How much?

How many calories should I eat?

Im 20, and around 5'8

To many variables...

Male or female. Current wieght. Goal weight. Activity level.  Not to mention  individual metabolisms can vary significantly.

For an estimate, try using the "Burn Meter" and "calorie target" tools that are listen in the tools section of the calorie counter website.

There are soooo many tools for this on the internet, if you look for the info you'll find it really easily.

A 20 year old female of 5'8... well. I can't tell you, because I don't know your weight or activity level. What I can tell you is that CC's tools are inaccurate for under 21's and you should try using this calculator instead to work out what you need: http://www.bcm.edu/cnrc/bodycomp/bmiz2.html as you are still growing. Yes, even in the later years - there's more going on inside of you that you simply can't see.

My sister in law lost 25 lbs by multiplying her weight time 7.  That gives you the number of calories you should eat in a day....just an indea.

Multiplying my weight by 7 gave me well under 1200 calories and I'm a TALL girl, my bmr is over 1600. A 120 lb person eating weight times 7 would put them at 840 calories. It sounds like your sister-in-law lost 25 lbs by starving herself and has probably done more damage than good.

Tgelinas: Okay. Let's do this hypothetically. The formula doesn't take height into account, or... anything beyond weight. But, let's presume two people over 21, female, 5'4 and sedentary:

This formula for someone who is 250lbs gives 1750 calories. CC's calculator produces: You burn 2300 calories during a typical day. Remember that this estimate is based on your body weight, height, age, gender, and your average level of activity. So a safe loss number would be 1800. So, about right.

But, this formula for someone who is 150lbs gives 1050 calories. That's far too little and the danger comes if the person using the formula is too low a weight.

An adult woman needs 1200 calories per day to survive, a teenage girl or an adult man 1500 per day bare minimum, and a teenage boy 1800 per day minimum and that is when SEDENTARY. If you are exercising, you need even more than that. And this is the bare minimum.

Unless you are very, very short and small it is very likely you will need even more calories than those minimum guidelines. If you are 21 or older use CC's tools to work out your BMR - http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/calories-bur ned.php. If you are under 21, CC's tools are inaccurate and you should use this calculator instead: http://www.bcm.edu/cnrc/bodycomp/bmiz2.html as you are still growing. Yes, even in the later years - there's more going on inside of you that you simply can't see.

Eating too low a calorie intake, or having a deficit from your BMR greater than 1000 results in something called "survival mode", where your body holds every last thing it can get in expectance of a famine. Water, food, calories. Explained:

• Dieting & Metabolism - This article explains starvation mode and why undereating is counter productive.
• The Body Neglected - This is what happens when you undereat for an extended period of time. 

The physical dangers that come with undereating are numerous. You put yourself at risk of osteoporosis, of loss of fertility if you lose your period, hair loss, electrolyte problems, a weakening of the immune system, low blood pressure, blood disorders such as anemia, heart problems, and even death. The mental woes that come alongside can be just as devestating. Depression is common in undereaters, as well as distorted perceptions and problems like Body Dysmorphic Disorder.

Crash dieting will do nothing to help you lose weight as the weight will likely come straight back on, and undereating can easily do more damage than good. Think about it - your health or your vanity? Weight is easily lost if you do it in a healthy and sustainable manner which is what CC is all about.

Posting Guidelines

Calorie Count's mission is to promote healthy and sustainable weight management. Please help our moderators follow this vision and respect the following guidelines.

• Your post is subject to modification or deletion by our moderators. Repetitive, off-topic, disruptive, and frivolous posts will be removed. We will take down any posts that violate either the letter or the spirit of any of these rules.
• Promotion of starvation diets or habits that exhibit signs of an eating disorder ("pro-ana", "pro-mia", etc.) is prohibited.

- Ellie
Calorie Count Volunteer Moderator