The Low-calorie Diet is a low-energy diet, in practice we prefer low-calorie foods with few calories and many nutrients. If you want to follow a 1200 calorie low-calorie diet, the examples below will be very useful for you to understand what it means to go on a weekly slimming diet. Low-calorie diets can also be vegetarian and vegan, but today we will show you a complete 1200-calorie weekly low-calorie diet. A weekly low-calorie diet can also be studied for an average daily calorie consumption of 1000 kcal, it all depends on your needs. Let’s see briefly how a simple 1200 calorie low-calorie diet rich in all the nutrients necessary to stay healthy and lose weight works.
What is the low-calorie diet and how does it work?
What is the 1200 calorie low-calorie diet? It is a diet that involves consuming low-calorie foods and usually in reduced portions. “Low-calorie” means “with few calories”, if we add the word “diet” it is immediately clear that “low-calorie diet” means “dietary regimen with fewer calories”.
Normally, an adult consumes about 2000 kilocalories (calories) a day, a low-calorie diet involves consuming 1200 or 1000 kilocalories (calories) a day. The purpose of a 1200 calorie low-calorie diet is to induce the body to obtain the necessary resources for life support from fat reserves. That’s why it’s called a “slimming low-calorie diet”.
This number (1200 calories) is influenced by: age, gender, weight, and height in the first place; then by the time we dedicate to motor activity; the type of work we do; the speed of our metabolism, and many other personal factors: even making love with a partner influences your daily calorie balance!
For some, an 800-calorie daily diet could be considered a low-calorie diet, while for another, a dietary regimen of 1500 calories would be; the first spends the day on the couch, the second is a mover 7 days a week.
However, let’s transcend from the aforementioned personal factors, and pretend that a 1200 calorie low-calorie diet would be ideal for our needs: how do we do it?
Sample 1200 calorie Low-Calorie Diet Weekly Menu
The following weekly menu refers to a 1200 calorie low-calorie diet and should be considered an example and not a guide to follow strictly. For a personalized diet, always and only consult specialized nutritionists.
Monday: WEEKLY MENU Low-calorie diet 1200 calories
- Breakfast: 250 ml (1 cup) Semi-skimmed milk without sugar + Seasonal fruit of choice up to 200 g (7.05 oz) (Alternatively 20 g (0.71 oz) of cereal or müsli) / coffee drinkers may take it black and accompanied by only one cookie.
- Morning Snack: 3 walnuts + 125 ml (half cup) Low-fat yogurt
- Lunch: 50 g (1.76 oz) Whole-grain rice + 150 g Cooked seasonal vegetables of choice + 1 tablespoon Extra virgin olive oil, raw
- Afternoon Snack: Sugar-free Green tea + 2 cookies of choice
- Dinner: 100 g (3.5 oz) Vegetable soup with no added fats + 90 g (3.17 oz) Lean beef
Tuesday: WEEKLY MENU Low-calorie diet 1200 calories
- Breakfast: 250 ml (1 cup) Semi-skimmed milk without sugar + 20 g (0.71 oz) of cereal or müsli / coffee drinkers may take it black and accompanied by only one cookie.
- Morning Snack: 125 ml (half cup) Low-fat yogurt
- Lunch: 50 g (1.76 oz) pasta + 15 g (0.53 oz) Pesto alla Genovese
- Afternoon Snack: Sugar-free Green tea + 2 cookies of choice (Alternatively 1 fruit up to 150 g)
- Dinner: 100 g (3.5 oz) Raw seasonal vegetables of choice + 100 g (3.5 oz) Legumes
Wednesday: WEEKLY MENU Low-calorie diet 1200 calories
- Breakfast: 250 ml (1 cup) Semi-skimmed milk without sugar + Seasonal fruit of choice up to 200 g (7.05 oz)/ coffee drinkers may take it black and accompanied by only one cookie.
- Morning Snack: 125 ml (half cup) Low-fat yogurt
- Lunch: 50 g (1.76 oz) Risotto with Porcini Mushrooms (including 30 g of mushrooms, vegetable broth, and 5 g (0.18 oz) of butter for stirring)
- Afternoon Snack: Sugar-free Green tea + 1 fruit up to 100 g (3.5 oz)
- Dinner: 100 g (3.5 oz) Cooked seasonal vegetables of choice + 90 g (3.17 oz) Oily fish
Thursday: WEEKLY MENU Low-calorie diet 1200 calories
- Breakfast: 250 ml (1 cup) Semi-skimmed milk without sugar + 20 g (0.71 oz) of cereal / coffee drinkers may take it black and accompanied by only one cookie.
