The danger in consuming less calories
The 1200 calorie per day menu is the best option for a person who wants to stay healthy without putting in much effort. This is how much energy the body requires daily for normal functioning. Consuming fewer calories causes stress and disruption of proper metabolism.
They lead to negative consequences:
- sleep disturbance;
- fatigue;
- depression;
- dizziness;
- swelling;
- hair loss;
- brittle nails and teeth.
Side effects may be more serious:
- absence of menstruation or cycle disruption (due to hormonal imbalance);
- inflammation of the joints (due to increased levels of uric acid in the blood);
- exhaustion (with a lack of calories, the body begins to process muscle tissue (instead of fat) to maintain blood sugar levels and obtain vital energy).
This diet is suitable exclusively for girls, for whom the norm of 1200 calories is a reduction of the usual diet by no more than 30%. Such nutrition is not suitable for the stronger sex due to a lack of nutrients. Carbohydrates are important for normal hormone production and mental performance.
How long can you go on a 1200 calorie diet?
It is not recommended to continue the diet for more than three weeks. Even if you feel great, take a break from the diet for one to three months in order to speed up your slow metabolism and normalize your water-salt balance. This is also useful from a psychological point of view - constant restriction subconsciously sets the body to accumulate fat reserves, so weight loss may stop.
Power efficiency
Most diets are based on maximum fluid loss from the body in a short period of time, resulting in rapid weight loss. But when the water balance returns to normal, the extra pounds also return.
In the 1200 calorie diet, the results of the first week are not noticeable: only a couple of kilograms are lost, but after starting the correct metabolism, the amount of fat will decrease every day. On average, per month you lose 5-7 kg of your original weight, which does not return if you follow the diet correctly.
The optimal way to maintain health is to lose weight by 200 g per day, which is about 1-1.5 kg per week.
The greater the total body weight, the easier and faster the weight loss. But the last few kilograms that are needed to achieve the desired figure will come off very slowly. Here you can no longer do without physical exercise; in this case, any diet will lose relevance.
Diet 1200 calories a day: reviews and weight loss results
Reviews about this weight loss technique are positive. Almost everyone who has lost weight is very happy, since there is no feeling of hunger and at the same time you can play sports and do normal things.
Reviews from those who have lost weight:
- Alina, Stavropol . I can’t say that I was a plump person, but after the winter I had a few extra pounds. Weighed 68 kg. A friend recommended this technique to me, which I really liked. The most important thing is that you don’t want to eat. In 3 months I lost 7 kg and now my weight is 61 kg. I weighed this much before pregnancy. I feel good, I'm very happy.
- Svetlana, Moscow. Nowadays it is very fashionable to be a vegan and all sorts of diets. After I changed jobs, I began to recover rapidly. After all, office work is not associated with physical activity. Accordingly, my weight increased. I went on this diet and lost weight from 75 kg to 70 in 2 months. Now I continue to diet. I'm already looking for new things.
- Elena, Ufa. I constantly go on all sorts of diets because I need to stay in shape. I recently tried the 1200 calorie diet. The result impressed me. In 4 months minus 12 kg. At the same time, there is no hunger, the state of health is excellent. Now I will choose only this method of weight loss.
Diet 1200 calories a day: reviews and results of weight loss
The 1200 calorie diet is well tolerated and allows you to maintain the lost weight for a long time.
Advantages
The advantages of this way of eating are:
- Guaranteed results and long-lasting effects if you strictly follow the recommendations.
- No harm to physical health.
- The psychological state is normal: there is no hunger strike, which means there is no stress.
- A varied and healthy diet.
- Independent menu creation.
- Clear motivation when keeping a food diary, where achievements are visible.
- Eating food at convenient times.
- The opportunity to pamper yourself with your favorite food.
- There is no need for physical activity.
Flaws
Among the negative features of the diet are:
- The diet requires endurance. Although such a system can be classified as a proper and healthy diet, not everyone will dare to choose it, since they will have to change their habits for a long period.
- Constantly counting the number of calories eaten. A particular difficulty arises when the dish has many components.
- Weighing all food.
- Inability to eat on the go.
- Spending a lot of time preparing meals every day to create a varied menu.
- The presence of fatigue at the very beginning of the diet due to the body’s inability to adapt to the new nutrition system. But this goes away in 2-3 days.
- Incompatibility with physical activity.
