How to Calculate Your Daily Calorie Needs

Calories are units of energy. Your body needs a certain number each day to maintain your weight, and adjusting that number up or down drives weight gain or loss. Understanding your daily calorie needs is the starting point of any effective nutrition strategy.

Step 1: Calculate Your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)

Your BMR is the number of calories you'd burn doing absolutely nothing — just keeping your organs running. The Mifflin-St Jeor equation is the most accurate widely-used formula.

• Men: BMR = (10 × weight in kg) + (6.25 × height in cm) − (5 × age) + 5
• Women: BMR = (10 × weight in kg) + (6.25 × height in cm) − (5 × age) − 161

Step 2: Multiply by Your Activity Level

Your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) = BMR × Activity Factor.

• Sedentary (desk job, little exercise): × 1.2
• Lightly active (light exercise 1–3 days/week): × 1.375
• Moderately active (moderate exercise 3–5 days/week): × 1.55
• Very active (hard exercise 6–7 days/week): × 1.725
• Extremely active (physical job + training): × 1.9

Example Calculation

35-year-old woman, 65 kg, 165 cm, moderately active. BMR = (10 × 65) + (6.25 × 165) − (5 × 35) − 161 = 650 + 1031.25 − 175 − 161 = 1,345 calories. TDEE = 1,345 × 1.55 = 2,085 calories/day to maintain weight.

Using Your TDEE

• To lose weight: eat 300–500 calories below TDEE
• To gain muscle: eat 200–300 calories above TDEE
• To maintain: eat at TDEE