[LittleMoonRabbit]

I know that this question can't be answered definitely, because it's an individual thing, but I wanted some ball park guesses from people who know better than myself. I want to know around how many calories I should be eating. Here are my stats:

Female
5'2"
152.8 lbs
Work out 5-6 days a week, 1-1.5 hours each (burn 350-500 calories each workout)
Do 3 days of just cardio and 3 days of cardio and weightlifting
I am a student, so other than the times I am working out, I am very sedentary.

The reason I am asking is because my weight loss seems small to me, and I don't know if I am stalling or if I am just swapping fat for muscle with all the working out I do. I don't trust Fitday and those other calorie calculators- their numbers are always so high (they suggest for me to be eating around 1800+ calories). Currently, I am eating around 1600 calories, give or take: Some days I eat a little more, some days I eat a little less.

Is there anyone who maybe has similar stats as me? Does anyone have any suggestions? Do you think my calories are too high? I know firguring out a proper calorie range is a process, but I just don't feel like I have much direction. Any help or suggestions would be very much appreciated.

[bethbeth]

I like this website. Try it out!

http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm

[LittleMoonRabbit]

Thanks BethBeth! This calculator said fat loss to be at 1747 and extreme fat loss to be around 1350. I suppose 1600 is right in the middle, so maybe that's good? Again, though, I dunno how accurate these online calculators are.

[fiberlover]

I am 5'2 and weigh 161ish. I eat around 1350-1400 per day, and lose 4-5 pounds per month.
I exercise quite bit. I do strength training 3x per week, and cardio every day for at least 45 minuttes. My weight loss is slow, but I couldn't see eating much less than this and being happy. I have dipped down to 1200 on some days, just because that was how it worked out. I want to be able to eat enough to keep me satisfied and still lose weight. I also want to be able to eat more at maintenance. I am worried that if I drop down to 1200, that at maintenance I will only be able to eat 1400!

[aphil]

It really doesn't matter what everyone elses numbers are, because it is an individual thing. The real question is, how is 1600 a day working for YOU?

If you are losing a few pounds a month, then it is working for you. If you are not losing anything at all, then either kick up your exercise, or drop to 1500 a day. See what happens with that over the next few weeks.