Several recipes for the 1200 diet
A simple 1200 calorie diet menu involves eating low-calorie foods. To make the menu varied, you need to remember a few easy-to-prepare dishes.
Kefir cocktails with fruits or vegetables
Any snack can be tasty and healthy if you blend low-fat kefir with any fresh or frozen berries and fruits in a blender. Alternatively, you can beat kefir with fresh cucumber or mint, adding dill, fennel, and lemon balm inside. You will get a low-calorie diet unsweetened drink.
Baked apples with cottage cheese
- Core the apples without cutting them.
- Place low-fat cottage cheese mixed with raw egg and washed raisins into the hole.
- Bake in the oven until soft.
Vegetable vinaigrette with white beans
- Boil carrots, beets, white beans (or take canned ones), chop the vegetables, add chopped pickles and onions.
- Season with olive oil, herbs, and salt.
- Do not add potatoes.
(see here for more diet recipes)
Braised cabbage
Watch the video recipe on how to cook stewed cabbage. The dish contains only 52 kcal per 150g:
Authorized Products
The 1200 calorie per day menu is based on adding to the daily diet the maximum amount of natural products that can saturate the body with useful substances, improve well-being and lift your mood.
In the modem table you can see what exactly will help:
Product category | Product examples |
Cereals and flour | Buckwheat, brown rice, pearl barley, rolled oats (not instant), durum pasta, crispbread, whole grain and rye bread |
Vegetables | Cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, zucchini, avocado, peppers, ginger, a small amount of potatoes |
Fruits and berries | Apples, oranges, tangerines, lemon, kiwi, pineapples, sometimes: bananas, strawberries, raspberries, cranberries |
Dairy and fermented milk products | Yogurt without fillers, milk, kefir and cottage cheese with low fat content, in small quantities: hard cheese |
Bird | Chicken, turkey |
Meat | Rabbit, lean beef, veal |
Fish | Cod, pollock, pink salmon |
Beverages | Water, decoctions, green and herbal tea, chicory, sugar-free compotes, in small quantities: coffee |
Unrefined vegetable oils | In very small quantities: flaxseed, sesame, sunflower |
Mushrooms, eggs, seafood |
When fulfilling the basic requirements of the diet, you should not go to extremes. If you really want something sweet, then instead of your favorite bun, it’s better to treat yourself to a spoonful of honey or baked goods with stevia; in extreme cases, get by with a square of dark chocolate. You are allowed to eat a handful of nuts (preferably unroasted almonds) or dried fruits. Your favorite seasonings, spices and herbs will add flavor to the dish.
1200 calorie diet menu for a month
If you decide to spend a month on a low-calorie diet of 1,200 calories, develop a menu for each day.
Important! The energy value of all foods consumed during the day should not exceed 1200 calories!
Eliminate the following foods from your monthly menu:
- sugar and baked goods;
- canned food;
- fried and smoked foods;
- sausage, frankfurters, dumplings.
Include the following foods in your low-calorie menu for the month:
- porridge;
- durum pasta;
- fruits and berries;
- vegetables;
- low-fat dairy products;
- quail eggs;
- lean white meat;
- fish and seafood.
Also, do not forget about important recommendations:
- drink more fluids;
- eat as often as possible and chew food thoroughly;
- if you feel weak, stop limiting the energy value of your diet;
- include the maximum variety of ingredients in your diet: fish, meat, vegetables, fruits, cereals, dairy products;
- exclude fried and fatty foods, as well as sweets and baked goods;
- Divide your daily diet into three main meals, and have snacks between them without waiting until you feel hungry.
When planning your monthly menu, use the following options for your three main meals.
Breakfast:
- any porridge (oatmeal, buckwheat, millet);
- boiled egg;
- cottage cheese casserole;
- low-fat cheese, banana.
Dinner:
- vegetable soup, steam cutlet;
- meat borsch;
- chicken broth, vinaigrette;
- stew of meat or fish with vegetables;
- boiled fish and carrot salad.
Dinner:
- cottage cheese with sour cream;
- steam omelette, juice;
- boiled potatoes, sauerkraut salad;
- boiled cauliflower, boiled egg;
- steamed beef cutlet, cabbage salad;
- baked fish fillet, cucumber salad;
- porridge with milk.
Between them, arrange mandatory snacks in the form of fruit, kefir, milk, juice or herbal tea. Don't forget to drink more water.
