want to let go of anything. I think 1100-1400 is perfect and try to stay in that.

Breakfast: 3 egg white omelette with whatever veg. I have, peppers, onion, mushroom, spinach..you know the usual.

Snack: 80 calorie granola bar, or fruit.

Lunch: Sandwich. I use sugar free wheat bread, a little meat and a ton of veg, with no mayo or mustard. Or some type of veg soup.

Dinner: (I try to eat at 5 and no later than 6). usually meat, steak or chicken and veg, or maybe a salad (i try to only eat carbs morning or mid-day.)

Desert- usually ¨ice cream¨ (i freeze a yogurt and fruit and then blend them together, its like 140 calories) or I do greek yogurt with cut up fresh fruit, or on a bad night I do ¨cake in a cup¨1 egg white, 2 tablespoons wheat flour, 1 tablespoon cocoa, or peanut butter, and 2 spoons milk.


Wow, ok this is longer than I was expecting, but I hope it helps. I totally understand how it feels to just be stuck! Good luck girl, you´re almost there!

Breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, dinner like a pauper. (eat more of your calories earlier in the day)

low carb is known to make some cranky.

I make my daily menu up as I go, but a few examples (not all on the same day obviously).

Breakfast:
Bacon sandwiches.
2-3 egg ham and cheese omelette.
full english.
pancakes.
fried egg sandwich

Lunch:
Apple, banana, nuts

Dinner:
Chicken korma.
hamburgers and pan fried potatoes
stew
Chilli
slow roast joint, sage and onion stuffing and mash
spag bog

It's only really pastry or bread based meals I've had to cut out as they don't substitute all that well, anything else can be made pretty lean.

I start my "day's" calorie count with my most unpredictable meal, which happens to be dinner. Dinner is also my biggest meal. When I was losing, I would have 700-800 calories at night (dinner + 2 espressos w/ sambucca). My breakfast & lunch would be about 300 calories each.

Your instincts about eating more are spot on. It's important not to go too low. We tend to lose muscle as we lose weight, but I've heard that it's even worse if you go super low calorie. Also, if you lose fast, IMHO, it damages your skin tone (although if you're young enough & haven't yo-yo dieted too much, you'll bounce back from that). Overall, I just don't think it's good for the body in general to lose a lot of weight really fast. It's got to be a shock to the system.

I know that 1000 calories seems like a ton of food now, but just wait: When you get used to that amount, it may see difficult to stay within it. I have been trying to maintain since November; my maintenance calories are 2200 per day, and I have a hard time not going above that.

thank you everyone for your advice and suggestions!

I am the hungriest at dinner time so that usually tends to be my biggest meal. Like you Lin43, I like to plan my calories around my dinner and go from there.

I work out 5-6 days a week doing different activities... kick boxing, circuit class, cross-country skiing and jogging on my treadmill.

On the days I work out, should I increase my calories a bit and if so, how much?

hi Sara, if you're like me, you're superbusy and need some easy choosings for food throughout the day.

Like you, I work out about 6 days a week and this is my normal food intake:

breakfast: 80 cal fiber cereal with almond milk OR protein shake
sometimes mid morning snack of fruit and/or yogurt
lunch: healthy choice steamers (I think they're kinda new and they are delicious, with veggies and all) or salad
snack: usually fruit or healthy snack bar
dinner: something healthy I have whipped up for the family.

I aim for 1200 calories per day, as it works for me. If I have a super hard workout day, I'll let myself go a little over. I've lost almost 25 lbs in 7 weeks.

Hope this helps you