What are maintenance calories?
Your maintenance calories equal your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE): the calories you burn through living, moving and exercising. Eat that amount on average and your weight stays roughly steady.
Finding your true maintenance
Calculators get you close, but the real test is your scale. Eat the estimated amount for two to three weeks and weigh yourself most mornings. Compare weekly averages, not single days, since water can swing your weight by a few pounds. If the average is drifting up, drop 100–200 calories; if it's drifting down, add them.
Why maintenance changes
Lose weight and your maintenance drops, since a smaller body needs less energy. Build muscle or become more active and it rises. Recalculate after every 10 lb (5 kg) of change.
The formula
We estimate your resting energy with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, the most accurate of the common formulas for most adults:
- Men: 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age + 5
- Women: 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) − 5 × age − 161
If you enter your body fat percentage, we use Katch-McArdle instead (370 + 21.6 × lean mass in kg), which is better for very muscular or very lean people. The result is multiplied by an activity factor from 1.2 (sedentary) to 1.9 (extra active).