Prohibited Products
Despite the absence of strict prohibitions, you should carefully monitor your diet:
- Limit the amount of sweets and starchy foods. This especially applies to store-bought cakes, pastries and sweets containing huge amounts of sugar and butter. You can sometimes allow yourself to eat a piece, but you should remember that a small biscuit contains the same amount of calories as a full meal of vegetables and meat. Only after the first meal will the feeling of hunger increase, and a hearty lunch or dinner will give you a boost of energy for several hours.
- Replace fatty and fried foods with boiled, stewed or baked foods. Use a minimal amount of oil when cooking or not use it at all. Thus, the breakdown of fatty and fried foods in the body leads to the formation of carbohydrates and an increase in the calorie content of the dish by 3 or 4 times.
- Try to avoid canned and smoked foods.
- Remove sweet carbonated water and alcoholic drinks from your diet (due to their high content of fast carbohydrates).
- Avoid fast food and store-bought sauces. Two burgers is already the norm for calories per day, but there is no benefit in it, but carbohydrates, fats and hunger are provided for the whole day after just a couple of hours. Store-bought sauces also interfere with normal metabolism, so if you really want to, you can make the dressing yourself, for example, using natural yogurt, herbs and spices as a base.
Rules for creating a diet
The 1200 calorie per day menu includes simple and relatively inexpensive products, so it is accessible to everyone. The diet should be varied and satisfying. A balanced intake of proteins, fats and carbohydrates throughout the day is an integral part of this low-calorie diet.
As a percentage:
Squirrels | Fats | Carbohydrates (complex) | |
15% | 30% | 55% | |
3% animal origin | 27% plant origin |
The right foods should make up the majority of the diet, and the consumption of fast carbohydrates contained in prohibited foods should be kept to a minimum.
The 1200 calorie diet follows the same principles as a healthy diet. Preference should be given to green vegetables and herbs. Other vegetables should also be included in the diet, but in smaller quantities.
The effectiveness of the diet also depends on the freshness of the food and on the method of preparation; it is recommended to boil, steam or eat foods raw to achieve better results.
You can’t stop your choice on one dish. Mono-diets due to an incomplete menu negatively affect human health, since they do not provide the body with all useful substances. 1200 calories should be divided into 5 meals.
Then, in percentage terms, you get approximately the following volume for each meal:
Breakfast | Snack | Dinner | Afternoon snack | Dinner |
25% | 10% | 35% | 10% | 20% |
300 kcal | 120 kcal | 420 kcal | 120 kcal | 240 kcal |
Breakfast should be rich in fiber and carbohydrates to give you energy for the day. In no case should you refuse it, because the metabolism in the body for the whole day depends on breakfast.
High-carbohydrate foods are digested well in the morning, so if you want to eat something from the list of prohibited foods, it is better to do it in the first half of the day, remembering to write down the number of calories acquired. It is also advisable to eat protein foods in the morning . For example, an egg, a piece of cheese or cottage cheese will only add useful components to the first meal.
Lunch is the main meal of the day, which includes almost half of the total calorie intake. This must include at least two dishes. A great option is to combine soup or vegetable salad with the main dish.
For dinner, it is advisable to eat foods that contain a minimum amount of calories to give your stomach a rest at night.
Then the body’s energy during sleep will be spent not on digesting leftover food, but on burning fat. Carbohydrates should not be consumed at the last meal.
Snacks include fruits and berries, which are rich in fiber and slow carbohydrates. The sugars they contain will increase concentration and lift your mood. The mineral component will be replenished by dairy products. Eating cottage cheese or yogurt is a must in your daily diet. It is acceptable to drink a glass of kefir before bed.
Sample menu for 1200 kcal for weight loss
When drawing up a menu for losing weight by 1200 kcal, you need to take into account your height, age, ideal weight, your metabolism, daily calorie needs, physical activity rate, energy consumption and other indicators. Based on these data, we calculate BJU norms for a calorie diet of 1200 kcal.
An approximate menu of proper nutrition for 1200 kcal for weight loss could be as follows:
The calorie content of the diet is 1231 kcal. BJU ratio: proteins – 69 g, fats – 54.5 g, carbohydrates – 116.7 g.
Breakfast 363.1 KCAL BJU 22.9 / 23.8 / 14
In the fight against extra pounds, you should not underestimate such a meal as breakfast. It is breakfast that determines whether you will be full during the day or hungry, active or lethargic. Breakfast should make up about 25–30% of your daily caloric intake. It should include complex carbohydrates and proteins, and be tasty and healthy!
