Calorie needs at age 69, female
Use the form to estimate your maintenance calories. For the sums, read the worked example for a woman aged 69 at 5 ft 4 in and 150 lb.
How it works
Daily calories equal resting calories times an activity factor. Resting calories come from Mifflin-St Jeor: 10 times kilograms plus 6.25 times centimeters minus 5 times age, with 5 added for males or 161 taken off for females. The factor runs from 1.2 to 1.9. For a woman aged 69 at the lightly active level the fixed adjustment is minus 161.
Worked example
Take a woman aged 69 who is 5 ft 4 in tall and weighs 150 lb. In metric that is 162.56 cm and 68.04 kg. Multiply weight by 10: 10 × 68.04 = 680.4. Multiply height by 6.25: 6.25 × 162.56 = 1016. Subtract 5 × 69 = 345. Subtract 161. That gives 1190.4, which rounds to 1190 calories at rest. Multiply 1190.4 by 1.375 for the lightly active level to get 1636.8, which rounds to 1637 calories a day.
Maintenance calories at every activity level for the same woman aged 69 at 5 ft 4 in and 150 lb, with the lightly active level set in the form above.
- Sedentary (little or no exercise)
- 1428 calories a day
- Lightly active (light exercise 1 to 3 days a week)
- 1637 calories a day
- Moderately active (moderate exercise 3 to 5 days a week)
- 1845 calories a day
- Very active (hard exercise 6 to 7 days a week)
- 2053 calories a day
- Extra active (very hard exercise and a physical job)
- 2262 calories a day
Common questions
How big a calorie deficit is reasonable for weight loss?
A deficit of 500 calories a day is a common starting point and works out to roughly half a kilogram a week. Smaller deficits are slower and easier to keep up. A 500 calorie deficit here means 1137 calories a day for this 69-year-old woman at the lightly active level.
How big a surplus helps build muscle?
A modest surplus of about 250 calories a day is a common starting point. Larger surpluses tend to add more fat without adding muscle faster. A 250 calorie surplus here means 1887 calories a day for this 69-year-old woman at the lightly active level.
Why does age 69 change the result?
The formula takes 5 calories off for every year of age, which reflects that resting burn tends to fall over time. At 69 that is 345 calories. Without the age term this 69-year-old woman would burn 1535 calories at rest, or 2111 a day at the lightly active level.
How accurate is a calorie estimate?
It is a starting estimate. Track your weight over two or three weeks and adjust the target up or down based on what actually happens. For this 69-year-old woman, a 5 percent error on 1637 calories is 82 calories a day.
What is the difference between BMR and TDEE?
BMR is what your body burns at rest. TDEE adds the calories you use moving and exercising. It is always higher. For this woman aged 69 at 150 lb, BMR is 1190 calories and TDEE at the lightly active level is 1637.