1200 cals versus 1500 cals - So Confused??

angelwowings23

I'm an avid exerciser. Have been for well over a decade now. As a 31 year old mother, fitness is still very much a part of my life. I've never been much for dieting or trying to eat clean and all that. I just have never had so much of an appetite that it has been a real issue, and I've never really wanted to be on the cover of Vogue so looking good and being active has really been enough for me.
Recently, however, I've really upped the ante in my workouts. I've taken on some pretty intense programs and this has made me want to take my physical appearance to a whole other level. So, I've buckled down and have been eating clean. Since the first week of January, I dropped about 11lbs. I did some damage on this progress over the past several days, however. A very sick baby throws things like personal nutritional care into the backseat. Anyhow, I'm more than certain most of the damage is water weight and I'm not really concerned about it or any actual weight I put on. I feel as though I will be able to make it up pretty quickly.
Back to the point, I did reach the 11lb goal quickly and then stalled out. I'm trying to figure out if my daily caloric intake is off. Some calculators I'm finding say to stay around 1200, others say more like 1400-1500. This is a big difference. I'm keeping my macros generally like this: fat: 30-35%, Protein: 40-43%; Carbs: 22-30%...which is what research has told me is the best distribution for fat loss and lean muscle gains.
Maybe it's just because I don't have very much to lose or that I'm doing something wrong. I'm 5'6", have an average to athletic build and am weighing in around 125lbs. Does anyone have any suggestions or recommendations on what my caloric intake needs to be to continue on with more positive strides towards fat loss/leaning out success?

Ready2Rock206

Most calorie calculators I've seen include your exercise in your calorie goal - MFP does not. This is often where the difference comes in. Once you add in your exercise you're usually looking at the same number.

rosebette

Your BMI is already on the low end of normal for your height. 11 lbs. is a big loss in 2 months time for someone who is not overweight to begin with. My recommendation is that you eat at maintenance and continue to work out, which will retain muscle mass. That would mean eating at least 1500, or if you're eating 1200, using MFP to log exercise calories and eat them back.

StaciMarie1974

At 5'6" and 125, are you looking to lose weight or change the shape/appearance/firmness of your body? They are different things. You may want to look into the fitness subforum about building muscle. (Its highly unlikely for a woman to 'bulk'.)

In reality 1200 vs 1500 is not a big difference unless your maintenance calories is around that range. (Maintenance is what it takes to keep your body going on daily activites & routines if you do not need/want to lose or gain.) Since you describe yourself as active, based on your stats, your maintenance level would be 1800-2200 at least. But also in reality if you're an active, fairly fit person, eating 1200 a day is probably NOT going to fit your lifestyle. Not without leaving you lacking energy to live your lifestyle.

middlehaitch

At your height and weight you need to increase your LBM rather than decrease your weight. Do a search in the forums for recomp. It is a slow process of replacing fat with muscle while eating at maintenance and doing progressive compound weight lifting.

Your calories at 1200 or 1500 are probably too low for your exercise level, unless you are eating back a good portion of your exercise calories on top of those numbers.

Try working from your TDEE, which includes your exercise calories. Fitnessfrog.com has a good calculator for this.

Cheers, h.
ETA
http://www.fitnessfrog.com/calculators/tdee-calculator.html