Calories for a very active routine
At the very active level a person has hard exercise 6 to 7 days a week. The worked example is a woman aged 30, 5 ft 6 in and 160 lb.
How it works
Start with resting calories from Mifflin-St Jeor. Take 10 times weight in kilograms and add 6.25 times height in centimeters. Subtract 5 times age. Then add 5 for males or subtract 161 for females. Multiply by an activity factor to get daily calories. Here the woman aged 30 has a height of 167.64 cm and a weight of 72.57 kg, at the very active level.
Worked example
For a woman aged 30, weight is 72.57 kg and height is 167.64 cm. Weight gives 10 × 72.57 = 725.7. Height gives 6.25 × 167.64 = 1047.75. Age takes off 5 × 30 = 150. Subtract 161. Resting calories are 1462.45, or 1462 when rounded. Multiply by 1.725 for the very active level to get 2522.7. That rounds to 2523 calories a day.
Maintenance calories at every activity level for the same woman aged 30 at 5 ft 6 in and 160 lb, with the very active level set in the form above.
- Sedentary (little or no exercise)
- 1755 calories a day
- Lightly active (light exercise 1 to 3 days a week)
- 2011 calories a day
- Moderately active (moderate exercise 3 to 5 days a week)
- 2267 calories a day
- Very active (hard exercise 6 to 7 days a week)
- 2523 calories a day
- Extra active (very hard exercise and a physical job)
- 2779 calories a day
Common questions
Why does age 30 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 30 that is 150 calories. Without the age term this 30-year-old woman would burn 1612 calories at rest, or 2782 a day at the very 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 30-year-old woman, a 5 percent error on 2523 calories is 126 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 30 at 160 lb, BMR is 1462 calories and TDEE at the very active level is 2523.
Which activity level should I pick?
Pick the one that matches a typical week, not your best week. If you sit most of the day and train a few times, lightly or moderately active is usually closer than very active. Across the five levels this 30-year-old woman ranges from 1755 to 2779 calories a day, and the very active level gives 2523.
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 2023 calories a day for this 30-year-old woman at the very active level.