- The ideal time for breakfast is from 07-00 to 09-00 am. To actively remove toxins from the body, you need to drink 1-2 glasses of water at room temperature on an empty stomach.
- Recommended breakfast dishes: porridge, scrambled eggs, scrambled eggs, healthy homemade shawarma, cheesecakes, pancakes, baked apples, vegetable salads, diet sandwiches, low-fat cheeses, cottage cheese with a fat content of up to 5%.
Breakfast for a 1200 kcal menu
Snack 149.2 KCAL BJU 2.5 / 7.9 / 16.0
A snack with five meals a day should be 10-15% of the daily calorie intake. Typically, the first snack should be included between breakfast and lunch and should include fruits, nuts, sweet salads, smoothies, dried fruits, bread, cheese, proper snacks or proper diet baked goods.
Snack for a 1200 kcal menu
Lunch 331.9 KCAL BJU 16.9 / 9.9 / 44.2
Lunch is the basis of proper nutrition for weight loss. Lunch with proper nutrition should be nutritious and balanced. With five meals a day, it should be about 35% of the daily calorie intake and include soups, borscht, cabbage soup in chicken and beef broth, porridge, whole grain or rye bread, protein foods, salads, and dietary desserts.
Lunch for a 1200 kcal menu
Afternoon snack 147.4 KCAL BJU 4.3 / 5.2 / 22.0
An afternoon snack with five meals a day should be 10-15% of the daily calorie intake. Typically, an afternoon snack with proper nutrition for weight loss should include vegetable salads, cottage cheese with sour cream, fermented milk products, and cottage cheese desserts.
Afternoon snack for menu 1200 kcal
Dinner 239.2 kcal BJU 22.4 / 7.7 / 20.5
For dinner, with five meals a day, you need to leave about 20% of the daily ration. With proper nutrition for weight loss, dinner should include low-fat protein dishes with vegetables, vegetable salads, cheese, eggs, dairy products or milk.
Dinner menu 1200 kcal
Approximate weekly diet
One example of a full menu:
Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner | Afternoon snack | Dinner | |
Monday | 200 g oatmeal with milk -200 kcal, 1 tsp. honey – 50 kcal, 1 apple – 50 kcal | 100 g low-fat cottage cheese – 120 kcal | 200 g baked cod – 160 kcal, 100 g buckwheat porridge – 80 kcal, 200 g pumpkin puree soup – 180 kcal | 200 g yogurt 1.5% - 110 kcal | 200 g of celery soup – 70 kcal, 150 g of salad with chicken and cucumber – 150 kcal |
Tuesday | 200 g of rice porridge with milk - 180, rye bread with hard cheese - 110 kcal | Banana – 140 kcal | 200 g vegetable hodgepodge with mushrooms – 210 kcal, 200 g zucchini soup – 120 kcal, 100 g rice – 80 kcal | 150 g cottage cheese casserole without sugar – 120 kcal | 150 g chicken cutlets - 150 kcal, 200 g carrot and beet salad - 85 kcal |
Wednesday | 200 g of millet porridge with pumpkin – 150 kcal, 5 pieces of dried apricots – 50 kcal, half a glass of cherry compote – 100 kcal | 1 boiled egg – 70 kcal, 1 pear – 50 kcal | 200 g cabbage soup – 80 kcal, 200 g stewed liver – 240 kcal, 100 g pearl barley porridge – 105 kcal | 200 g raspberries – 80 kcal, half a glass of currant juice – 40 kcal | 100 g boiled idea – 200 kcal, 100 g pearl barley porridge – 110 kcal, 100 g green beans – 40 kcal |
Thursday | 200 g apple-curd casserole with raisins – 240 kcal, half a glass of orange juice – 55 kcal | A glass of kefir – 80 kcal, rye bread – 35 kcal | 200 g of chicken noodle soup – 130 kcal, 200 g of boiled potatoes – 160 kcal, 100 g of veal – 130 kcal | 200g tomato and cucumber salad with yogurt -100 kcal | 300 g stuffed cabbage rolls with tomato in sour cream sauce – 240 kcal |
Friday | 100 g oat pancakes – 100 kcal, 100 g fried spinach – 100 kcal, slice of cheese – 100 kcal | 1 orange – 40 kcal, 100 g cottage cheese 1.5% – 70 kcal | 200 g rassolnik – 100 kcal, 100 g carrot salad with egg – 90 kcal, 200 g baked salmon – 240 kcal | 2 apples – 100 kcal, half a glass of tomato juice – 20 kcal | 300 g chicken stewed with pepper – 240 kcal |
Saturday | 200 g omelet with tomato, celery and herbs – 220 kcal, a glass of apple juice – 80 kcal | 200 g of nuts – 130 kcal | 150 g of pasta with shrimp in garlic and cream sauce – 300 kcal, 150 g of beetroot soup – 120 kcal | 200 g honey casserole made from low-fat cottage cheese – 100 kcal | 150 g liver cake – 240 kcal |
Sunday | 200 g of baked cheesecakes without sugar - 230 kcal, half a glass of plum juice - 65 kcal | 200 g yoghurt 1.5% - 115 kcal | 300 g buckwheat soup with chicken – 190 kcal, 2 slices of rye bread – 110 kcal, 100 g zucchini caviar – 125 | 1 grapefruit – 100 kcal | 200 g fish cutlets with green peas – 160 kcal, a glass of 1% kefir – 80 kcal |
1200 calorie diet menu for a week
An approximate weekly menu for 1200 calories for weight loss might look like this:
Day one:
- Breakfast: any porridge, coffee or tea, a slice of whole grain bread with hard cheese.
