calorie intake at this point in the game

newmooon56

First the stats - Im 5 2''- 40 years old- start weight was 152 in July. Now am 133 (as of today).

For about 6 weeks I ate 1200 calories and did a ton of cardio (run/walk 3-5 miles, step aerobics, zumba etc) 5-7 days a week.
Then I upped it to 1400 and continued the cardio- but started adding in light weights.

At this time I still need to lose some fat (going by mirror more than the scale) but I have also started the Strong Lift 5x5 program. I have the olympic bar and am slowly adding weight. Pretty excited to see how heavy I can lift each week. Still new at lifting this heavy but I love it and will continue.

Finally the question: I still have fat to lose (how much? not sure - 5 or 10 lbs maybe?) and I want to lift heavy 3x a week- and maybe do HIIT those days (or some of those lift days) and 1 or 2 other cardio days. How many calories should I be eating ?? I dont NEED to see giant muscle gains- Im not trying to become a fitness model- BUT- I want to treat my body right so this agrees with me and gives me the best results I can get. I feel GREAT! - but I wonder if 1400-1500 calories is correct or will I start to not feel so great.

Where is the happy middle of fat loss and lifting recovery? I am aware I need protein and always try to eat around 85-100 grams a day - I keep carbs low -ish, but Im not a stickler. Diary is open btw.

If it helps - TDEE -set to moderate is approx. 2000 (rounding to make it easy) BMR is around 1360. (rounded).

Thank you in advance for any advice or links to help me figure this out!