I have MyFitnessPal and love it! Some days I end up neglecting to use it but I am going to be more disciplined in this from now on. I average about 1,300 calories intake a day but I walk a lot (live in a city) and somehow my phone knows this and logs a movement deficit as part of the total. I end up having 50+% carbs, 30% fat, less than 15% protein. Looking at these stats, I am feeling like maybe I need to introduce meat substitutes or just meat into my diet.
My BMR is 1,341 calories and TDEE is 1,609, and will be 1844 once I start exercising. If I've done this right (using the formula suggested in the FAQs, I should aim for:
Does that look right? I'm 118lbs and I want to lose fat (according to my very dodgy scales, I am 15.5% fat but judging by eye by this site I would say more like 25%). My fat deposits on my hips and belly and I would like to not look like I'm 2 weeks post-partum (seriously, I hate my tummy so much, I have decided that I never want to have kids because I've seen 'after' photos and it would drive me to depression). But I don't just want to lose fat. I want to get strong. I want to gain muscle and strength. I want abs and biceps (and to be able to do more than half a press up!) and strong legs and endurance. I want to be able to lift weights and feel hard rather than squishy when someone gives me a hug. I want someone to be able to look at me and think, 'yeah, she obviously spends a lot of time at the gym' which is my plan for this summer. I have a bit of money saved so I'd like to find a personal trainer to show me the ropes and from then on I want to train daily.
Machines in the gym really intimidate me and a couple of years ago when I went regularly I found that if I tried to use the one or two which I had been shown, I would end up with guys coming over to show me how to do it properly (though with those two I did know) and I know that some would find that patronising but given that I actually was a little girl with no clue, I found it really helpful, and I'm not looking to injure myself doing it wrong. I also purchased multivitamins and joint care capsules because I don't think that I get enough vitamins and my diet hasn't been great and I don't think I take care of my joints in my diet. But on the whole I have little clue what I am doing and as another poster mentioned, a lot of the fitness information aimed at women is contradictory and ineffective and plays on the cultural idea that we should eat salad and avoid carbs and do a few yoga poses and that will get us rock the hard abs and low body fat percentage that the fitness model in the advertisement spend years at the gym achieving and maintaining.