How to calculate your calorie needs

If your health and wellness goals include losing, gaining, or maintaining your weight, it’s helpful to learn how to calculate your caloric needs. Knowing how many calories you need can help guide your food choices and activities to reach your goals. This is the whole idea behind the CICO diet, which stands for Calories In Calories Out.

The logic behind the CICO diet is that once you know your calorie needs, you can add, subtract, or meet them to gain, lose, or maintain weight.

Read on for a step-by-step guide to calculating your calorie needs using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation. Plus, you’ll learn how to work with that number once you know it.

Step 1: Calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)

It all starts with the basal metabolic rate (BMR). It is the number of calories your body burns just to stay alive. (1) Even if you were in bed all day, your body would still need energy (aka calories) to breathe, pump blood, produce cells and hormones, etc.

One of the most reliable ways to calculate BMR is using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which factors in your weight, height, age and gender. (1, 5)

By plugging your numbers into this formula, you can get a personalized estimate of how many calories your body burns at rest. I say “estimate” because, while this is one of the most accurate ways to calculate your BMR, it’s not perfect. science. (More on that later.)

Let’s take an example and calculate this together. For example, if you are a 35-year-old woman who is 5’4” and weighs 165 pounds, you first need to calculate your height and weight in centimeters and kilograms.

• Height in centimeters = height in inches x 2.54 or 64 x 2.54 = 162.56
• Weight in kilograms = weight in pounds ÷ 2.2 or 165 ÷ 2.2 = 75

Now, plug these numbers into the BMR equation.

• BMR = (10 × 75) + (6.25 × 162.56) – (5 × 35) – 161
• BMR = 750 + 1016 – 175 – 161
• BMR ≈ 1,430 calories/day

This means that your body needs about 1,430 calories every day just to maintain essential functions. However, since you don’t spend all day lying down, you need to adjust your energy needs based on how active you are. (If you prefer to skip the math, you can easily calculate your BMR here.)

Step 2: Adjust BMR Based on Your Activity Level

Now that you know your BMR, you can factor in your activity level to get a more accurate picture of how many calories you really need each day. It is your daily energy expenditure (TDEE). TDEE takes into account your daily movement and adjusts your calorie needs accordingly. (1) To estimate your TDEE, you can use the following activity level multipliers:

Sedentary (little to no exercise)

Use this activity level multiplier if you have minimal activity or movement throughout the day – say, because you drive to work and you have a desk job. (1)

Activity multiplier: BMR × 1.2

Moderately active (exercise 1-3 days per week)

This is when you do some activity – like going for a walk – up to three days a week. (1)

Activity multiplier: BMR × 1,375

Moderately active (exercise 3-5 days per week)

Let’s say you walk a lot in your daily life and exercise most days; you would be considered moderately active. (1)

Activity multiplier: BMR × 1.55

Very active (exercise 6-7 days a week)

If you are engaging in any proper exercise – such as jumping on the elliptical – most days, or you have a physical job, you would be considered very active. (1)

Activity multiplier: BMR × 1,725

Super active (hard exercise or physical work)

You would be considered super active if you pushed hard when you worked out – say in spin class – or if you had an intensely physical job. (1)

Activity Multiplier: BMR × 1.9

Going back to our example, if you exercise four times a week, your activity multiplier would be BMR × 1.55. Your BMR was 1,430 calories, so the equation looks like this.(1)

TDEE = 1,430 × 1.55 = 2,216.50 calories/day

This means that to maintain your current weight, you need about 2,215 calories per day. Now, let’s adjust this number based on your goals.

Step 3: set your goal: weight loss, maintenance or gain

Here’s where to learn how to calculate your caloric needs based on your personal goal.

For weight loss:

The logic behind the CICO diet is that one pound is roughly equivalent to 3,500 calories. (6) So, to lose weight, subtract 250 to 500 calories from your TDEE.

Using our TDEE example of 2,215, you can cut your intake by 500 calories, aiming for a daily intake of about 1,715 calories. This should lead to a gradual and sustainable weight loss of about 1 pound per week.

Remember that gradual changes are helpful so they don’t feel overwhelming. Also, keep in mind again that while calorie counting is a useful tool for weight loss, it is not an exact science. You may lose more or less weight than expected after calculating your personal caloric needs for weight loss.

