Maintenance calories?

I am a 20-year-old female, about 5'6", and weigh about 115 lbs.

I'm trying to find out how many calories I should consume a day to maintain my weight.  Right now I take in about 1400 a day, and 1600 on the days I run.  I eat pretty healthy foods (lots of fruits, veggies, lean protein, whole grains..)

Any suggestions? Thanks!

I'd say 2000 on non run days and 2200 on run days. I'm 4'11 and eat 2000 or so calories a day.

Hi!    I am 166 cm, which is about 5 ‘ 5 and I also weigh 114 - 115 lbs!


1400 is not enough - trust me, I have a lot of experience with experimenting with calories!

The bare minimum to maintain is about 1600 on most  websites, if you are very lightly active.

So, if you burn 400 calories a day, you need to eat about 1600 plus 400 = 2000 calories

I burn about 500 - 600 5 days a week, and 400 on days off… so typically I eat about 2000 - 2300 tops.

I happily maintain on this, look and feel healthy, and never go hungry.

Hope this helps!

Also, from my own experience, 1400 calories tends to slow down your metabolism.  You only maintain on that amount because your metabolism slows down to conserve energy, as you are not giving it quiet enough with 1400 cals.

Your weight is below a normal weight - borderline underweight, in fact.....  125lbs is about the minimum for someone 5'6".   Below 120lbs and you're statistically at risk of your periods stopping and other problems starting.    If you're only maintaining that weight by undereating then it's definitely being held artificially low.  If you run your stats through this chart which is calibrated specifically for under 21s you'll be able to see how much energy you need....  http://www.bcm.edu/cnrc/bodycomp/bmiz2.html... based on your typical activity level.  NB 'activity' doesn't mean 'formal exercise' but everything you do.

Depending on how much you run you're looking at anything between 2000 and 2800.  Your weight may rise once you start eating a more appropriate amount but where it settles will be a more natural and healthier weight.

 

I just checked in to see the responses of this thread!   Sorry to dominate this - it is because you are about the same height and weight as me - so I feel compelled to share what has worked for me, so you can learn from my mistakes!

Jane  makes an important point:

2000 calories is a really good starting point for you to aim for if you burn 400 or more calories a day…

I find that a female of our height, 2000 calories feels like the magic number for me - give or take a little.

I have tried a lot of diff calorie levels and making sure I have at least around 2000 helped me so much.

Another thing I want to say:  you are slightly taller than me, and weigh about the same.

Now, I spent years weighing slightly less than I do now…….   And even though it was only SLIGHTLY below the solid 114 - 115 I now weigh, even that LITTLE bit of a difference made an impact!

I notice a huge difference now that I am only about 1 - 4 lbs heavier than I was before.

You are at about the point I was before… just below BMI 18.5... But trust me, it can be enough to prevent you from having enough energy and etc.

So, from a lot of experience being where you are now, it does make a positive difference to gain at least 1 - 3 lbs.   and that is if you are naturally slim in the first place. A lot of people our height need to weigh higher.