newbie needing help :)

[Nichole021]

I am new to fitbit and calorie counting. My BMR is a little over 1500 calories a day and I'm averaging 2000-2200 calories burned a day just doing regular activities. How many calories should I be consuming a day in order to achieve weight loss? Do I eat 1500 a day since thats what my body needs to function or do I cut that down to 1200?

[wtksk8r]

@Nichole021 

To lose weight you should look at your total calorie expenditure.  For you that means your 2000-2200 calories per day.  From a high level view the typical calculation is 3500 calories per pound of fat.  If you eat 500 calories per day less than your daily expenditure, you should, on average, lose about a pound a week.  Don't go by the BMR unless you are a couch potato all day.  Your body responds to too little intake by going into starvation mode where your BMR then drops to compensate for the loss of food and you really don't want to go there.

One more note - starting off your body will resist losing weight and it may take a couple of weeks or so before it responds to the lessening of calorie intake.  Don't give up too soon.

[Nichole021]

Thank you so much @wtksk8r .....

so I should do between 1500-1800 calories a day depending on if I exercise or not?

[wtksk8r]

@Nichole021  Yes.  If you are logging your food in real time you should have a good idea of how well you are doing during the day and can estimate if you have room for additional food or if you should hold off.

For myself I try to match up my intake and expenditure in real time and fitbit certainly helps in keeping a real time track of the expenditure side.  It helps prevent those pangs of hunger in the middle of the day. 

Hope this helps and good luck on your journey!