For weight gain:

If you are trying to gain muscle or increase your weight, you need to consume more calories than your TDEE. Your calorie needs for weight gain can increase by about 500 calories per day, bringing your total to about 2,715 calories.

A calorie counter tool will come in handy as you focus on adding calories to gain weight. MyFitnessPal it can also make it easier to make sure you add calories from nutritious sources.

For maintenance:

For weight maintenance, aim to match your calorie intake to your TDEE. In our example, this would mean consuming about 2,215 calories per day.

Whatever your goal, making small, gradual adjustments is the best way to ensure long-term success. Extreme caloric deficit or surplus can be difficult to sustain and can have a negative impact on your health. A calorie-counting app, such as MyFitnessPal, can help you track the CICO diet for weight gain, weight loss, or maintenance.

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About the Experts:

Samantha Cassetty, MS, RDis a nationally recognized nutrition and nutrition expert, media personality, nutritional consultant and author. Cassetty is a former nutrition director for Good Housekeeping and the book’s co-author Sugar shock.

Daisy Mercer, RD, is food data curator at MyFitnessPal. She graduated with her bachelors in Food Science and Dietetics from Colorado State University and completed her dietetic internship with the VA San Diego Healthcare System.

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Macronutrient Balance: Optimize Your Caloric Intake

The CICO diet can help you manage your caloric intake, but the macronutrient balance helps you optimize your nutrition.

The three macronutrients are protein, fat and carbohydrates. The right balance helps you feed your body properly for specific goals, whether it’s to lose weight, build muscle, or maintain weight. (You can set a personal macro goal with this free macro calculator.)

Protein:

Protein is essential for maintaining muscle strength and mass. (7) Protein is also associated with increased satiety, which helps to feel full for longer after eating. (1) Getting enough protein while losing weight will help you preserve muscle mass and improve satiety while you’re in a caloric deficit. (6)

Fats:

Fats not only help absorb nutrients, but slow down the rate at which food is digested and metabolized. This means that, like protein, fat can help you feel fuller longer. (8) A balance of beneficial macronutrients includes about 30% of your daily caloric needs from healthy fats for the heart, such as those found in avocados, nuts, seeds and extra virgin olive oil. (3)

Carbohydrates:

Carbohydrates are often maligned, especially among those trying to lose weight. However, carbohydrates are the body and brain’s main source of energy, and your muscles need carbohydrates to fuel physical activity. (9) The net-net is that carbs are a vital part of your macronutrient balance. Typically, 40% of your daily calorie needs should come from carbohydrates.3)

Of course, these are general guidelines, and some people prefer to balance their macronutrient intake differently.

Calorie Counting is not an exact science: other factors to consider

While calorie counting can be a useful tool for managing your weight, there are other things that influence your body’s ability to lose or gain weight.

That’s why it’s important to be kind to yourself as you embark on a weight management journey. While calorie tracking is useful, there is still some trial and error to the process.

Metabolism:

You don’t have as much control over your metabolism as you think. Everyone’s metabolism is unique, and age, genetics, and gender affect your metabolic rate.(7) Of course, your activity levels – how active or inactive – is a factor in your metabolic rate that you can control. (More on that below.)

Hormones:

Hormones, especially those related to thyroid function, can influence weight gain or loss. Hormones related to menopause can also affect your ability to lose weight. Talk to your doctor if you suspect that hormonal imbalances are making it harder to manage your weight. (7)

If you have lost weight in the past, appetite-regulating hormones can make it more difficult to maintain this weight loss because these hormones make you more hungry. (10)

Exercise and muscle mass:

In addition to improving your health and burning some calories, exercise – especially strength training – helps you build more muscle tissue. (5) Muscle burns slightly more calories than fat, even at rest.5) So, the more muscle mass you have, the higher your metabolism and calorie needs.

The Bottom Line: Understand and adjust your calorie needs

To optimize your health and reach your goals, start calculating your calorie needs with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, adjusting your personal activity level. Then you can start counting calories for weight loss, maintenance or gain. (MyFitnessPal can make this much easier!)

While this is a good start, it’s also helpful to consider your macronutrient balance, as some calories are more filling and nutritious than others.

Remember, this process is very individual, and other factors such as genes, hormones and muscle mass also play a role. With gradual, sustainable changes and a balanced approach to calories and macronutrients, you can make progress toward your personal goals.

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