Newbie...help with numbers, please...

Sounds good. Slow and steady is good and easier to stay with.

Here's where to set macro percentages, and you can always change it in the future if you want: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/change_goals_custom

You can consume more calories without necessarily eating a ton more volume: oil, salad dressings, peanut butter, avocado, try different types of meat other than boneless skinless chicken breast if you eat meat, etc. If you do a search you'll come up with tons of ideas

But yeah if the struggle is more mental than just wondering how you'll physically cram more food into your day, I agree you should see if your counselor can help you sort through some of that

Looking at your entries from yesterday it looks like you're not weighing your food. Please use a food scale and weigh everything. I have what I would describe as a smallish banana in front of me and it weighs in at 115 grams without peel. That's 98 calories, though if I logged it as a small banana it's 90 kcal. Sure, it's a small difference, but it all adds up. You also had 8 tablespoons of hummus. I know that hummus is quite high in calories (and very yummy). What is the definition of the person who entered hummus in table spoons into the data base and how does that differ with yours? Did the person enter the information use a tablespoon full of hummus and wiped off everything that's higher than the edge? What did you do? There really is a good chance that you're eating more than you think.

Alskarani, as others have suggested 1000 cal a day is much too low. I suggest you check with your doctor. I'm an old fart and have heart issues. In 98 I had a quad bypass and my only complaint prior to the operation was that I felt that I got tired too fast. I was working a job that required almost zero activity and I was on a see-food diet, e.g. if I could see it I would eat it. After the bypass I got serious about my diet and counted calories. At that time I was not aware of anything like MFP. I followed the Body For Life program with respect to exercise and diet. I'm 6'1" and was about 215, after several months I got down to 185 and hit the wall. I stayed at this level for a few years and then moved from NC to AZ. Here in AZ I was building a house and fell off the diet and exercise program for a several years. No bypass is forever and a couple of years ago after some test it was confirmed that the bypass was basically wiped out and I had new blockages. Just over a year ago I became part of a research program for a stem cell injection. I think I got the good stuff but will not know until this Nov. Recently I switch heart doctors in my home town and he stated that I have heart issues on the back side and it is very unlikely that it will improve but I could reduce the changes of heart attacks by changing my diet He suggested a Mediterranean style diet and a calorie count of 1600-1800 per day and exercise.

Since the visit I've been using the MFP app on my smart phone, I have a chest pulse monitor and per his suggestion I keep my pulse below 110. I've been exercising on a Nordic Track Cross Country Ski machine. At first my pulse was difficult to keep below 110 and I had negative health issues as a result, e.g. I'd feel very sick, super tired, chest tightness, numbness in my right arm, tingle in my bottom teeth. I then reduced my efforts and really watched my pulse keeping it below 110. At the start it was difficult for me to exercise for 15 minutes and I was doing about a 13 minute mile. I try to exercise daily and just today I completed 4 miles in 30 min, 16 seconds, the entire time my pulse was below 110 and I have almost no negative issues. This was accomplished in about 4 weeks. My weight has dropped from 208.4 to 202.2 and my bodyfat is now about 25 percent. It was over 27 when I started. In that I have a lot of extra body fat I expect my future progress to be slow. When I weigh myself my scales display the percent body fat.

I suggest you first visit your doctor, get on a good diet and exercise program, set realistic goals, use the MFP app, track your results. When you can afford it get a good pulse monitor, chest straps are currently the most accurate although I really want to get the Fitbit Charger HR. If you watch the sales you can pickup stuff at great prices. I have a Big 5 sport store very close to me and picked up a Yoga mat for $14 that normally cost $30. They also had a chest strap monitor on sale for $59.

Best of luck and good health.