You can lose weight following any diet as long as it restricts your calorie intake. A diet of 1,400 to 1,500 calories can help most people reach their goal weight. When following a reduced calorie diet, be sure to include a variety of foods from each food group to help you meet all your nutrient needs.
Guidelines
Try to eat three meals and one snack a day on a 1,400 to 1,500 calorie diet. You may think that skipping meals will help you lose weight, but it actually increases your hunger and causes you to overeat at your next meal. Each meal should be about the same size and contain about 450 calories, leaving 150 calories for your snack. For balance, try to include a food item from each group with each meal.
Breakfast
Breakfast is an easy meal in which to include whole-grain foods. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that you make half your grain servings whole grain. The fiber in whole grains takes your body longer to digest, helping to control your hunger when following a reduced-calorie diet. A healthy breakfast meal on a 1,400 to 1,500 calorie diet might include 1 cup of hot cooked oatmeal with 1/4 cup of raisins, 1 cup of nonfat milk and a hard-cooked egg. Another breakfast idea would be two scrambled eggs with two slices of toast, 1 tsp. of margarine and a 6-oz. container of nonfat, sugar-free yogurt.
Lunch
Including a small salad with your lunch meal can help improve satiety without sacrificing too many calories. A sample lunch meal on a 1,400 to 1,500 calorie diet could be a turkey sandwich made with 2 oz. of lean turkey meat on two slices of whole-wheat bread with lettuce, tomato and mustard, and served with a small garden salad with 1 tbsp. of fat free salad dressing, 1/2 cup of grapes and 1 cup of nonfat milk. Another low-calorie lunch meal might include 2 cups of broth-based soup with 5 whole-grain crackers, a small garden salad with 1 tbsp. of fat -free salad dressing, 1 oz. of low-fat cheese and 1 cup of diced melon.
Dinner
Lean cuts of meat such as skinless poultry, fish, shellfish, beef eye of round and pork tenderloin make healthy low-calorie choices for your diet. A dinner meal idea for a 1,400 to 1,500 calorie diet could be 3 oz. of broiled haddock with 1 cup of brown rice and 1 1/2 cups of steamed broccoli and cauliflower. Another meal idea might be 3 oz. of roasted turkey breast with a medium baked sweet potato, 1 tsp. of margarine, 1/2 cup of peas and a small garden salad with 1 tbsp. of fat-free salad dressing.
Snacks
Snacks help control hunger on a reduced-calorie diet. Healthy snack choices for a 1,400 to 1,500 calorie diet include a toasted whole-wheat English muffin with 1 tsp. of jelly, a small pear with 1 oz. of low-fat cheese, a 6 oz. container of nonfat, sugar-free yogurt with 1/2 cup of dried cereal or 6 cups of air-popped popcorn.
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