- Morning Snack: Sugar-free Green tea + 1 fruit up to 150 g
- Lunch: 250 g Seasonal Vegetable and Legume Soup + 20 g (0.71 oz) Croutons
- Afternoon Snack: 125 ml (half cup) Low-fat yogurt + 20 g (0.71 oz) Dark chocolate
- Dinner: 1 Sausage + Salad Greens at will with1 tablespoon of raw extra virgin olive oil, Salt, and vinegar to taste
Friday: WEEKLY MENU Low-calorie diet 1200 calories
- Breakfast: 250 ml (1 cup) Semi-skimmed milk without sugar + 20 g (0.71 oz) of müsli / coffee drinkers may take it black and accompanied by only one cookie.
- Morning Snack: Sugar-free Green tea + 1 fruit up to 150 g
- Lunch: 100 g (3.5 oz) Bresaola + 40 g (1.41 oz) Fresh cheese + 1 wholegrain rice wafer
- Afternoon Snack: 125 ml (half cup) Low-fat yogurt + 1 fruit up to 200 g (7.05 oz)
- Dinner: Salad Greens at will with 1 tablespoon of raw extra virgin olive oil, Salt, and vinegar to taste + 50 g (1.76 oz) Mozzarella cheese + 25 g (0.88 oz) Rye bread
Saturday: WEEKLY MENU Low-calorie diet 1200 calories
- Breakfast: 250 ml (1 cup) Semi-skimmed milk without sugar + Seasonal fruit up to 200 g (7.05 oz) / coffee drinkers may take it black and accompanied by only one cookie.
- Lunch: 200 g (7.05 oz) Cooked seasonal vegetables of choice + 10 g Parmesan cheese
- Dinner: 1 Margherita/Marinara/Vegetable/Vegan Pizza.
Pizza and Diet: How to choose which pizza to eat while on a diet?
Sunday: WEEKLY MENU Hypocaloric diet 1200 calories
- Breakfast: 250 ml (1 cup) low-fat milk without sugar + 200 g (7.05 oz) fruit / for coffee drinkers, take it bitter and accompanied by only one biscuit.
- Lunch: 300 g (10.58 oz) of baked lasagna
- Dinner: as needed. Green salad dressed with a teaspoon of oil, salt, and vinegar to taste + 1 boiled egg + 25 g (0.88 oz) rye bread
Examples of 1200-calorie hypocaloric diets
We’ve talked about what a 1200-calorie hypocaloric diet is, what it means, and how it works, but to make it clear and applicable, we want to offer you other weekly examples.
The best time to follow a 1200-calorie hypocaloric diet is between spring and summer because people tend to drink more and prefer fruits and vegetables more easily. However, autumn and winter also offer various opportunities to lose weight by taking advantage of the season: you can prefer velvety soups, light soups, and other types of light preparations suitable for a hypocaloric winter diet.
Examples of 1200 kcal hypocaloric diets for summer
This summer, we offered you, for example, the Yogurt Diet, which can help you lose up to 3 kg in just 7 days. It is based on the consumption of yogurt for lunch or dinner and is ideal for those who love this low-fat ingredient, rich in calcium and easy to digest. However, it is a hypocaloric diet that cannot be followed for too long.
Another example of a hypocaloric diet aimed at weight loss is the Ice Cream Diet by Dr. Migliaccio, which is also suitable for the summer and hot weather.
Examples of 1200 kcal hypocaloric diets for winter
So, what should you eat to lose weight in autumn and winter by following a tasty and low-calorie hypocaloric diet? A highly recommended type of nutrition that many of you have enjoyed is the Rice Diet: at this link, you will find the weekly menu to start now. Brown rice is particularly suitable for the diet because it is hypocaloric and pairs well with practically everything: from simple sauce, tuna, meat side dishes, legumes, or even fruit (some Chinese make small rolls with rice and strawberries). In detail, you can try the rice and tuna diet, in just three days, you can understand if it is right for you or if you need something else. If it works, you can lose up to 2 kg in just 3 days, it all depends on you.
Example of a balanced 1000-calorie diet
Are you looking for a 1000-calorie hypocaloric diet? Then try this balanced 1000 calorie a day diet, it is a very simple diet to follow because despite the low calories, it is very easy to find dishes that suit your tastes. Additionally, the article explains how it’s possible to eat just 1000 calories a day with the diet and balance all nutrients in the correct way!
SHARE examples of 1200-calorie hypocaloric diets.
The information provided in the Diet and Italian Recipes articles is for INFORMATION ONLY and does not intend to replace the opinion of professional figures such as a doctor, nutritionist, or dietitian, whose intervention is necessary for the prescription and composition of personalized dietary therapies.
