How many calories are you aiming to eat a day?

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  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,650 Member
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    I'm 5'10" and ~150lbs. MFP has me at 1200. I stay just under that, and try to eat back my exercise calories.


    I am 5 ft 3 and 160 lbs and MFP put me at 1600 !! see i knew i was missing something
    can someone help me please ?

    http://www.cordianet.com/calculator.htm

    Here's a good calculator to figure out your BMR and calories
  • gotobedmaryse
    gotobedmaryse Posts: 9 Member
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    I've got it set to little over 1200 cal and I eat back all my calories to about 1700. I make sure to exercise everyday and usually go over on week-ends (but never more than 2200) Seems to be working right now, and I rarely feel hungry.
  • ogechiibe
    ogechiibe Posts: 3
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    I try to keep mine to no more than 1400. I probably burn about 1100 on a good day and will eat 200 of it back. When you eat the right foods, 1400-1600 is a lot
  • ogechiibe
    ogechiibe Posts: 3
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    Can someone give me some guidance on how many calories i need?? I typically eat between 1350-1600, some days higher (1700-1800) and some days lower (rare in the 1200 range) but that really depends on my activity level for the day and how many hours I am awake. I workout 4-6x a week, i workout hard and do a variety of different workouts. usually 1-2x a week I do 2-a-days. I am 5'2'' and currently fluctuating between 125-128lbs, I'd like to lose a few more but am mainly concentrating on lowering my body fat percentage, and of course building lean muscle. Help please!

    High protein/fat, Low carb. Keep your carbs between 50 and 80 grams for like 2 weeks. I think you will see a difference. It sounds like your calories are right. You just have to pick your carbs carefully and eat more protein and (GOOD) fats (like avocados, olive oil, coconut oil, etc)
  • nillapup
    nillapup Posts: 204 Member
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    My MFP is set to 1300.. plus exercise calories if I am hungry
  • stumblinthrulife
    stumblinthrulife Posts: 2,558 Member
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    1,300 net calories after activity. Monday to Friday I earn an extra 300 through working out, so 1,600 intake. Saturday and Sunday I'm much more active, and can earn another 1,000 calories just through daily activity, so 2,300 intake.

    I eat mostly low calorie density food, so I'm almost always below my goal, and have even been chastised by MFP a couple of times and told my metabolism may slow. At which point I generally find some healthy (and sometimes not so healthy) snacks to redress the balance.
  • Sweet_Pea0107
    Sweet_Pea0107 Posts: 90
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    2000 to 2500 depending on exercise. I am usually not under.
  • LisaGirlfriend
    LisaGirlfriend Posts: 493 Member
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    I agree with above poster to read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    I aim never to eat below my BMR. Just changed my target to the following formula - BMR 1350 + 100 (to be safe) + all exercise points = somewhere between 1600-1800 every day. If I don't exercise I aim for 1450. Pretty simple... let's see how I do.
  • srd2b
    srd2b Posts: 33 Member
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    My goal is around 1500.... I'm usually on it or over it.
  • soehlerking
    soehlerking Posts: 589 Member
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    1800, i'm usually a little under..but i make up for it on the weekends. :)
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    my BMR is 1333 and my TDEE is 2050. I try to eat about 1500-1600 a day. But I don't worry so much about that as I do my macros.
  • smardie
    smardie Posts: 27
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    I think 2000 a day , but will fine tune that after this month.

    Last year I was all over the map and this year I really want to find a number that works for me and then stick with it.

    Has anyone every tried up day , down day diets ? You eat 500 calories one day and the next , you can eat like 2000-3000.
    I tried it two years ago, but found myself too hungry on the down days, especially if I worked out.
  • nikknack12
    nikknack12 Posts: 8 Member
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    Congrats on your remarkable weight loss! I just started MFP yesterday, so I am VERY new here. Like you, I am eating as close to 1200 calories per day. That is what the program suggested. I'm am confused as to what exactly I should be aiming for. Like you, I also am not yet exercising. I want to get a handle on the food/calories first before I start adding exercise in. I've been reading throughout the boards and I still don't know how much I should be aiming for each day.

    I am 5' 7" and weigh 166.8. I am soon to be 49, female, and sedentary (I work at a computer all day and sit, but do get up several times thought the day to stretch my legs and walk.). My walk in from parking to my office is 10 minutes - I park as far away as possible on purpose. Also, I ALWAYS take the stairs, never the elevator. I believe when I entered my info my BMR was somewhere around 1414. Another number of 1770 comes up on my goals page (still not sure if that's what I'm suppose to be eating or the 1200) along with the 1200 calories/day, it shows 570 and I don't know what that is. Again, I have not put in any exercise info yet (I'm sure when I get to that I will be confused particularly when I've been reading about people eating back their exercise calories).

    I would appreciate any advice. My diary is set to private, not that there is much there since it's only day two! I would be willing to open it if that would be helpful to anyone willing to offer me some help! I want to start following this correctly from the beginning.

    FOLLOW UP: I went to the suggested link below (thanks for including it) and while I know it should clarify things for me, unfortunately I'm even more confused!
  • caseythirteen
    caseythirteen Posts: 956 Member
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    My goal is 1800 and I try to end up close to that on most days.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
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    My calorie goal is 1600 and I don't have issues meeting that #. On high cal burn days, I tend to eat more...from 1800-2000.


    If you want, check out this link by MFPer Heliotsdan - http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/654536-in-place-of-a-road-map-2-0-revised-7-2-12

    It'll give you a detailed walkthrough (with pictures even) on finding your TDEE and calculating what you should be eating.

    Also, if you are worried about the calorie intake, I also suggest you read this thread that has numerous people who met their goals and are maintaining. Some for years and they also provide their calorie intake and how often they work out.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/816542-let-s-hear-it-for-maintainenance

    For more information about fitness and nutrition, I highly suggest checking out and joining this group:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/10118-eat-train-progress

    Read all the stickies. It's great information to know.
  • lmfaulkner9
    lmfaulkner9 Posts: 14
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    About 1,500 per day. I eat a little more on the days when I exercise.
  • BarbieAS
    BarbieAS Posts: 1,414 Member
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    My goal is set to 1750, which is approximately my BMR. My average TDEE is somewhere around 2600, based on 5 workouts/week. 5 days per week I eat between 1650 and 1850, I have one very reasonable cheat meal/day (or whatever you want to call it) per week and then Sundays I cut back a bit to even out the cheat day and come in as close to an average of 1750/day for the week as possible. It works for me, lifestyle-wise, which is what's important in my book.

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