Guides and articles based on scientific evidence on hypertrophy, strength training, fat loss and muscle recovery. Real expert-written content, no myths.
Calculate how many calories you need per day to maintain your weight, lose fat, build muscle or do body recomposition. You also get the protein, fat and carbohydrate breakdown for that number.
This calorie calculator works in three steps, the same ones sports nutrition professionals use:
Basal metabolic rate: what you burn at complete rest. It is estimated with the Mifflin-St Jeor equation from your sex, age, weight and height.
Daily expenditure or maintenance: your basal rate multiplied by a factor that reflects your physical activity, from 1.2 if you are sedentary to 1.9 if you have a physical job and train every day.
Goal adjustment: a percentage below maintenance to lose fat or above it to build muscle.
Calorie adjustment the calculator applies for each goal
Goal
Adjustment to maintenance
Who it is for
Slow weight loss
−10%
People who are already lean or do not want to go hungry
Moderate weight loss
−20%
The default option for losing fat
Fast weight loss
−25%
Short periods with a lot of fat to lose
Recomposition
−10%
Beginners or people returning to training
Lean muscle gain
+5%
Advanced lifters who want to gain little fat
Standard muscle gain
+10%
The default option for building muscle
Beginner muscle gain
+15%
Beginners, who build muscle faster
What rate of change is reasonable
To lose fat without sacrificing muscle, the review by Helms and colleagues (2014) recommends setting calories to lose between 0.5 and 1% of body weight per week. To build muscle, the review by Iraki and colleagues (2019) suggests a surplus of around 10-20%, with a gain of 0.25-0.5% of body weight per week for beginners and intermediates. The calculator warns you if the resulting rate falls outside those ranges.
Why the real rate slows down over time
The figure of 7,700 kcal per kilo of fat is useful for estimates, but your body adapts. The model by Hall and colleagues (2011) showed that body weight responds slowly to a change in calories and that the response gradually tapers off. That is why you should review your numbers every 2 or 3 weeks instead of relying entirely on the first calculation.
How to use the result
Start with the calculated number for 2 or 3 weeks and weigh yourself under the same conditions.
Adjust in steps of 100-200 kcal if your weight is not moving in the direction and at the rate you want.
Cover your protein first: it is what protects muscle the most, especially in a deficit. The protein calculator gives you the exact number.
Do strength training: without a stimulus, neither a deficit nor a surplus will build the body you want.
It depends on your sex, age, weight, height and activity. As a reference, your maintenance is your basal metabolic rate multiplied by an activity factor of 1.2 to 1.9. To lose fat, subtract 10-25%; to build muscle, add 5-15%.
Is a large or a small deficit better for losing fat?
A moderate one. Helms and colleagues (2014) recommend losing between 0.5 and 1% of body weight per week to preserve muscle. Larger deficits speed up weight loss, but they usually cost more muscle and performance.
How often should I recalculate my calories?
Every 2 or 3 weeks, or whenever your weight changes by about 2-3 kg. Your expenditure goes down as you lose weight and up as you gain it, and the formula is only the starting point.
Does the calculator work for women?
Yes. The Mifflin-St Jeor equation has one version for men and another for women, and the safety floor is 1,200 kcal for women and 1,500 for men.
Calories and protein supply the fuel; training decides what you do with it. Generate a free routine tailored to your goal, your level and your equipment.
Mifflin MD, St Jeor ST, Hill LA, Scott BJ, Daugherty SA, Koh YO. A new predictive equation for resting energy expenditure in healthy individuals. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1990;51(2):241-247.
Frankenfield D, Roth-Yousey L, Compher C. Comparison of predictive equations for resting metabolic rate in healthy nonobese and obese adults: a systematic review. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2005;105(5):775-789.
Cunningham JJ. Body composition as a determinant of energy expenditure: a synthetic review and a proposed general prediction equation. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1991;54(6):963-969.
