Calorie deficit for 5’0?

[faithshepard]

Trying to see if my calorie deficit is okay. 32F, 5’0, Current weight :145lbs, goal weight : 120-125 range. I have a sedentary job.
I’ve already lost 9 lbs in 2.5 months but I was doing weight training 3x a week and walking a lot. I want to focus more on just walking for movement and being in a calorie deficit because I’ve started dreading weight training lately . Is 1300-1350 calories a day sufficient?
I see all these videos saying “1200 calories is way too little” but I’m assuming that’s for average height people?

 

[olleg12]

@faithshepard I am your height, eat 1200 calories a day, workout 5 days a week, and am rarely hungry.

Here are some of the options I rotate through, though there are more:

Breakfast

• Oikos Greek yogurt cup with 10g protein powder and 56g berries - 151 calories/24g protein
  • Goldfish packet the days I have this (fav snack, will go crazy if I don't have it! lol) - 130 calories/3g protein
• Protein powder in 6oz whole milk with 100g frozen fruit - 279 calories/32g protein

Lunch

• Buffalo chicken (4oz) wrap (low carb) - 274 calories/30g protein
• Chicken (2oz) Caesar (light) Salad - 271 calories/23g protein
• 3 Deviled Eggs, 56g turkey breast, 40g cheddar cheese - 387 calories/27g protein
• Beef (4oz) burrito with cheese & homemade Greek yogurt sauce - 355 calories/35g protein
• Lunch meat sandwich with cheese and light mayo on Sara Lee Healthy Multi-grain - 280 calories/20g protein

Dinner

• Roasted Chicken Sausage (2 links) & Potatoes (6oz), sauteed bell peppers & onions - 488 calories/29g protein
• Beef (4oz) & black bean (.25 cup) enchilada with sour cream (2tbsp) - 562 calories/39g protein
• Beef Steak Stroganoff w/broccoli - 488 calories/33g protein
• Kung Pao chicken with no nuts (4oz) w/rice or noodle & veggie - 300 calories/30g protein
• Chicken breast (4oz) with cream cheese (reduced fat) sauce, pasta (1oz) & green beans - 416 calories/34g protein
• Beef or chicken (2oz) spaghetti (2oz) topped with parmesan (3tbsp) with side salad - 497 calories/35g protein
• Chicken breast and chicken sausage jambalaya with mini corn ear - 510 calories/47g protein
• Sloppy Joes with roasted potatoes & asparagus - 531 calories/30g protein

I make pretty much everything at home from scratch, only eat out about once per month, and weight absolutely everything on my kitchen scale. Typically no snacking between meals. I use Isopure protein powder which is low carb and low cal, but high protein content. I typically hit 90g protein most days, sometimes closer to 110g. Feel very little hunger.

I'm eating this low calorie amount for a tropical vacation with my husband coming up in less than 2 weeks now. Planning to increase calories to 1500 after returning (and also add weight lifting).

 

[lin]

@olleg12 This is amazing - I’m saving your comment! I feel like I’m so careful of my meals focusing on hitting my protein and load up on veggies and fitting in complex carbs, I also work out 5x/week, have a 1600 cal limit, and yet I am still always hungry (I don’t have cravings for anything in particular like sweets thankfully but I’m just generally so so hungry). I feel like my meals are tiny yet your list looks so robust! I have no idea how you do it! I measure and weigh everything too but maybe my calorie counts are wrong? I have no idea. I’m depending on my MacroFactor app being accurate. I have no clue how to not be hungry haha.

 

[olleg12]

@lin I feel like actually enjoying your meals makes a huge difference! I only ever eat things I genuinely enjoy, never just to hit a macro goal. If I try a new recipe and it’s just ok, I never make it again.

 

[4ntioch]

@olleg12 This is me too! Absolutely agree with this number. Nowadays, calories are extremely overestimated!

 

[sneebuck]

@olleg12 I don’t understand how you are able to eat this much in one day. I would die from eating this amount of food! If you cannot complete it, do you break it into portions or eat some as a snack?

 

[olleg12]

@sneebuck Oh! All of this isn’t one day! One option from each meal type per day.

 

[mocoman97]

@faithshepard 1200 is doable. High volume of low calorie foods like veg and salad. Lower starchy carbs. Try and hit 100g protein

 

[can_belle]

@faithshepard It really depends and the only way you can find out is trial and error.

1200 calories is such a small amount of food and tbh it sounds dreadful to me and would leave no wiggle room for anything.

 

[esukmules]

@faithshepard 28f. 4’11 CW 124lbs. I’ve lost 21lbs in the past 3 months on a ~200 calorie deficit, so it is certainly possible!

Try to keep weight training if possible! More muscle = more calories burned, which means you can increase your calorie intake

 

[faithshepard]

@esukmules That’s awesome! How’d you lose 21 in 3 months?? That’s incredible

 

[esukmules]

@faithshepard I really cleaned up my diet, focused on eating protein and less added sugars. Went from working out maybe 2 times a month to 5-6 days a week (3 days Pilates, 2 days weight training, other days with walking or on my bike).

I should also add that the deficit I had was based off my TDEE- I didn’t try to “eat back” calories after working out, so my deficit was certainly higher on days I worked out.

 

[hamoninja]

@faithshepard I’m 5’0”, am mostly sedentary with some light exercise sprinkled in (trying to be more consistent), and aim to eat 1200-1500 calories a day but leaning toward the lower end of the range. You might like it over in r/1200isplenty

 

[tobyp]

@faithshepard You're at the height that 1200 might be doable for you.

But you have to be on top of your nutrition. It can be hard to get enough protein and fiber on only 1200 calories.

Depending on your exercise routine protein goals are usually around 0.8-1.2g/ kg of ideal body weight.

Protein and fiber can really make 1200 be more tolerable. Also drinking plenty of water.

But the best diet for you is the diet that you actually stick to. So if you feel miserable and awful on 1200, bump it to 1400 and see how that goes.