How Many Calories Should I Eat to Lose Weight?

Recommended daily calorie intake varies from person to person, but there are guidelines for calorie requirements you can use as a starting point. Science tells us that 1 pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories, so a daily deficit of 500 calories should result in 1 pound per week fat loss. How many calories are needed each day can vary greatly depending on lifestyle and other factors.

Factors that affect your personal daily calorie needs include your age, height and weight, your basic level of daily activity, and your body composition.

Health authorities do set some baselines, differing from government to government - these are 1200 calories per day for women, and 1800 calories per day for men; UK Department of Health Estimated Average Requirements (EAR) are a daily calorie intake of 1940 calories per day for women and 2550 for men. It all depends - are you an inactive person with little muscle mass? Or someone who is tall, muscular, and exercises a lot? Absolute levels don’t work - but as we said, it does give us a starting point.

Calories In Food vs Calories Burned

Weight control is all about the battle between the calories in food that you eat, and calories burned through being active. If they are both equal to each other, your weight will stay exactly the same. But, if one is higher than the other, your weight will change.

It is as simple as this: if you consume more calories than you burn, you gain weight. If you burn more calories than you consume, you lose weight. And, if you both burn and consume the same amount of calories, your weight stays the same.

The Macronutrient Ratios

Food can be grouped into Carbohydrates, Proteins, and Fats. Various diets propose different ratios for these ‘macro-nutrients’. There is a difference of opinion on this. Some feel that only calories count, whilst others argue that distribution of nutrients is what is important. The reality is - you must find what works for you - and to do this you have to start somewhere! If it doesn’t work - try something else. The reason that I mention this here, is that when you look at the calculator below - it suggests a macronutrient ratio of 55:15:30 (that is a meal plan consisting of 55% carbohydrates, 15% protein and 30% fat), which is a high carbohydrate, low protein and high fat diet. This is certainly not ideal, so please don’t take it as the be all.

Tom Venuto’s ebook Burn The Fat has a considerable section about macro nutrient ratios and calories. His opinion is that extremes (such as very low carb, and very low fat, are only appropriate for a small section of the population).

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The Daily Calorie Calculator
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