Helms ER, Aragon AA, Fitschen PJ. Evidence-based recommendations for natural bodybuilding contest preparation: nutrition and supplementation. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2014;11:20.
Iraki J, Fitschen P, Espinar S, Helms E. Nutrition recommendations for bodybuilders in the off-season: a narrative review. Sports. 2019;7(7):154.
Hall KD, Sacks G, Chandramohan D, Chow CC, Wang YC, Gortmaker SL, et al. Quantification of the effect of energy imbalance on bodyweight. Lancet. 2011;378(9793):826-837.
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Personal data
Basic info to calibrate your routine precisely
years
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Your goal
Define the direction of your training
Optimal rep range
5–15 reps depending on the day · RIR 3–4 → 1–2 · Volume: 12–20 sets/week per muscle group
Planning
Set your weekly availability
4 days → Upper/Lower · higher frequency per group (2×/week)
60 min
Optimizes exercises
The engine adapts the exercise library based on the equipment you have available.
If disabled, the routine, PDF and email will not include the warm-up section.
Preferences
Customise the exercises in your routine (optional)
Exercises you enjoy the most. We will prioritise them in the selection — they will appear more often in your routine if they fit your goal.
✓ Top priority · higher frequency
Exercises
Select the exercises you want to include in your routine
Specific exercises you want out of your routine. We swap them for others working the same muscle group, so you do not lose that work.
✗ Swapped for an alternative
Leave it empty if there is none you want to avoid
Groups you prefer not to train — by preference, accumulated fatigue or any other reason. We will omit them entirely from your routine.
✗ Omitted from the entire routine
Indicate any injured or sensitive area. We will automatically exclude exercises that could aggravate it and apply a safe alternative training protocol.
🛡 Safe protocol activated
Injuries are health data (Art. 9 GDPR). By selecting them you explicitly consent to their processing for the sole purpose of excluding contraindicated exercises. Optional field — you can withdraw consent by removing them. More info in the Privacy Policy.
The groups you want to develop most. They will receive +1 set per exercise, more selected exercises and a priority position in the session.
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Summary
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Generating your routine
Applying scientific principles…
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Your personalized routine
Why this routine for you
Auto-generatedThis routine was generated automatically by our own engine from the data you provided. It has not been reviewed by a healthcare professional.
Generated routines are for informational purposes only. They do not constitute medical advice. Consult a professional before starting if you have injuries or health conditions.
Understand my routine
RoutineYour personalized routine
RIRReps in Reserve — how close to failure
RIR tells you how many reps you have left in the tank when you finish a set. RIR 2 means you could do 2 more reps before reaching failure. It's a more precise way to control intensity than using a fixed percentage of your max.
Example: If you do 10 reps of bench press with RIR 2, you could have done 12 at that moment. It's not an exact number — listen to your body.
VolumeTotal sets and reps
Volume is the total work done per muscle group per week (sets × reps × weight). For hypertrophy, 10–20 effective sets per muscle per week is recommended. Your routine adjusts this based on your level and available days. Each set counts in full for the exercise's main muscle and as half for the ones that assist: 4 sets of bench press are 4 for chest and 2 for triceps and shoulders.
Example: 4 sets of bench press + 3 sets of flyes = 7 sets for chest in that session. The weekly total determines how much the muscle grows.
FrequencyDays and weekly structure
Example: With 3 days/week, Full Body is used to train each muscle 3 times. With 4–5 days, muscle groups are split (Push/Pull/Legs or similar).
ProgressionHow to progress week by week
Progression is the most important principle in training. Your body adapts, so you need to give it a greater stimulus each week. The main ways are: adding weight, adding reps, or adding sets.
Tip: When you can hit the top of the rep range (e.g. 12) with good form and RIR 2, add 2.5–5 kg in the next session.
⚠️ You train at your own risk. Suggested loads are guidance only: increase them only if your technique is solid and pain-free. This does not replace advice from a medical professional or trainer. If you feel pain or get injured, stop and consult a specialist.
