1200 Calorie Dieting

I get lots of questions about my choice to go on a 1200 calorie diet: "Aren't you hungry all the time?" "How much weight have you lost?" "What do you eat?" "Why this diet and not something else?" The list goes on and on...
Before I address these questions, let me start off by saying that I'm NOT a registered dietitian or nutritionist or anyone else you should be taking health advise from. I would never suggest that you do anything that might harm you in any way, so be sure to run everything by your doctor before making any changes to your diet.

Now with that out if the way, let me tell you a little of why I prefer a 1200 calorie diet. As I've mentioned in previous posts, I've tried several diets over the course of my 20's and now into my early 30's and this really works for me! I was able to fit into my wedding dress thanks to Weight Watchers. I survived a WHOLE WEEK on Adkins! Both these diets (as well as others) taught me to think about how and what I eat, but the ironic thing about a limited calorie diet is that it has taught me to think of food as fuel. When you do it right, you don't eat because you have to "meet a quota", but you eat to fuel your body.

Most people find it difficult to even start a 1200 calorie and I can't really blame them. Here's one of the most recent article I've read. Here's what they say a 1200 calorie diet looks like:

I'd be scared of that, too.

Sure it's difficult to NOT eat the entire bag of Jalapeno Cheetos, but self control is probably the #1 key to a successful...anything. A little bit of that really goes a long way!

So, to answer all the questions about this particular diet:

Q: "Aren't you hungry all the time?" 

A: No. In fact, I probably eat every 3-4 hours.

Q: "How much weight have you lost?"

A: I recently lost 4 pounds and one pant size in 4 weeks.

Q:"What do you eat?"
A: This is a hard one for people to believe, so I have created a week sample from My Fitness Pal food diary. Before you judge me, please know that I am a regular American woman with a full time job and a husband and a dog. It's hard to make pretty much anything from scratch and most times sometimes convenience trumps over pretty much anything. All that means is that I do eat packaged, processed foods, but when I do, I try to make the best choices. Here's proof:

 

Notice that when you exercise, you are allotted more calories. You don't have to eat the extra calories and you'll lose weight quicker if you don't, but if you're like me, you'll need 'em! It is, however, imperative that you ABSOLUTELY eat all 1200 calories. If you don't, you could be causing your body some harm, so don't do that.

Hopefully, you can see by my food journal that you can eat real food and still be satisfied. This diet works, (ask Mila Kunis) but you really have to stick with it. After the first 2 weeks, your body starts to get used to it. Some people have asked about my energy level and I honestly have to say- I have MORE energy on this diet than when I do when I eat whatever I want when I want. For obvious reasons, of course.

Ready to get started? Download My Fitness Pal and let the fun begin!