I am not "new" to calorie counting, but it has been a while, and I have never done it so closely and strictly as I am now (want to make sure I get a very accurate number so I can report correctly for the july challenge). I was told thedailyplate.com is a good source for this, and I agree. However, my challenge for myself is to keep my daily caloric intake at 1800 or under. My question is, should I be counting my total calories (everything consumed), or my net calories (everything consumed minus those burnt off with exercise)?
My hubby is concerned, because my basal metabolic rate says I should be getting about 2100 calories a day, "just to survive." He says if I get much less than that, I'm going to go into starvation mode and everything I eat is going to turn right to fat. Should I be worried about this, and up my caloric intake? My current "goal" is 1800 or less a day. But I really don't want to hurt my body.
My total caloric intake today is about 1760. My net is only about 1300. I'm not sure how significant any of this is...all I know is I want to lose weight, and I want to be healthy about it. Any suggestions?
You can try some trial and error, eat 2100 for a few weeks and see if you still lose weight. If you do - YAY. Eat 2100 for as long as you can and then slowly reduce your caloric intake as you become smaller (when you are smaller, you require less caloric intake to power yourself through the universe If you can lose weight at 2100, why wouldn't you want to? Eating is pleasurable and it's a good way to make sure you get a healthy variety of food every day (this gets a lot tougher at 1200-1400 when you have to make tough decisions like, should I have the yogurt OR the 1/4 cup almonds, but you don't have enough calories in the day for both).
In my opinion (not a doctor/dietician), 1800-2000 sounds reasonable for you (without knowing your age). If you start below 1800, it will be harder to reduce daily caloric intake if your weight loss slows as you lose weight.
Many people think starvation mode is a big myth. There are pros and cons to both side of that argument (e.g., if there was a starvation mode, then why do anorexics lose weight and, conversely, many people swear that they lose more when they eat more). Eating 1800 calories won't hurt you unless you're eating 1800 calories of junk food, IMHO. The only true way to measure your BMR is by testing, not by using a calculator so those things really aren't that accurate.
Try eating 1800 to 2000 calories of healthy foods for a week and see how much you lose. If you're losing 2 lbs. a week, that's great. If you're losing 5 lbs. a week (although the first week might be more if you're just starting this), then you might want to up your calories a bit. You want to lose a sensible amount of weight per week (e.g., 1-2 lbs.) at the highest calorie range possible so that as you lose weight you can decrease the number of calories and still lose weight. KWIM? What you want to avoid is having to maintain your weight loss on a significantly reduced number of calories because it's difficult to do in the long-term.
I agree with Glory and Sheila. Start high and see if it works. If so, that's GREAT! Also, try not to get into the "if I lose x pounds at 2100 calories think how many pounds I could lose at 1400 calories" or something like that. I did that and dropped WAY too low. I've recently been bumping myself back up and my weight loss has been jump started, again! The main thing about this, I think, is be willing to try and try and try again until you find what works best for you. Good luck!
Calorie Question
If you can lose weight at 2100, why wouldn't you want to? Eating is pleasurable and it's a good way to make sure you get a healthy variety of food every day (this gets a lot tougher at 1200-1400 when you have to make tough decisions like, should I have the yogurt OR the 1/4 cup almonds, but you don't have enough calories in the day for both). 
