Calorie and macro calculator

It estimates your basal metabolic rate with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, the formula the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics found most accurate for estimating resting energy needs in its evidence review. It then multiplies by your everyday activity level to get your maintenance calories.

The activity levels here cover your job and daily life only. Most calculators fold training into one big multiplier, which tends to count a workout every day whether you trained or not. Day Pal adds the calories of each logged workout to that day instead, so your target follows what you actually did.

A deficit of about 7,700 kcal equals roughly 1 kg of body weight. The calculator caps the pace at 1% of your body weight a week (0.75% if you lift weights, to protect muscle) and never sets a target below 1,200 kcal. Gaining is capped at 0.35% a week, because a bigger surplus mostly adds fat.

Protein comes first, set from your body weight (1.6 g per kg, or 1.8 to 2.0 g per kg if you strength train), because it protects muscle when you eat less. Fat gets a healthy minimum, and carbohydrates fill the rest. Read more in how much protein you need a day.