TDEE calculator

Resting energy is resting energy expenditure (REE) as the Mifflin-St Jeor equation predicts it, in the simplified form for each sex that Pendum Macros uses for a program’s starting estimate. Imperial inputs are converted exactly (1 lb = 0.45359237 kg, 1 in = 2.54 cm) first.

REE (kcal/day) = 10 × weight (kg)
  + 6.25 × height (cm)
  − 5 × age (years) + s
s = +5 (male) or −161 (female)
TDEE = round(REE × activity multiplier)

The paper gives two forms. The full regression uses 9.99 for weight and 4.92 for age, with 166 kcal between men and women. The simplified form above is published alongside it, and its authors report that it predicts as well. Over the accepted inputs the two differ by less than 8 kcal a day of resting energy. The study measured 498 healthy adults aged 19 to 78 by indirect calorimetry.

The activity multipliers are the conventional factors, not part of the Mifflin study:

• Mostly seated, × 1.2: desk work and little or no exercise.
• Lightly active, × 1.375: light exercise or sport 1–3 days a week.
• Active, × 1.55: moderate exercise or sport 3–5 days a week.
• Very active, × 1.725: hard exercise or sport 6–7 days a week.

For example, a 30-year-old man who is 180 cm tall and weighs 80 kg rests at 800 + 1,125 − 150 + 5 = 1,780 kcal a day. Active (× 1.55) gives 2,759 kcal a day. Ages 18 to 100, heights 120 to 230 cm and weights 35 to 350 kg are accepted, as in the app.