Help with target calorie count
 

Hey ladies,
I am unsure about the number of calories I need a day. I found a calculator online and it told me that because I weigh 168lbs, am 5'2" tall and am 22 years old, I should be eating 1560 calories to lose one pound a week. And if I workout for 30 minutes I need 2101 calories to reach my goal weight of 130 pounds. If I workout 60 minutes (which is more my style) I need 2356 calories to work towards my goal weight.

Does this sound right to you? To me it sounds like WAY too many calories!!!! I was thinking I should have around 1100 calories a day. Any advice?
:?::?::?:

That sounds about right.. you need to eat back what you burn so you don't starve your body. If you only eat 1300 day but burn off 500 in exercise that's only a net of 800 calories.. not enough to keep you going for very long.

I'm struggling with this right now because I've been sick and not had an appetite. It had come back but it's gone again today.

1100 sounds awfully low to me. What if you split the difference between 1560 and 1100 and start around 1300? That gives you some room to adjust down if you need to later on. It is possible to eat too many calories and stall your losses.

1100 may work for a couple days...but then you need to add more for a day or 2....IMOH, up & down cal/day helps with metabolism....but who am i?!?!? lol

lol you're someone with some advice that I appreciate...just like I appreciate all of the advice from everyone else here. THANKS!:D

I'm around 160 lbs and 5'0 and I stick to around 1600 on days I workout (for an hour) and 1300 on Sunday which is rest day :)

I like 15 or 1600 cals for you too. You'll soon be able to tell if it's not enough. If you're tired, draggy, starving ... But I'll bet that if the quality of your foods is good, you'll be just fine.

Will you let us know how it's going?

I don't go below 1500 calories, if I can help it. I don't formally exercise either right now. I try to get a walk in here or there, but that hasn't been happening lately.

Given that you are young and exercising, I'd try 1500-1600 and see what happens. You can always lower it, if necessary.

I think that is too low! I'm only saying this from experience. I started going to low and stalled! I was consistantly losing 1-3 pounds a week at about 1350 to 1450 calories a day plus exercise. I took some time off and now I'm back to counting and I'm trying to stay between 1300 - 1350 since my job is siting at a desk. I wouldn't go below 1200 ever again. Some people swear they lose weight at very low calories but I bet they don't exercise. Hope this helps! :smug:

1500 is my target if I don't exercise. On exercise days LOOK out baby! I'm eating ! :rofl: I have to eat back those calories or I get so hungry