Macros for a 1200 Calorie Diet
Many people start the macro diet to lose weight. The macro diet is perfect for weight loss because getting balanced nutrients helps you stay full and satisfied throughout the day, so you maintain your program and hit your goals. But you also need to take calories into account. You won’t lose weight unless there is a calorie deficit.
You’re likely to see many commercial diets, online programs, and weight loss experts point to 1200 calories as a daily target for weight loss. For people who typically consume approximately 1700 to 2200 calories per day to maintain their weight, a 1200-calorie diet would give them a 500-1000 calorie per day deficit to lose about 1-2 pounds per week.
I highly suggest personalizing your calorie number. I explain how to get the best calorie target for you in Macro Diet for Dummies. You may find that 1200 calories is the best number for you. But you can also use a calorie and macro calculator to check the best numbers for you
👉 Calorie and Macro Calculator: Get Your Personalized Numbers Instantly 👈
Once you have your calorie number, you can see how your macros might look on a 1200-calorie diet. And what would your meal plan look like? To give you an idea, I’ve detailed several meal plans below for different types of eaters.
Balanced Macros for a 1200-Calorie Diet
If you choose to consume a balanced diet on your low-calorie plan, you will use the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) to establish your macros. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans are updated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) every five years based on the most recent nutrition research and provide recommendations for general health. According to those recommendations, you should consume 10% to 35% of your calories from protein, 45% to 65% of your calories from carbohydrates, and 20% to 35% of your calories from fat. This daily meal plan provides 1222 calories and about 27% of calories from protein, 51% of calories from carbs, and 22% of calories from fat.
Breakfast:
1 small apple: 0.3g protein, 13g carbs, 0.2g fat
1 hard-boiled egg: 6g protein, 0.6g carbs, 5g fat
1 slice whole wheat toast: 4g protein, 12g carbs, 1g fat
1 teaspoon of almond butter: 1.2g protein, 1.5g carbs, 3g fat
Macros: 17% protein, 57% carbs, 30% fat
Lunch:
Grilled chicken breast (3 oz): 26g protein, 0g carbs, 2g fat
Quinoa (cooked, 1/2 cup): 4g protein, 20g carbs, 1.8g fat
Steamed broccoli (1 cup): 2.6g protein, 11g carbs, 0.3g fat
Mixed greens salad (1 cup) with lemon juice dressing: 1g protein, 4g carbs, 0.3g fat
1 small orange: 0.8g protein, 15.4g carbs, 0.2g fat
Macros: 33% protein, 55% carbs, 13% fat
Dinner:
Baked salmon fillet (4 oz): 26g protein, 0g carbs, 14g fat
Brown rice (cooked, 1/2 cup): 2.5g protein, 22g carbs, 0.9g fat
Steamed asparagus (1 cup): 2.9g protein, 5.2g carbs, 0.2g fat
Mixed greens salad (1 cup) with balsamic vinegar dressing: 1g protein, 4g carbs, 0.3g fat
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce: 0.2g protein, 13g carbs, 0.1g fat
Macros: 23% protein, 42% carbs, 35% fat
This meal plan provides a lean breakfast with a heartier lunch and dinner. Some people prefer a heartier breakfast and a leaner dinner, which you can easily do with a budget of 1200 calories.
40-30-30 Macros for a 1200-Calorie Diet
This plan may work for you if you don’t have any major food preferences (such as vegetarian, vegan, etc) and you want to start a 1200-calorie macro diet plan that includes a variety of foods. One of the most popular macro ratios for weight loss is 40% carbs, 30% protein, 30% fat, popularly known as the 40-30-30 plan. The plan helps you to get plenty of protein, which has been shown in studies to aid in weight loss. Keep in mind, however, that it is unlikely that your food plan will meet target numbers exactly. Some variation is to be expected. So you don’t want to spend too much time micromanaging macro grams to get your numbers perfect.
This meal plan provides closer to 1300 calories, but gives you a total daily macro breakdown of 43% carbs, 26% protein, and 31% fat. The macro balance per meal is listed below.
Breakfast:
1 piece of whole grain toast (22g carbs, 2g protein, 1g fat)
1 scrambled egg (0g carbs, 6g protein, 5g fat)
1/2 cup of sliced strawberries (6g carbs, 1g protein, 0g fat)
Macros: 55% carbs, 18% protein, 26% fat
Snack:
1 small apple (21g carbs, 0g protein, 0g fat)
10 almonds (4g carbs, 2g protein, 6g fat)
Macros: 62% carbs, 5% protein, 33% fat
Lunch:
Grilled chicken breast (0g carbs, 26g protein, 3g fat)
1 cup of cooked quinoa (39g carbs, 8g protein, 4g fat)
Steamed broccoli (6g carbs, 2g protein, 0g fat)
Macros: 47% carbs, 37% protein, 16% fat
Snack:
1/2 cup of Greek yogurt (6g carbs, 11g protein, 3g fat)
1/4 cup of blueberries (5g carbs, 1g protein, 0g fat)
Macros: 37% carbs, 40% protein, 23% fat
Dinner:
Baked salmon (0g carbs, 23g protein, 13g fat)
1 medium sweet potato (26g carbs, 2g protein, 0g fat)
Mixed green salad with vinaigrette dressing (4g carbs, 1g protein, 10g fat)
Macros: 28% carbs, 24% protein, 48% fat
This meal plan provides plenty of food throughout the day, so you’re not likely to get hungry. It also optimizes fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats.
