[MandyT]

Hey, everyone! I need some advice!

I just joined 2 days ago and told myself "I'm just going to start off watching what I eat and not doing anything strict for a bit". Well.."watching what I eat" keeps me paranoid and feeling like I'm doing as much damage as I am good. So, here's my question. I'm 5'4'' / 140 lbs hoping to get back down to around 115. How many calories should I be eating daily? I'm hoping somewhere between 1100 - 1300. I'd feel really uncomfortable eating more that 1300 since I spend most of my day sitting at a desk I've done well on 1000 calorie diets in the past (lost 30 lbs) without ever feeling hungry or sick but I know in my heart that's not enough food...however, the results were amazing!!!

Let me know your opinions! I'm never good at the stuff!!!

[srmb60]

I don't see too much wrong with 1300 calories.

The trick with low cals is making sure you're getting all the nutrients that you need. I believe that most online calculators let you look at your nutrient content. Fitday does. I can easily check to see if I'm lacking in anything.

Since I've settled into a pretty nice routine for a couple of weeks, I should check that out. I probably should reassess my need for a multivit.

Just a minute .... yup, too much salt and not enough vitamins ...

[gnomey]

I think the general rule of thumb is that, no matter what your stats, fully grown females should not eat less than 1200 a day... so if you're smaller you probably would want to eat 1200 to 1300 a day.

[CountingDown]

1200-1300 worked for me while I lost the last 25 lbs. The key was also getting enough exercise. Creating a calorie deficit alone was not enough.

The weight came off slowly (about 1 lb. per week), but steadily.

[missmumau]

I know that this isn't a popular line of thought but if 1,000 calories worked for you in the past without any adverse effects why not try it again? At the moment, I'm having about that (with extra on the weekends ). That includes full fat yoghurt with honey and fruit for breaky with a coffee, salad and tuna for lunch, vegies and meat/chicken/fish for dinner and a few almonds for an afternoon snack.
Good luck with it.

[gnomey]

wow, missmaumau you are definitely getting a lot of bang for your buck calorie wise... there really is a difference between eating 1000 high quality calories or 1200 empty ones...

as long as you're getting the proper fuel, 1000 could be safe for you personally