Calorie Calculator — Daily Intake for Weight Loss or Muscle Gain

It depends on your current maintenance calories (TDEE). A safe, effective deficit is 500 calories below your TDEE for approximately 1 lb/week loss. For most sedentary women, TDEE falls between 1,600–2,200 calories, meaning a weight loss target of 1,100–1,700 calories/day. Never go below 1,200 calories without medical supervision. Use the calculator above to find your specific TDEE first, then subtract 500.

A sedentary 200-lb (91 kg) man at 5'10" (178 cm), age 35: BMR ≈ 2,068 cal/day. Multiplied by 1.2 (sedentary) = TDEE of approximately 2,482 cal/day. If moderately active (×1.55): ~3,205 cal/day. To lose 1 lb/week, target approximately 1,982–2,705 cal/day depending on activity. As he loses weight, this target will need to be recalculated.

A deficit of 500 calories/day is the standard recommendation for safe, sustainable fat loss of approximately 1 lb (0.45 kg) per week. This is conservative enough to preserve muscle mass, maintain energy, and sustain adherence. Deficits larger than 1,000 cal/day increase risk of muscle loss, nutrient deficiencies, metabolic adaptation, and diet failure. For most people, 500–750 cal/day deficit is the sweet spot.

Losing 2 lbs/week requires a 1,000 calorie/day deficit (since 3,500 calories ≈ 1 lb of fat × 2 = 7,000 cal/week ÷ 7 days = 1,000 cal/day). This is aggressive and not recommended unless you are significantly overweight and under medical supervision. For most people, the first 1–3 weeks may show faster weight loss due to water loss, but true fat loss at this rate is difficult to sustain without muscle loss.

For most adults, 1,200 calories creates a significant deficit leading to weight loss of 1–3 lbs in the first week (mostly water) and 0.5–1.5 lbs per week thereafter. Over a month, you might lose 4–8 lbs. However, 1,200 calories is very restrictive for most adults — at this level, nutrient deficiency is a real risk. Some people also experience fatigue, metabolic slowdown, and intense hunger. This level should only be maintained with careful nutrient planning and ideally medical oversight.

For most women, 1,500 calories supports fat loss of about 0.5–1 lb per week if their TDEE is 2,000–2,200 (typical for a sedentary to lightly active woman). It's generally adequate for micronutrient needs if food choices are nutrient-dense. Whether it's 'enough' depends entirely on your individual TDEE — a tall, active woman might need 2,500+ calories to maintain weight, making 1,500 an aggressive deficit. Calculate your TDEE first.

Your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the calories burned doing absolutely nothing — keeping your heart beating, brain functioning, lungs breathing, and body temperature regulated. For most adults, BMR is 1,200–2,000 calories/day depending on size, age, and sex. A 5'5", 140-lb 30-year-old woman has a BMR of approximately 1,427 calories. A 5'11", 185-lb 30-year-old man has a BMR of approximately 1,930 calories. Use the calculator to find yours.

Yes, but less dramatically than often claimed. Muscle burns approximately 6 calories per pound per day at rest, versus fat at about 2 calories per pound per day. Adding 10 lbs of muscle increases your BMR by roughly 40 additional calories/day — meaningful over years, but not a dramatic metabolic revolution. The bigger calorie-burning benefit of muscle is that it enables you to exercise harder and longer, significantly increasing TDEE through activity.