MACRO & CALORIE CALCULATOR v1.0 

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Do you find figuring out the whole calories and grams of protein, fat and carbs confusing? Maybe you don’t feel like calculating those numbers yourself? I created this calculator for lifters which serves as a rough guideline to get you started in the right direction. These numbers can change throughout your fitness journey and you will likely need to make adjustments. All numbers are based on CURRENT scientific research.

The reality of sustainable weight loss and gain:
Here are some useful weight-change numbers you should be aware of. We’re talking REALISTIC and SUSTAINABLE numbers here which are arguably the most important factors to consider for longterm progress.

Fat Loss with minimal Muscle/Strength Loss:
* 0.2kg/0.5 lb per week if you’re lean and don’t really need to lose weight.
* 0.5-0.9kg/1-2 lb per week if you’re ‘average’ athletic or slightly overweight.
* 0.9-1.4kg/2-3 lb per week if you have a fair bit to loose. Sometimes more depending starting point.

Muscle Gain with minimal Fat Gain:
* 0.2-0.5kg/0.5‐1 lb per month if you’re close to your genetic potential.
* 0.5-1.4kg/1‐3 lb per month if you’re an intermediate with room to develop.
* 1.4-1.8kg/3-4 lb per month if you’re a beginner (less than 2 years consistent training).
Note: The chart above does not include phases of reverse-dieting, rebounding, initial water loss/gain with low carb dieting, or use of PED’s.

When people refer to their macros, they are talking about the three macronutrients: carbohydrate, protein, and fat. All three of these macros make up your total calorie intake.

Calorie intake determines whether weight is gained or lost. The macronutrient content of those calories has a significant effect on:
1. Whether that change is fat or muscle mass,
2. How you feel and perform, and
3. How easy your nutrition plan is to stick to.

PROTEIN ITAKE:
There are 4 calories per gram of protein. Protein helps with muscle repair, muscle maintenance, and muscle growth. Recommendations will be based on body weight and slightly higher when in a cutting phase.

WHY IS PROTEIN IMPORTANT?
Protein provides the building blocks for muscle mass. Protein helps us to recover and grow from our training, helps preserve muscle when dieting, and has the highest effect on satiety of all the macronutrients.Think of carbohydrates and fats as the main fuels of the body. They will make up the remainder of your calorie intake.

FAT & CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE
There are 4 calories per gram of carbohydrate, 9 calories per gram of fat. There is scope for personal preference in how you split the remainder of your calorie budget between the carb and fat intake, but all the possible ways you can split it are not equal for performance, muscle maintenance, and growth.

WHY ARE FATS AND CARBS IMPORTANT?
Fat is an essential nutrient. This means your body cannot make it, it has to be consumed. Dietary fat is necessary for regular hormonal function. You should never attempt to eliminate it from a diet.

Carbohydrates fuel performance, and also have positive impacts on hormonal function. They replace muscle glycogen, which is the primary and preferred fuel source of our muscles, fueling us through our workouts.

Strength training is the single most important thing we can do to prevent muscle mass losses when dieting. A lot of people find it isn’t possible to maintain training quality when restricting carbs severely.

BMR
Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is the amount of energy in calories your body requires to function at complete rest. In other words, it is the minimum energy needed to maintain a person's vital organs only. This calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor Equation to calculate BMR in "Total Body Weight Formula" which is our current best estimation for the general population according to research based on predictive equations for resting metabolic rate in healthy nonobese and obese adults.

In "Lean Mass Formula", we use the Katch-McArdle equation which is considered the most accurate formula for individuals who are relatively lean.

TDEE AND ACTIVITY LEVEL
TDEE stands for total daily energy expenditure. It is the total energy that a person uses in a day. TDEE is hard to measure accurately and varies day by day. More often, it is estimated using factors such as a person's basal metabolic rate (BMR), activity level, and the thermic effect of food.

Activity level is a factor that is based on the amount of activity a person undergoes. This includes deliberate exercise as well as other activities that a person may undergo as part of their job or typical daily activities. These factors are more specifically referred to as the thermic effect of activity, and non-exercise activity thermogenesis (energy expended for non-sleeping, eating, or sports-like exercise).

HOW IS TDEE CALCULATED?
TDEE is calculated based on the factors described above. The calculation usually begins with an estimation of basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is based on the use of equations that have been developed for this specific purpose. This includes physical characteristics such as age, gender, height, and weight.

Some of the more commonly used equations for estimating BMR include the Mifflin St-Jeor Equation, Harris-Benedict equation, and Katch-McArdle Formula. They are generally pretty similar, but the Katch-McArdle Formula, for example, which takes metabolic activity (resulting from differences between lean body mass and body fat) into account, can be more accurate for lean person.

Once BMR is calculated, it is typically multiplied by an activity level factor, which is based on factors such as exercise and whether a person has a sedentary or very active job.