How many calories...

In general, how many calories per pound should an average cat get per day?! I've read so many different recommendations I am lost. I heard 15-20, 20-25, 20-30... What is a correct amount to give?
I have a non sugar cat who weighs about 14 lbs. She is overweight by probably 2-3 lbs. Shes on the lazier side... I give her 2 cans of FF classics per day broken up into 4 meals. She doesn't act like she's starving but she will certainly eat as much as you give her as often as you give it--she's my little Hoover. I don't want to be starving her... Is 2 cans enough per day?

And pertaining to my sugarcat...she had dropped down to about 7 lbs from 10ish when she got sick. She needed to lose weight anyhow as she is very small framed and was overweight at 10. She lost a lot of muscle mass.
Well since being sick, I've been allowing her to eat as much as she wants at multiple feeding times per day. Sometimes she's up to 4-5 cans per day. Well she is starting to gain weight now. Gained roughly a pound in a week. I don't want her to get back up to an unhealthy weight but i dont want to deprive her of food if she needs it--she's still unregulated.

Where is the happy medium?
Do I allow her to eat what she wants until BS is under control or do I cut her back before the excess weight comes back?
And how do I improve her muscle mass?

 

There no one amount. It varies cat-by-cat. The rule of thumb is 2-30 Kcal per lb per day. My MurFee whoc weight about 10 pounds eat over 2 5.6 oz cans a day while my Patches II who weighs 13 pounds eats half that.
You should fed based on the weight of the cat. Feed more to increase weight and less to lose weight. I use a digital postal scale.
If she is steady at desired weight at 4-5 cans a day then continue that and change, likely decrease, as you get better control of BG

 

I just asked my vet about the calories Rudy needs each day. She calculated and came up with 260. He is almost 16 years old and is about 14 lbs. (so almost 20 calories per pound). That is about 8-9 ounces depending on the calorie/ounce., which seems about right for me. Like larry said though, every kitty is different