Eating only 1,500 calories a day may be an appropriate weight loss level for a woman, and the lowest recommended amount of calories a man should take in without being in a medically supervised weight loss program. Limiting your calories is simpler and healthier when you plan ahead to meet your calorie and recommended nutrient requirements.
Division of Calories
How you allocate or divide your 1,500 calories depends on your lifestyle and scheduling needs. If you currently have regularly scheduled meal times built into your day, continue your schedule. Eat roughly 250 to 300 calories for breakfast, 400 to 500 for lunch, 500 to 600 for dinner and about 100 for snacks or discretionary calories. However, if you enjoy eating small meals spaced throughout the day, divide your 1,500 calories into five or six smaller meals --- 200 calories for morning, mid-morning and mid-afternoon meals and 300 calorie mini-meals at lunch and dinner time. Leave another 300 calories for extra snacks or a larger mini-meal. Either strategy can work for weight loss, as evidenced by a 2010 study published in the British Journal of Nutrition, which found that both meal spacing strategies resulted in similar weight loss levels.
Morning Menus
Whether eating 200 or 300 calories for breakfast, you can eat similar, low-calorie foods. Eat smaller portions if dividing your 1,500 calories into smaller pieces. A cooked cup of oatmeal has about 150 calories. Add 1/2 cup raw strawberries for another 30 calories and sprinkle a few walnuts on the oatmeal to add some heart-healthy monounsaturated to your morning meal. Other breakfast or mid-morning options include breakfast sandwiches made 100-calorie thin buns or reduced-calorie bread. Use an all-natural almond butter, cooked egg-whites or vegetarian sausage products as fillings. Eat 1/2 cup of fat-free yogurt, drink calcium-fortified orange or a glass of skim milk to help meet your calcium requirements.
Afternoon Choices
Although the classic turkey and lettuce sandwich for lunch or an afternoon meal is healthy and low in calories, there are other choices to add variety and nutrition to your lunch menus. A sample 300-calorie lunch is 1 cup of raw or steamed vegetables mixed with 1/2 cup brown rice and served with a cup of watermelon chunks. Other options include a couple ounces of baked chicken, roasted chicken breast or salmon, a large fresh salad, a cup of yogurt and a side of fruit.
Dinner Options
Pasta, potatoes and other starchy vegetables are filling choices for dinner. The Mayo Clinic explains that foods such as these which are filling yet low in calories can help you avoid eating extra calories between meals. Fill your dinner or evening plate with root vegetables roasted with rosemary and 1 tsp. of olive oil, small amounts of meat or seafood and a whole-wheat bread choice. Place asparagus stalks in foil and cook for 20 minutes. Serve with either salmon or a vegetarian pasta dish.
Snack Choices
Give yourself the best chance of keeping to your 1,500 calorie diet by having a variety of 100-calorie snack options on hand. These 100-calorie options will be helpful if you eat several small meals a day as well. One piece of light string cheese, 2 tbsp. of fat-free hummus with 1/2 a toasted pita, two slices of grilled turkey or your favorite raw vegetables and fat-free dressing are healthy choices. Penn State University indicates that eating low-calorie snacks is an effective strategy for staying with a certain calorie allotment.
References
- National Institutes of Health: Tips for Losing Weight
- British Journal of Nutrition: Increased Meal Frequency Does Not Promote Greater Weight Loss in Subjects Who Were Prescribed an 8-Week Equi-Energetic Energy-Restricted Diet
- USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 17: Energy
- University of Rochester Medical Center: Low Fat Low Cholesterol Diet - 1,500 Calories Per Day
- Mayo Clinic: Energy Density and Weight Loss: Feel Full on Fewer Calories
- Penn State University: Snacking Revisited: Done Properly, It's Not a Bad Thing
Member Comments