Easy Low Carb 1200 Calorie Menu Plan
This printable 1200 calorie low carb meal plan should help you with ideas on what to eat if you are trying to follow a low calorie, low carb plan for weight loss!
If you are like me, you love printable meal plans! I have been collecting healthy meal plans from magazines for at least 2 decades. Whenever I see a meal plan in a fitness magazine, I rip it out and save it. I don't always use them, but for some reason, I love collecting them!
So, I wanted to create as many meal plans as I could for my blog to add to my collection.
This 1200 calorie low carb meal plan is the actual meals I'm currently eating to get ready for a bodybuilding/ bikini show this summer! (UPDATE: see my weight loss results from the bikini show here!)
I went through a recent few weeks worth of tracking in MyFitnessPal and created this 1200 calorie low carb plan. The nutrients here average:
- 1200 calories
- 45% protein (about 130 grams)
- 30% carbs (around 80 grams)
- and 25% fat (around 35 grams)
It was unbelievable some of the low carb meal plans out there, because most of them were NOT low carb! My goal the last few months has been to get more than 100 grams of protein, and around 100 grams or less of carbs. (Check this post for a list of high protein foods I've been eating) Doing this, I've been able to drop 15 pounds in the last 3 months. I feel great where I am!
Who is 1200 calories appropriate for
There isn't usually a reason to drop your calories to 1200. However, if you are small (I'm 5'1 and under 110 pounds), than 1200 calories is probably plenty. In fact, I'm not hungry most of the time.
If you are trying to create a calorie deficit, and your normal calories are around 1500, than 1200 calories would be appropriate.
Most experts recommend not going below 1200 calories, which is why increasing the protein and decreasing the carbs is a great way to get you closer to your physique goals.
What are the meals for 1200 calories
This list actually took me several weeks to put together. I was documenting everything I ate in MyFitnessPal. I was increasing the protein for some foods to hit these macro goals. I don't have photos for everything, but I did get a few!
I have Amazon links for products I used when I calculated the nutrition info. For example, the syrup was zero calories, and I used the Walden Farms. The protein powder was 130 calories and low in carbs, so I used Optimum protein powder. And the tortillas were the 80 calorie Maya tortillas.
Get the 1200 Calorie low carb printable meal plan here:
Monday: 1183 calories, 145 g protein, 90 g carbs, 27 g fat
| 8:00 AM (scrambled eggs with cheese and a banana) |
| Egg Whites – 1 cup, |
| Egg, 1 large |
| Mozzarella Cheese, 1 ounce |
| Banana, 100 g |
| 10:00 AM (IG pic of Peanut butter yogurt) |
| Greek Plain Nonfat Yogurt, 1 cup |
| Walden Farms – Sugar Free Pancake Syrup, 2 tablespoons |
| Peanut Butter Powder, 2 tbsp |
| 12:00 PM (Rice with beef and mushrooms) |
| Jasmine Rice, 80 gram |
| Mushrooms – 1 cup |
| Beef Ground – 95% Lean Ground Beef, 4 oz cooked |
| 3:00 PM |
| Optimum Protein Powder – Protein Powder, 1 scoop |
| Jello – Sugar Free Jello Cup, 1 snack |
| 5:00 PM (Chicken with sweet potatoes and sauteed zucchini in butter) |
| Butter – 2 tsp |
| Zucchini, 1 cup, sliced |
| Chicken – Tenders, 4 oz |
| Sweet potato, mashed 100 grams |
Tuesday: 1148 calories 130 grams protein, 85 grams carbs, 32 grams fat
