What should your energy and macronutrient intake be if you want to lose weight or gain muscle?

An online macronutrient calculator will help you determine your energy intake on an average each day relative to your goals, lifestyle or type and volume of sporting activities. It is the total energy intake from quality food that matters most in terms of body composition and sports performance. Do you want to lose weight, gain muscle, or stay in good shape?

Our unique macronutrient calculator will advise you of what your protein, carbohydrate and fat intake should be to help you achieve your goals more easily.

How to use the online macronutrient calculator?

1. Put your age, gender, height and weight information on the form.
2. If you know your body fat %, enter it on the form. This will make the calculation more accurate.
3. Check what your goal is. Is it keeping fit, losing weight, or gaining muscle?
4. Select the most accurate description of your work and daily routine by clicking on the text box below this question.
5. Check the sporting activities you normally do during the week. For the most accurate calculation, fill in how many hours per week you actively spend on the selected sporting activity. From this perspective, it makes a huge difference to be in the gym for 2 hours, but actively exercise for only an hour. When you use the mouse cursor to hover over a question mark, you will see a list of sporting activities related to the selected group of sports. If you have not found your sport in the list, try to include it as accurately as possible regarding its similarity with other sports.
6. The online macronutrient calculator will then calculate the recommended energy intake and the amount of individual macronutrients in grams.

How does the online macronutrient calculator work?

1. To determine optimal energy and macronutrient intake for  weight loss, muscle gain, or fitness maintenance, a basal metabolism value should be determined. If you know your body fat %, the calculator selects a more accurate calculation using the Katch-McArdle equation. If you don’t know this figure, the calculator will use the most accurate equation to calculate it without knowing body fat %, Mifflin-St. Jeor.
2. In order to calculate as accurately as possible, it is necessary to determine as precisely as possible the coefficient of physical activity level (PAL) in which the error is made most frequently in the calculation of energy demand (generally the energy output is subjectively overestimated). It is quite difficult to estimate precisely and determine this coefficient. Our calculator makes this step as easy as possible. The PAL coefficient consists of 2 parts. The first focuses on the demands of employment/study and overall lifestyle. The second part looks at sporting activities that are carried out regularly and with a clear intention. The calculator will take into account your lifestyle, volume and type of sporting activities undertaken within a week and based on this information will adequately increase the resulting recommended energy and macronutrient intake.
3. The final step is to add the energy that the body needs to process nutrients. Within an average mixed healthy diet, this figure is equal to about 10% of the total energy intake.
4. The calculator then shows the recommended energy and nutrient intake according to your chosen goal. When losing weight, the  calculator automatically adjusts the calorie deficit of 20% and takes into account the amount of protein, especially dependent on the volume of strength training. When building muscle, the calculator sets the caloric surplus at 10%, which results in an increase in muscle mass and a minimal increase in body fat. Even with the goal of maintaining maximum condition, the calculator will propose optimal energy and nutrient intake.

Katch-McArdle equation:

• Men and women: 21,6 x FFM (kg) + 370

FFM (Fat Free Mass) – fat-free body weight

Mifflin-St. Jeor equation:

• Men: 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) – 5 x age (in years) + 5

• Women: 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) – 5 x age (in years) – 161

The amount of energy and nutrients needed using an online calculator or formula may not accurately reflect your current energy needs, as a variety of other factors come into play that calculators and formulas cannot account for. Each person has a slightly different genetic makeup, hormonal function, metabolic rate and is in a different physical and psychological state. 

The only sustainable way to successfully achieve your goal is to monitor oneself over time and, accordingly, always adjust your energy intake.

How to lose weight, gain muscle and measure progress properly?

1. One morning, under the same conditions, weigh yourself and measure your body circumference around your waist, abdomen and hips.
2. Then consume the recommended amount of energy and macronutrients suggested by the online calculator for 2 weeks.
3. In 2 weeks, on the same day of the week and under the same conditions, consider, measure and observe what has happened to the measured values. You should be losing weight, but you are not losing any centimetres around the circumference of your body? Reduce 250 calories from your energy intake. You should be gaining, but you’re not gaining weight, and your body circumference is not expanding? Thus add another 250 kcal to your energy intake.
4. Repeat the same procedure in another 2 weeks. At the same  time, be sure that you are recording your energy intake honestly and accurately. You can only succeed if you are as honest and fair with yourself as possible.