Welcome!
There are formulas you can use to find out your basic metabolic rate and the amount of calories you may burn on a given day depending on your lifestyle... but I've found that keeping track of what I eat when I'm NOT watching what I eat, adding up those calories, then eating less than that on a daily basis, is what works for me. A lot of us here also used Fitday.com, a free website that helps count calories, and has 'reports' that let you see if your lifestyle is burning the calories you are consuming or not.
For instance, it calculates (based on the stats I entered) that I burn about 2500 calories a day. If I eat 2500 calories a day, I'll maintain my weight. If i eat more, I'll gain. If I eat less, I'll lose - but how quickly I'll lose depends on the calorie deficit. The number people throw around is that 3500 calories equals 1 pound.
So, if I eat (2500x7=)17,500 calories usually, I'd try to eat 14,000 a week, or about 2000 a day... and I would lose 1 lb a week. That is of course, what the numbers say. You have to sorta find your own groove for what works for your body. Do not go under 1200 calories a day unless advised to do so by a doctor or nutritionist. That can lead to health problems!
Personally, I aim for 1500 a day. I tried 1200 for a few weeks once but my body refused to let any weight go...and I was miserable. 1500 feels "right" to me.
Hope some of that helps!
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