- Second breakfast – apple.
- Lunch: vegetable soup, baked chicken breast fillet.
- Snack after two to three hours - a glass of yogurt or kefir.
- Dinner: stewed cabbage, carrot salad with apple, juice.
Second day:
- Breakfast: omelet or scrambled eggs, sandwich with cheese.
- Second breakfast – a couple of spoons of oatmeal.
- Lunch: buckwheat porridge with mushrooms, fresh vegetable salad with sour cream.
- Afternoon snack – banana, 20 g prunes or raisins.
- Dinner: pink salmon fillet baked with fresh vegetables, a glass of kefir
Day three:
- Breakfast: rice porridge, one cheesecake with a spoon of sour cream, a slice of hard cheese.
- Second breakfast – half a glass of any berries or 100 g of any fruit.
- Lunch: one stuffed pepper, beet salad with prunes, fruit drink or juice.
- Afternoon snack – orange, 30 g dried apricots.
- Dinner: chicken fillet baked with cauliflower, 150 g of fermented baked milk.
Day four:
- Breakfast: cottage cheese casserole with sour cream and honey, coffee or tea.
- Second light breakfast – 100 g of steamed buckwheat or a boiled egg.
- Lunch: sauerkraut cabbage soup, steamed vegetables.
- Afternoon snack – pear or half a grapefruit.
- Dinner: steamed beef cutlet with warm carrot salad, a glass of kefir.
Day five:
- Breakfast: millet porridge with dried apricots.
- Second breakfast – cheese sandwich, coffee.
- Lunch: Finnish soup.
- Afternoon snack – 100 g of buckwheat steamed with kefir.
- Dinner: baked sea bass with rice, radish and cucumber salad.
Day six:
- Breakfast: oatmeal, green tea.
- Second breakfast – 100 g of grapes.
- Lunch: seaweed salad, chicken broth with egg, a slice of whole grain bread.
- Afternoon snack – half a glass of berries or an orange.
- Dinner: chicken fillet with grilled vegetables, a glass of natural low-fat yogurt.
Day seven:
- Breakfast: cottage cheese with sour cream, coffee.
- Second breakfast – banana.
- Lunch: spinach cream soup, carrot salad with apple.
- Afternoon snack – 150 g of steamed buckwheat.
- Dinner: baked beef with mushrooms, vegetable salad, a glass of kefir.
Low calorie recipes
The diet menu can contain a lot of different dishes.
A few simple and tasty examples:
- Diet puree soup with celery and tomato . Per 100 g: calorie content – 35, proteins – 2, fats – 0, carbohydrates – 5.
Celery | 100 g |
Tomato | 4 things |
Pepper | 2 pcs |
Onion | 1 PC |
Carrot | 1 PC |
Herbs, salt, spices | taste |
The 1200 calorie per day menu includes diet puree soup.
Preparation:
- Wash all vegetables.
- Peel the carrots, onions and grate them.
- Cut the celery into slices, tomatoes and peppers into cubes. Place everything in a saucepan and cook until done.
- Beat with an immersion blender until smooth, add finely chopped herbs, salt and spices.
- Sugar-free cottage cheese casserole . Per 100 g: calorie content – 83, b – 9, g – 3, y – 8.