Macros for a 1200-calorie Vegetarian Diet
If you don’t eat meat, consider this 1200-calorie macro diet plan for vegetarians. If you follow a vegan diet or choose not to consume dairy, swap out the yogurt for a nut-based or soy-based variety. This plan is higher in carbohydrates, still provides adequate protein, and is lean on fat. The complete food plan provides about 1245 calories with a macro breakdown of 67% carbs, 21% protein, and 12% fat. Macros for each meal are listed below.
Breakfast:
Oatmeal made with 1/2 cup of rolled oats cooked in water (27g carbs, 5g protein, 2g fat)
1 medium banana (27g carbs, 1g protein, 0g fat)
1 tablespoon of almond butter (3g carbs, 3g protein, 9g fat)
Macros: 62% carbs, 10% protein, 27% fat
Lunch:
Chickpea salad with mixed vegetables (35g carbs, 11g protein, 3g fat)
1 cup of chickpeas
Mixed vegetables (e.g., bell peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes)
Lemon vinaigrette dressing
1 whole grain pita bread (30g carbs, 5g protein, 1g fat)
Macros: 72% carbs, 18% protein, 10% fat
Snack:
Nonfat Greek yogurt with honey (17g carbs, 15g protein, 0g fat)
1/4 cup of mixed berries (5g carbs, 1g protein, 0g fat)
Macros: 58% carbs, 42% protein, 0% fat
Dinner:
Lentil soup (36g carbs, 18g protein, 1g fat)
1/2 cup of cooked brown rice (24g carbs, 2g protein, 1g fat)
Steamed broccoli (6g carbs, 2g protein, 0g fat)
Macros: 71% carbs, 24% protein, 5% fat
If you want to add more protein to this plan, consider adding soy-based foods like tofu or tempeh or other plant-based proteins like legumes, nuts, or seeds.
1200-calorie Ketogenic Diet Macros
On a keto diet, you’ll consume far more fat and far less carbohydrate and protein. Note that the ketogenic diet falls outside of the diet recommendations provided by the USDA and other health organizations. Studies regarding the efficacy of the keto diet for weight loss are mixed.
On this (roughly) 1200-calorie keto meal plan, 8% of calories come from carbs, 25% of calories come from protein, and 66% of calories come from fat. It is slightly higher in protein than some keto plans, so if you are not yet in ketosis, you may have to dial back the protein to get there and then gently ease more protein foods back into your diet. If you’re curious about how the meal plan might look, here’s a sample for you to consider.
Breakfast:
Scrambled eggs cooked in butter (0g carbs, 12g protein, 20g fat)
Spinach and cheese omelet (3g carbs, 12g protein, 15g fat)
Macros: 3% carbs, 23% protein, 74% fat
Snack:
1 ounce of almonds (5g carbs, 6g protein, 14g fat)
Macros: 12% carbs, 14% protein, 74% fat
Lunch:
Avocado and tuna salad (8g carbs, 20g protein, 30g fat)
Mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, cucumber
Olive oil and lemon dressing
Macros: 12% carbs, 14% protein, 74% fat)
Snack:
2 tablespoons of peanut butter (6g carbs, 7g protein, 16g fat)
Celery sticks (1g carbs, 0g protein, 0g fat)
Macros: 23% carbs, 23% protein, 53% fat
Dinner:
Grilled salmon fillet (0g carbs, 22g protein, 13g fat)
Asparagus sautéed in olive oil (4g carbs, 2g protein, 7g fat)
Macros: 5% carbs, 33% protein, 62% fat
If you follow a keto diet, you’ll want to get your body into ketosis and make sure that you stay in ketosis for the duration of the diet. You’ll use urine strips to test for the presence of ketone bodies to see if you are there or not.
Keep in mind that these are not necessarily recommended macro targets. There is no one-size-fits-all plan when it comes to the optimal macro ratio. For example, if you are very active during the day, you likely need more calories and carbs. If you are lifting weights and hoping to gain muscle, you’ll need more protein. Pick up a copy of Macro Diet for Dummies to find your perfect macro ratio.
