TDEE calculator
Your TDEE — total daily energy expenditure — is roughly how many calories you burn in a day, and it's the number every diet is built on. This calculator estimates it from the Mifflin-St Jeor equation and gives you the cut and lean-bulk targets that come off it.
An estimate for training decisions — not medical advice.
Activity multipliers
Your BMR multiplied by how much you move.
| Activity level | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| Sedentary — desk job, no training | ×1.200 |
| Light — training 1–3 days a week | ×1.375 |
| Moderate — training 3–5 days a week | ×1.550 |
| Active — training 6–7 days a week | ×1.725 |
| Very active — physical job or two-a-days | ×1.900 |
The estimate is a starting point
Mifflin-St Jeor is the most accurate of the common equations, and it's still an average of people who share your height, weight, age and sex — not you. Real TDEE varies by several hundred calories between people with identical inputs, mostly through non-exercise movement.
So treat the number as week one of an experiment: eat it for two weeks, weigh yourself consistently, and adjust by ±200 kcal based on what the scale actually did. The formula gives you the starting line; the scale gives you the truth.
Cutting and bulking rates
A 20% deficit loses roughly 0.5–1% of bodyweight per week — fast enough to see, slow enough to keep your lifts. Aggressive deficits cost strength and muscle, and the strength loss shows up in your log long before the mirror.
A 10% surplus is enough to build. Bigger surpluses add fat, not muscle, because muscle has a speed limit that food can't raise. If your training log shows numbers climbing and your weight is stable, you're already in the right place and don't need to change anything.
Frequently asked questions
How many calories should I eat to lose weight?
About 20% below your TDEE, adjusted after two weeks based on what happened on the scale. The estimate above gives you the number to start from.
Which activity level should I pick?
Base it on your whole day, not your workouts. An office worker who lifts four times a week is "moderate"; a builder who lifts four times a week is "very active".
Does lifting burn many calories?
Less than lifters hope — a hard hour is a few hundred. Its value is holding onto muscle in a deficit, which keeps your TDEE from falling as you lose weight.
Your workouts deserve a witness
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