Cottage cheese | 125 g |
Milk | 50 ml |
Egg | 1 PC |
Banana | 1 PC |
Vanilla | taste |
Preparation:
- Beat the egg whites with an immersion blender.
- Separately, beat the mixture of cottage cheese with milk, banana, yolk and vanilla.
- The consistency becomes similar to thick sour cream. Fold in the egg whites using a whisk or fork.
- Pour the resulting curd mass into a pan lined with parchment paper.
- Bake in a pan lined with parchment paper for 30-40 minutes. at a temperature of 170 degrees.
- It is advisable to serve the dish chilled. You can add honey.
- Chicken with kefir sauce . Per 100 g: calorie content – 85, b – 15, g – 2, y – 5.
Chicken fillet | 300 g |
Kefir | ½ cup |
Greens, pepper, garlic | taste |
Preparation:
- Add finely chopped herbs, grated garlic, pepper to kefir.
- Cut the chicken fillet into pieces and place in the mixture. Let it brew for half an hour or an hour.
- Place in an ungreased frying pan and simmer, covered, until tender, adding marinade periodically.
- Zucchini in whole grain flour batter . Per 100 g: calorie content – 95, b – 2, g – 7, y – 8.
Zucchini | 1 PC |
Whole grain wheat flour | ½ cup |
Kefir | ½ cup |
Egg | 1 PC |
Salt, herbs, spices | taste |
Garlic | 1 clove |
Preparation:
- Peel the zucchini and cut into slices.
- Mix kefir, flour, egg and spices for batter.
- Heat a non-stick frying pan (if not, add a drop of oil).
- Dip the circles into the batter and place in the frying pan. Fry the zucchini on both sides.
- It is best to serve the dish hot with dill and garlic.
Calorie diet: essence and rules for creating a menu
The most common method of losing weight is counting daily calories, with a limit of 1200 kcal per day. More stringent programs suggest a limit of 500 or 800, but such diets require specialist advice.
The essence of the program: reducing portions and the amount eaten to the prescribed norm. Exclusion from the diet is junk food. The basis is balanced meals with a minimum of simple carbohydrates and a maximum of proteins. The main rule is no hunger strikes. It is important to eat small portions 4-5 times a day.
Permitted and prohibited products
All products are steamed or boiled; baking or grilling without oil or fat is allowed. Dishes should not contain spices, salt or sugar.
The diet should include lean turkey, chicken, rabbit or beef. Healthy fats and proteins are found in fish: cod, salmon, hake, mackerel, halibut. A separate source of calcium is cottage cheese, kefir and milk.
Carbohydrates: buckwheat, rice, oatmeal and barley. Granola, whole grain and rye bread, fresh vegetables and fruits are added to the same list. Low-calorie fruits are used: cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, eggplants, carrots, peppers, beets, cabbage, broccoli, plums, apricots, kiwis, oranges. Healthy fats: flaxseed or olive oil, nuts, sesame or sunflower seeds.
Diet “Counting calories” menu for the week: 1200 calories per day
Limiting daily caloric intake ensures uniform weight loss without weight fluctuations and metabolic disturbances. 1200 is the optimal number of kilocalories for weight loss or weight maintenance. The menu is divided into 4-5 meals (additional snack and afternoon snack).
It is important to drink a lot of clean water; tea and coffee without sugar are allowed.
- Monday . For breakfast, boil 3 diet eggs, prepare toast from rye bread with a slice of hard cheese. Lunch - apple. In the afternoon, mushroom soup with croutons and boiled beef. Afternoon snack and evening meal – baked chicken breast and vegetable salad.
- Tuesday. Oatmeal with water (200 g) + drinking yogurt without additives + any berries. As a snack, 40 grams of walnuts. For lunch, boiled crucian carp and Chinese cabbage with cucumber. Dinner – kefir and grapefruit.
- Wednesday. Steamed buckwheat (200 g) + pumpkin juice, lunch – apple jelly. In the afternoon – beetroot soup + a slice of rye bread. Afternoon snack – a glass of fermented baked milk. And for dinner, “Brush” salad.
- Thursday. Rice pudding with strawberry jam, snack – 20 g dates. For lunch and dinner, prepare a 400 g trout steak and cabbage with carrots.
- Friday . Mono fasting day before the weekend: 600 g of boiled buckwheat + 500 ml of kefir (1-1.5% fat content).