| 8:00 AM (scrambled eggs and oatmeal) |
| Egg, 2 large |
| Egg Whites – 1 cup |
| Oats – 1/3 cup dry |
| 10:00 AM (Berries in yogurt) |
| Greek Plain Nonfat Yogurt, 1 cup |
| Frozen Mixed Berries, 100 g |
| 12:00 PM |
| Chicken-Ground, 4.5 oz(s) |
| Sweet Potato, 100 gram |
| Cucumber – 1 medium |
| 3:00 PM |
| Optimum Protein Powder – Protein Powder, 1 scoop |
| 5:00 PM |
| Chicken Thighs, 4.5 ounce |
| Jasmine Rice, 75 gram |
| Mushrooms – 1 cup |
Wednesday: 1147 calories, 127 g protein, 81 g carbs, 35 g fat
| 8:00 AM (Scrambled eggs with cheese, on toast) |
| Egg Whites – 1 cup |
| Egg, 1 large |
| Mozzarella Cheese, 28 gram |
| Whole wheat Bread, 1 slice |
| 10:00 AM |
| String Cheese, 1 stick (28g) |
| Grapefruit, 1 medium |
| 12:00 PM (A lettuce wrap with cheese and turkey inside) |
| Strawberries – 200g Strawberries, 0.5 cup |
| Laughing Cow – Laughing Cow Light Swiss Cheese Wedges, 21 g (1 Wedge) |
| Lettuce Leaf, 1 leaf |
| Deli Turkey, 4 oz |
| 3:00 PM |
| Protein Bar – High Protein Bar – S'mores, 1 bar (50 g/1.76 oz) |
| 5:00 PM (Spaghetti squash with chicken and cheese – IG PIC) |
| Chicken – Tenders, 4.5 oz |
| spray butter, 1 spray |
| Parmesan Cheese, 1 oz |
| Spaghetti squash, 1 cup |
Thursday: 1167 calories, 126 grams protein, 87 grams carbs, 35 grams fat
| 8:00 AM |
| 1 tortilla (80 calories tortilla) |
| Egg Whites, 1 cup |
| Mozzarella Cheese, 28 gram |
| 10:00 AM |
| Walden farms calorie free Syrup, 1 tbsp |
| Peanut Butter Powder, 2 tablespoon |
| Greek Yogurt, plain, non fat 1 cup (Kirkland or Great Value) |
| 12:00 PM |
| Jasmine Rice, 80 gram |
| Mushrooms, 1 cup |
| Beef Ground – 95% Lean Ground Beef, 4 oz cooked |
| 3:00 PM |
| Deli Turkey, 3 oz |
| String Cheese – 1 String Cheese, 1 stick |
| Quaker Rice Cake – Rice Cake – Lightly Salted, 1 cake |
| 5:00 PM |
| Steak, 4 oz |
| Bolthouse – Ranch, 2 tbsp |
| 1 Tossed Green Salad or 2 cups |
| Sweet Potato, 100 grams |
Friday: 1146 calories, 137 grams protein, 73 grams carbs, 34 grams fat
| 8:00 AM |
| Cheese, 1/2 oz |
| Egg, 1 large |
| Egg Whites – Egg Whites, 1 cup |
| 10:00 AM (see recipe for this pink salad snack here) |
| Low fat Cottage Cheese, 1 cup |
| Jello – Sugar Free – Fat Free – Chocolate – Packet Only, 0.25 Package (10g) |
| Berries, 1 cup |
| 12:00 PM (Chicken wrap) |
| Canned Chicken, 5 oz |
| 1 tortilla (80 calorie) |
| Light Mayo, 1 tbs |
| 3:00 PM |
| Optimum Protein Powder – Protein Powder, 1 scoop |
| 5:00 PM (Taco salad, IG Pic) |
| Ground Beef – Ground Beef 96%, 4 oz |
| Cheese – Cheese, 1/2 oz |
| Corn – 1/2 cup |
| Bolthouse – Ranch, 2 tbsp |
| 1 Tossed Green Salad – Salad, 2 cups |
Prepping your 1200 calorie meals
People love meal prepping, and I don't blame them. If you plan ahead, you can make sure you'll eat what you have on your meal plan. I prep two things. My proteins, and I will put a sweet potato in the oven in the morning if it's on my plan for the day. The proteins I prep include:
- Cooking chicken tenders
- Cook the ground beef
- Cook ground chicken
- Cook chicken thighs
I will also plan on making:
- Rice
- and the sweet potatoes.
THAT'S IT!!
Below are some of the meals I posted to my Instagram that match up with the low carb meal ideas above… head over to my Instagram to connect as well!
More Meal Plans here!!
Other Recipes You Might Like
Source: https://healthbeet.org/1200-calorie-low-carb-meal-plan/
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