Completely confused by BMR and net calories....

I don't have much experience in this but ... It's not about 'how much' you eat,but 'what' you eat

First read this: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/931670-bmr-and-tdee-explained-for-those-needing-a-guide

the Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) which is essentially the amount of calories you need to maintain your current weight. What you need to do is eat CLEAN foods, avoid processed foods, drink at least a gallon of water per day and no other forms of drinks, eat 6 small meals per day in which more protein is consumed then carbs, and finally avoid bad fats and take in only healthy fats such as Fish Oils or CLA.

You need to understand the difference between eating vs. eating healthy. There is a lot of literature available online. Key terms to research are complex carbs vs. simple, insulin effects on blood sugar/ weight loss, timing meals, meeting macro / micro nutrient requirements, and etc.

For exercise, you should weightlift as well as do cardio. I would recommend reading up on carb-cycling as well as try to follow one of the programs on bodybuilding.com

Your overall goal is to lose body fat percentage by eating less calories than your BMR. The deficit you choose to have daily will dictate how much weight you will lose. Its a matter of intelligent eating and consistent training followed by adequate rest.

Strength training burns more calories than just cardio. Doing it will help in so many ways. Overall, you need to commit to a new lifestyle of living. Bodybuilding.com is a great website to learn from.

So if 1521 is your body's / lifestyle BMR rate then you need to eat at a deficit of that. Depending on your goals the percentage of your 1521 calories should be dictated by your macros i.e. percent of Protein, Carbs, and Fats. You need to eat 200-500 calories below your BMR on days you don't exercise.

When you do exercise, you will have to calculate the calories you burned / expenditure during the workout. Subtract that number from the amount of calories you consumed so far to figure out how many calories you have left to consume. Keeping consistence and combining strength training with cardio on alternating days as well as doing High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) will help you lose weight.

There is a lot more details to learn but essentially use the MFP website and app to track your nutrition. Learn about healthy eating. Strength train and do cardio. Eat clean. All of that will help.

Everything I've read from MFP says to eat under your BMR. The BMR is what you need to live: heart beating, breathing, etc. To lose weight you need to eat less than your body uses in a day. However, I do not agree with MFP telling you to 'eat back your exercise calories'. Now I know a lot, and I do mean A LOT of people on here swear by it and if it works for them I won't argue. However, it does not work for me. My BMR is 2300 so my daily calories are 1800 (to lose 1 pound a week). When I eat 1500-1800 of good healthy choices each day and work out I see progress. When I try to eat my exercise calories back I stall out. But like I said, I found what worked for me.

So that link says it is bad to eat less than your BMR, but you I should eat less than my BMR. I am still confused.....

MFP has set my calorie goal at less than my BMR but that was explained to me as being because 1. I am obese and 2. I have a sedentary lifestyle (drive all day long)

There are many on here that will tell you that 1200 calories net is the absolute minimum you should eat but I am not going to start the argument on that one all over again.

But

If you are using MFP to calculate your calories burned then eat at least 50% back (I eat 100% of those shown by my Heart Rate Monitor) I believe, but again not 100% certain that if you eat to few calories you will start to lose lean muscle mass

And while those people who told you to forget the net calories may be fit, are they logging everything they eat to see what their calorie intake is? I suspect not

BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) =/= TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure). Don't confuse the two; you want a cut from your TDEE, but around here, from what I've gathered, it's pretty well accepted that you still need to eat at least your BMR.
Read;
www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/975025-in-place-of-a-road-map-short-n-sweet?hl=road+map

You eat less than your BMR. How its calculated varies. The most accurate number can only be determined by labs with the technology. MFP uses a formula that estimates. So your goal is to eat 200-500 less than your BMR. If you eat fewer than 500 calories below your BMR, you risk messing up your metabolism temporarily and hurting your immune system.

The human body needs gradual change. So just keep in mind what I mentioned above. The BMR is essentially the mark you don't want to exceed.

A simple example. Your BMR is 2000. You ate 1500 calories prior to your workout. You work out and burn 500 calories. What happens then is you have 1000 calories in you for that day in which 500 is subtracted bc of the workout. Now you have 1000 calories in you (post-workout) so have to eat 500 cals more so that your total calories are 1500; therein, making it 500 cals below your BMR.

MFP gives you a number below your BMR to meet daily bc you set your goals and they calculate the required deficit. Does that make it easier?