- Saturday. Cottage cheese with raisins + apple. Lunch – a glass of fresh juice or vegetable broth. Lunch – beef stew with carrots and potatoes. For evening meals – 500 ml of kefir and an orange.
- Sunday . Completion and exit, you can increase the calorie content to 1300. In the morning, juices, homemade cookies or casserole, dried fruits (dried apricots, dates, prunes). For lunch – 300 g of chicken soup. Afternoon snack and dinner - cottage cheese and drinking yogurt.
Calorie diet menu for 14 days: table
The longer the program, the more varied the diet should be. The rules remain the same: healthy eating, a limit of 1200 kilocalories, sweets and starchy foods are prohibited.
It is allowed to organize 1-2 fasting mono days per week.
Breakfast | Dinner | Dinner | |
1 | · boiled buckwheat; · scrambled eggs; · apple | · Orange juice; boiled or baked pollock (350 g) | · 50 g canned or boiled corn; · boiled beans (70 g); · stewed liver (100 g) |
2 | · black bread toast with tomato, poached egg and ham | · chicken broth with herbs; · radishes, cucumber, feta and soy sauce; | · kefir (0.5-1%) 400 g with cinnamon and honey; · 100 g cottage cheese |
3 | · protein omelet with asparagus and broccoli; · hard cheese (20 g); · orange | · grilled trout fillet (250 g); boiled potatoes (150 g) | · steamed beef (250 g); · cabbage and tomato salad (150 g) |
4 | · cottage cheese casserole with semolina and without sugar (150 g); · Orange fresh | · boiled brown rice; · steamed vegetables; · chicken fillet (100 g) | · cheesecakes without sugar and yeast, baked in the oven |
5 | granola (50-60 g); · natural yogurt (150 g); · honey (40 g) | · vegetable soup with mushrooms and beans in lean broth; bean lobio (250 g) | · stewed turkey hearts or breast (150 g); · 200 g buckwheat |
6 | · toast with banana and honey; · 5 dates | boiled lean beef; · buckwheat | · 5 quail eggs + 5 cherry tomatoes + Iceberg |
7 | · baked apples with cottage cheese, cinnamon and raisins | · seaweed; · salmon steak (300 g) | · Stewed rabbit; · oatmeal with water (150 g) |
8 | oatmeal with milk; · boiled egg | · zucchini boats with tomato and cheese, baked in foil; · chicken chop (100 g) | · grilled vegetables + grilled chicken breast (without sauces) |
9 | oatmeal cookies (50-80 g); · fruit juice | · barley porridge; · 2 hard-boiled eggs | · natural yoghurt (200 g); · buckwheat |
10 | · buckwheat with kefir (300 g); feta (40 g) | · Greek salad (200 g); · risotto | · vegetable salad with olive oil; · hard cheese (50 g) |
11 | · smoothie (1 banana, milk, 1 kiwi); · 30 g of any dried fruits | · breast with vegetables, stewed in sour cream (250 g) | · boiled beets + raw carrots + raisins (grated, 400 g); |
12 | · whole grain bread (50 g); cream cheese + greens | pasta with seafood and cream sauce (200 g) | · boiled rice with prunes and apple (300 g) |
13 | · grated carrots, apple and raisins (400 g) | · buckwheat porridge (150 g); · boiled turkey (150 g); · orange | · vegetable-based pizza (grated zucchini + eggplant) with tomatoes, basil and cheese |
14 | · cottage cheese (0%) 100 g + drinking yoghurt | · low-fat chicken pilaf (300 g); · kiwi | · oatmeal; · chicken stewed in sour cream (150 g) |
Calorie diet menu for a month
Depending on the daily caloric intake, the total amount is divided into 3-5 doses so that the body receives the largest percentage of energy for breakfast and lunch. Dinner is deliberately made lighter so as not to burden the stomach before bed. Compounds are distributed in a similar way: carbohydrates in the morning, proteins in the late afternoon.
In order to eat according to the program for a month, you need to diversify it with recipes, according to the calorie content of a particular meal.
Breakfast options
The optimal amount for the morning to saturate the body is 300-350 kcal. It is better to use cereals, fruits, bread, eggs. Although dairy products are popular for morning consumption, they are best left for the evening.
