I need help, advice and tips are much appreaciated!

- How many calories should I eat per day? Do fruits and veggies count (weight watchers)?
- How many calories should I burn a day to lose weight? Being in as much pain as I am makes it really difficult to exercise, but it needs to be done.
- What is a good workout I can do at home on days I cannot get to the gym?

1. Follow the goal MFP sets for you. Log EVERYTHING you eat as accurately as possible. Invest in a food scale and weigh all of your food.
2. MFP will already calculate a calorie deficit for you. As long as you meet your goal, you will lose weight without any need for exercise. However, if you do choose to exercise, eat at least half of your exercise calories in addition to your MFP goal.
3. 30 Day Shred is popular, you can also try out Zumba, or doing youtube fitness videos, like fitnessblender or nerdfitness.

and 4. Read http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

1. My Fitness Pal is the first place to start. Click on My Home->Goal and enter the information. It will give you the amount of calories you will need to eat based on your choices.

2. Stick to your diet and enter all that you eat in MFP to see how you are doing.

3. Avoid any processed, high sugar and any/all junk food (cookies, soda, cakes, fried stuff).

4. change your eating style, eat at least 5 healthy meals per day (every 3 hours ). Oat meal, cereal, fruits, vegetables, white meat (chicken/turkey), fish, avocado, nuts, beans, eggs.

5. eat food that are low in calories, that way you can eat more in quantity but still put less calories. e.g. apples, eggs, milk

6. drink at least 8 to 10 glasses of water.

7. exercise helps too, start slow workout and gradually increase the intensity/duration.

8. Check out Team Beach Body's Tony Horton's 10 minute workout. Its a good workout and only needs 10 minutes. The schedule as 10,20 & 30 minute exercises so based on time available you can decide how long you want to workout.

9. Do not expect to see much of a chance for first 5 weeks. It takes time for your body to understand all these changes. also when you start to workout, your body is more likely to retain water and you may not see any weight loss, try to drink more water (8 to 10 glasses ).

10. don't depend on weight scale much, as you are working out, you are likely to gain lean muscle and may not see change in the weight. Best indicator for know you are loosing weight are

a. cloths fit loose.
b. finger ring seems to loosen out.
c. you feel more energetic and active.
d. you'll look lean and muscular (biceps, triceps, arms, chest starts to build up).

hope this helps and good luck

u stated u had pcos...it is something that is manageable not easy but can be worked with...if you have not already seen a physician specializing it i would start there. even a university doc could get u started on running some bloodwork to see where your body stands metabolically...i am not advocating medication but there are several drugs to help a pcos'er deal with insulin resistance...diet change is a huge factor in this...but sometimes a med really helps your body..u going to want to watch your liver results to make sure you do not have a fatty liver and other things...start now as pcos has tremendous impact on fertility

I think walking outside around the neighborhood is good when you don't go to a gym. Simple and relatively low stress on your body.

- I have been doing 10,000 steps a day measured with a pedometer. (You can do less at first if it seems too much.) It doesn't matter how I get the steps as long as I get them.
- Use the calorie deficit calculation at MFP. Chart everything.
- Find something that is enjoyable that is at least slightly physical to do when you feel like snacking. I find that I eat a lot just to entertain myself.
-Weigh yourself every day no matter what.

What advice has your doctor and/or health nurse given you?