now how many calories should i eat??

I'm 5'6.5 -7 115lbs and i just want to maintain. i usually eat around 1800 calories i day and i workout 6 days a week, an hour of cardio 6 days a week, 3 days a week i lift weights for 30mins after cardio. however, that cardio used to consist primarily of running, which i figured the treadmill gave me a pretty accurate read out of calories burned, plus i'd balance it out with other cross training activities such as the elliptical or stairmaster until the hour was up. well im now down from 25 miles a week to 0 miles since i have shin splints. 

i have turned to my trust HR monitor and now only use elliptical, cybex trainer, bike, stairstepper and various other machines, however, NONE of these get my heart rate/ calorie burn up the way running does. how many calories should i be eating a day?? i used to burn anywhere from 600-650 calories an hour. now im lucky if i make it to 500 even though my heart rates at about 160bpm the whole time.

what to do!! add more cardio?? i don't think that's wise.

You should enter your info into CC and log your calories burned on the exercise meter to be sure, BUT I will say that when I was working out that much, I ate 2500 a day at least (and still lost some weight, inadvertantly).  1800 seems way low for hour long cardio workouts.  I eat that on a sedentary day to maintain.

At your height and weight, I don't think 1800 calories is too many calories at all..even without quite all that exercise.

You don't mention having gained, so..maybe just continue as usual and see what actually happens?

If you start to gain or lose, then maybe it will be time to make adjustments, but it might be too soon to tell what impact, if any..those shin splints are going to have.

You sound like an active person..you may even be able to afford eating more without causing a gain.

Remember..3500 calories is a pound..meaning, 3500 over what you should be eating, so if you're not eating much as it is, you would probably have to add some jelly donuts every day to really create a real increase in your weight.

I think you're fine.

Original Post by discoqueenx322:

I'm 5'6.5 -7 115lbs and i just want to maintain. i usually eat around 1800 calories i day and i workout 6 days a week, an hour of cardio 6 days a week, 3 days a week i lift weights for 30mins after cardio.

 You're classed as 'clinically underweight', unfortunately because your BMI is 18 (at 5'7")....   That isn't a healthy state for your body to be in long-term, especially if you're only maintaining that weight by effectively starving yourself.  If you're working out so much every day of the week you need about 2500-2800 cals a day to maintain your weight..... and you're going to need 3000-3200 to gain to a healthier weight.

Don't do more cardio... eat more.