I have been (trying to anyway) doing the 1200 calories a day thing. I'm short and not very active, so I don't create much of a calorie deficit through exercise. But it seems like I am always STARVING. I can make it through morning and early afternoon fine, but once 3:00 or so hits, all I think about is food. I usually end up going over by a couple hundred calories once all is said and done and I go to bed feeling awful about myself.

Anyone else having a hard time with this? What do you do? Is it possible I'm not giving myself enough calories? I've been doing this for a little over 2 weeks and have lost 2.5 pounds. It was about 4 pounds, but I put 1.5 pounds back on during this time, so 2.5 pounds total. So 1.25 a week.

Any advice/insight?

Thanks.

I didn't do the calorie thing, but when i cut down IMMENSELY on my food intake (eating three decent sized meals and healthy snacks 2 times a day) I was starving too. But then my stomach shrank, and now im only hungry when I should be eating, and sometimes not even that.

You could try adding in a 100-200 calories and see if that helps. At your weight, a loss of even .5 lbs per week is a good one.

Also, I find that eating several small meals (snacks) works great!
I make sure I get some protein every time I eat, and I incorporate a lot of veggies - particularly in the afternoon.

Try a low-fat string cheese, and some veggies and a cup of tea, or coffee, or diet soda around 3:00 - see if that helps.

1200 is tough, but not impossible. At that calorie level, though, it's REALLY important *what* you eat, to keep you feeling full. Can you post an average day's menu and maybe we can give you some suggestions?

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1200 is achievable, but it takes some adjustment. I second the suggestion to post what your menus look like - maybe it can be tweaked.

At 1200 calories, which is what I stick to, it's uber important that you make each and every calorie count. Fiber. Protein. More Fiber. More protein. Very filling stuff. And of course very nutritious. I'm also a mere 5 feet tall and through trial and error, I've found that unfortunately my body just doesn't require more calories then that to run on.

I like to eat often to avoid that hungry feeling. I don't do "hungry". I can honestly say that it's a rarity that I'm hungry. Being hungry would defiinitely set me up for failure. So I break down my calories into a bunch of mini-meals/snacks. Lots and lots and lots of veggies. Egg white omlettes. Chicken breast. Tuna. Salmon. FF/SF yogurt. More veggies. Salads. Stir-fries.

If you're hungry at 3:00, I would eat at 3:00. A FF/SF yogurt with some Fiber One cereal thrown in is a great, filling, low cal snack. Cottage cheese. And I agree, hot tea is a great filler too.

I too was wondering what it is that you're eating. Perhaps your menu could use a little tweaking.

I'm having problems getting enough calories in...usu. I have ~1,000...somedays a little more, somedays a little less

ok, so I got my notebook. I'll do 2 "typical" days

Breakfast:
cereal/milk (cereal varies, usually Life or Fiber One)
pear

Snack:
granola bar

LUNCH:
salad (mostly green but with some FF cheese, hard boiled egg and FF dressing)

3:00 Snack:
WW bread with peanut butter
2 rice cakes (caramel or cheddar)

DINNER:
1/3 Kashi pizza (with extra veggies added on top)

BEFORE BED SNACK:
handful of almonds

Another day:

Breakfast:
cereal/banana/milk

Snack:
rice cakes

Lunch:
WW black bean and cheese quesadilla
skim milk

Snack:
Graham crackers

DINNER:
egg with fat-free cheese on high fiber bread
turkey bacon
pear

SNACK:
Cheez-Its



It's obvious I like my carbs. I try to eat light snacks earlier in the day because I am not as hungry and those satisfy me. That way I can have more "free" calories for later in the day and at night. But it still doesn't seem to help.

And yes, with 1200 calories, EVERY SINGLE calorie counts! I can't add in this here or that there without going over. Usually I end up with between 1400-1500 calories. Which is not awful, but if I do that, I should move my franny more. lol. The two days I posted were days when I actually stayed within my 1200 calories.

Also, I have been drinking 48 ounces of water (1/8 juice and 7/8 water) each day in addition to whatever else I drink that day. It is NOT helping me to feel full or less hungry at ALL.

I would like to say though that before I logged on here, my intent was to raid the cupboards for snacks. I didn't care, I was hungry! Then I logged on, posted this and have since eaten a pear and now I am on my way to bed. YAY! So you guys are a big help! Thank you!

I definitely think more veggies would help you feel full for not many calories.

One thing I learned from Weight Watchers was the concept of the Zero Point soup. I count calories now, but I have a few soups that are very very very low calorie per serving - a cabbage/carrot soup, a butternut soup, etc. Each serving is around 100 calories, but it's really really filling. I eat a serving for a snack and it gets me more veggies for the day, plus helping me feel full.

I'll post recipes if you're interested.

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Thanks so much for looking. Yes.. I should more veggies, huh?

Actually, I have a slow cooker cookbook with some crazy low-calorie soups (cabbage soups, especially, as low as 40 cals per serving!)

Tonight for dinner, we have some of that Campbell's Select Harvest Light soup.. lots of veggies (50 cals per serving) and I mixed in some leftover chicken breast. It was REALLY good. My kids loved it too, so that's good. I could probably even put extra veggies in it huh? To get more of the FRESH factor in.

I just want crackers and bread! lol.

Hahah. Yeah, that's my weakness too. We had veggie soup for dinner and DH bought a loaf of french bread. I had 1 small slice and he ate most of the rest of it. Brat.

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mm.. french bread. My local bakery makes these loaves of super-squooshy italian bread, just a bit smaller than a normal loaf of bread and in recent past, I have been known to eat a WHOLE loaf in one sitting with some Country Crock spread. SO GOOD. I don't know how to just have one piece of that stuff. I am all about the bread. Sigh.

I definitely second the vegetables...
Whenever I'm hungry but don't want more calories I eat things like a whole can of green bean (only 70 cals) or an entire zucchini chopped up and fried with a little organic olive oil spray with minced garlic... sooo good and filling. Egg whites is another thing I eat a lot of. I just mix egg whites with about 1/2cup spinach, some red and green onion, peppers, and sometimes tomatoes with seasoning salt. It's a huge plate of food for well under 100 calories

Yes indeedy!!! More veggies. And protein. I'd also be starving on what you're eating.

Those granola bars are glorified candy bars. No sticking power.

1/3 of a pizza? Also not so filling. Salmon and veggies or a salad. Chicken breast stir fry. Turkey meatballs with spaghetti squash.

Snack? Cheez-its? Rice Cakes. Sorry, but that's air food. Sooo incredibly unsatisfying. Hows about an apple and 10 pitachio nuts? Or some cottage cheese and berries? Or yogurt and Fiber One? An egg white omlette and sauteed veggies?

For lunch. How about adding a can of tuna in water or canned salmon to that salmon. It's full of protein and will fill you up.

I personally LOVE, LOVE, LOVE bread as well - which is why I basically gave it up. I simply could not lose the weight and have it in my life. Cause like you said - I could eat a whole loaf. For me, I'm much better just saying no altogether then opeing up the door. It's a choice. But when I gave up the bread, within a couple of weeks, my cravings for it really, really slowed down to almost non-existient. Hard to believe, but true.

Oh yeah. And soups ARE great. Butternut Squash soup is fantastic. MAke a big pot. It freezes beautifully.

Besides the veggies, you really do need to be more active. How many hours a week to you work out? And, it doesn't look like you're taking in enough protein in your diet. Also, you need to drink more water, try to add another 12 ounces to your current intake.