Hearty and delicious breakfast options:
- Lazy oatmeal in a jar: 2-3 tablespoons of rolled oats (or oatmeal) are “fermented” in a container overnight with 250 grams of natural yogurt, milk (you can use juices), the dish is decorated with berries and fruits, and ready for use in the morning;
- Curd casserole with dried apricots and raisins: 2 eggs + 2 tablespoons of honey + a glass of oatmeal or semolina + dried fruits (pour into a baking dish and put in the oven for 40 minutes);
- Boiled omelette: a mixture of 2 egg whites, 3 tablespoons of milk, herbs and natural spices is poured into a plastic bag or glass jar, the container is immersed in water so that the eggs are completely submerged, the omelette needs to be cooked after boiling for 10-15 minutes.
Lunch options
A midday meal should give you a boost of energy until the end of work or school. Therefore, it accounts for 400-500 kilocalories. Meals should include fats, proteins and complex carbohydrates (preferably vegetables and fruits).
Recipes for lunch:
- Bean soup: boil the broth from the fillet, to which beans and cauliflower inflorescences (frozen) are added, simmer the dish for 15 minutes after the legumes are ready;
- Baked salmon: rub the fillet with herbs and salt, place it on a baking sheet lined with foil, add a couple of onion and lemon rings, chopped herbs, wrap the envelope, bake the fish for 30 minutes at 180 degrees;
- Beetroot soup: boiled beets are cut into strips, poured with whey, salt and pepper to taste, served with herbs.
Dinner options
For the evening, light dishes are prepared based on fermented milk products and low-calorie meat (chicken or turkey).
You can dilute your dinner with unsweetened fruits and come up with interesting recipes:
- Apple with cottage cheese in the microwave: cut out the core, add a teaspoon of honey, put in the microwave for 3 minutes, stuff the hot fruit with low-fat cottage cheese, sprinkle with cinnamon and bake for another 10-15 minutes;
- Kefir cocktail: you can combine different fruits and berries; a recipe with orange juice and ginger is considered fat-burning (the dairy product and additives are placed in a blender and mixed thoroughly);
- Zucchini with tomatoes: cut into circles, place in piles on a baking sheet lined with foil in the following sequence - zucchini circle + onion circle + tomato - grated hard cheese is poured on top; The canapés are baked for 15-20 minutes.
Diet duration
The diet has practically no contraindications, but it is not suitable:
- children;
- teenagers;
- pregnant women;
- nursing;
- people who lead an active lifestyle and go to the gym.
People with a lot of extra pounds should not resort to this diet, as it can negatively affect the nervous and digestive systems, causing stress in the body. The amount of carbohydrates in the diet should not be reduced sharply.
Despite all the harmlessness of eating 1200 calories a day, you should not make the diet too long. The optimal period is 3 weeks. Afterwards, you need to allow yourself to increase the number of calories, trying to adhere to proper nutrition. Calorie restriction should be repeated no sooner than after another couple of months.
Sample menu for the week: list of products and taboo foods
So, let's move on to practice. Let's start with the products that will be prohibited:
- any flour products, including dietary baked goods made from whole grain flour or ground oatmeal, since even healthy slow carbohydrates have a high calorie content. There are exceptions, they will be on the menu;
- butter, any cheeses with high and medium fat content;
- some fruits - grapes, bananas in large quantities, sweet varieties of pears. They have too much sugar in their composition and a high insulin index, so it is better to replace them with lower-calorie citrus fruits and apples;
- any fatty meats, even skinless chicken thighs;
- nuts and dried fruits are too many calories.
also have to limit the consumption of egg yolks, vegetable oils, fatty fish, pasta (albeit made from durum wheat), and cereals.
Your refrigerator and shelves will be filled, in principle, with the same products as usual (here is a complete list with tables, we will not repeat), but the emphasis should be on fresh or frozen vegetables, herbs, chicken breast, low-fat milk (cottage cheese, kefir , yogurt), lean fish (pollock, hake, cod).
Quitting the diet
The correct exit should be smooth. You should not abuse prohibited foods for a month. Every day you need to gradually increase the number of calories until the weight loss stops. You should add no more than 200 kcal to your diet per week. Otherwise, the achieved result will not be saved. Nutritionists advise following proper nutrition when leaving a diet.
When used correctly, the 1200 calorie menu allows you to eat delicious, varied and healthy foods. Following the rules of the diet leads to weight loss without debilitating restrictions. It is enough to add low-calorie foods to your daily diet and control the amount of food consumed so that your figure becomes close to ideal.
Author: Molodtsova-Romanova Olga
Article design: Anna Vinnitskaya