TDEE factoring in exercise

CaliEmz

Hello...I've recently returned to MFP and I was given a calorie target of 1200 per day. I'm 5ft7 and I would like to go from 146lbs to 135lbs.
I stated that I have a sedentary lifestyle (I work at a computer for most of the day) but I added that I exercise for an hour five days a week. I have been eating back my exercise calories but I thought maybe I shouldn't, as I had already told MFP about my exercise when they were calculating my goal.
Then I started to read about calculating my TDEE and cutting back 20% (this also included my exercise) and that gave me a calorie total of over 1400 calories. Do you think I should stick with this total and just not log exercise?. It may be mind games but 1200 is such a low number to me!
Sorry if this is a bit rambling..I have read a lot of threads now and I'm not very clear on the subject. I would like to lose weight in a healthy way. Thank you for reading and for any advice you have.

malibu927

You don't have that much to lose, so I would adjust your goal to half a pound a week if you follow MFP's calories (it doesn't include exercise in the initial goal, which is why you eat your calories back). or about TDEE-10%.

CaliEmz

Hello!..Thank you very much for your quick reply!. I just went in to the goal section and did what you suggested. That gave me over 1400 calories too. I think what was confusing me was they way MFP was asking how many days a week/how long I was going to exercise each week and I presumed they took this into account. But actually, when I entered zero values for this, I got the same calorie total. Mystery solved!. So I'll go back to eating the exercise calories. Thanks again

AnnPT77

MFP uses your input about how many times per week you exercise, and for how long, in only one place: On your exercise diary page, to show you how your actual exercise time stacks up against that goal. It doesn't - as you learned - affect your calorie goal at all. This confuses nearly everyone at first, it seems.