Help, I'm not sure how much I should be eating!

If you eat 1,200 and burn 500 that leaves you with a net of 700 calories for a whole day... does that even sound like that could be correct/healhty based on what it gave you for your maintenance or BMR? I don't know of any circumstances where that would be sustainable.

I understand that you're new here, but you need to learn to think critically about your decisions so that you can be empowered and OWN your weight loss journey.

What? Your net should be the same as your daily goal. That's why it's your goal.

Sorry, that's what I meant. So, my net should always be equal to my goal then? No matter how much I exercise? How am I supposed to eliminate calories from my diet then if I'm just eating back what I burn off?

You already have a deficit before you do any exercise.

Think of it this way. If you ate an extra piece of cake you could work it off with some extra exercise, right?

Hi, First I would cross reference with another calorie calculator. This one just defaults at 1200 it seems for many. 'The Mayo Clinic' is a renowned representation that truly has to answer for its information. After doing that, compare the two and come up with a number you feel is balanced and achievable for you. You may have to adjust... if you are not loosing. (maybe to LITTLE or to many) Usually to few calories. If you aren't sleeping well, have low grade headaches. No motivation to work out. So, keep an eye on your self and adjust when you body tells you. Then, eat your calories (Goal) and half your work out calories back. Not etched in stone... but a good guide line to aim for most days. Good luck~

Basically your daily calorie goal set by MFP of 1200 is already a deficit ... you would have to eat several hundred calories more than that to stay at the same weight ... in other words if your BMR is 1500 then by only consuming 1200 calories a day you are producing of a deficit of 300 calories each day In other words if you exercise so that 300 calories deficit is increased, you need to eat back those calories otherwise it's unlikely you'll be able to sustain such a low calorie diet for a long enough period of time to get real results!
Hope this helped!

Great question! First keep in mind that the suggested calorie intake is based on the setting were it asked you how acitve you are. My BMR ( Base Metabolic Rate : calories my body burns in a day) is about 2044. My fitness pal told me to limmit my calories to 1600 calories per day. My trainer sugested to bump it up to 1800. The idea is to create a calorie deficit with diet alone and have enough intake to survive a good workout Every day I try to eat 1600 to 1800 calories and then work out. You should not feel hungery or light headed.

Good Luck!