How Many Calories to Maintain My Weight?

While many people yearn to shed excess fat, others are concerned with maintaining their weight. Whether you're fighting through an illness, trying to maintain muscle mass, or you just have a tendency to lose weight unintentionally, it's important to know how much you need to eat to prevent weight loss or weight gain.

Difficulties

• Although it is possible to generate a rough estimate, the fact is that determining exactly how many calories a person needs to maintain their weight is not an exact science. A person's individual caloric needs depends on many variables including, age, activity level, body fat index, gender and the types of food you eat.

Do It Yourself

• Each individual's calorie needs depend on many different variables. It's almost impossible to generate an exact number. However, you can determine the approximate number of calories you need to maintain your weight by plugging the appropriate numbers into the Harris Benedict Formula, an equation that uses your
  basal metabolic rate to help determine your caloric needs.
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  To calculate your basal metabolic rate (the minimum number of calories you need to maintain your basic bodily functions), follow these formulas:

  Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years )

  Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) - ( 6.8 x age in year )

Harris Benedict Caloric Needs Formula

• To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor, as follows:

  If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.2

  If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports one to three days per week) : BMR x 1.375

  If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports three to five days per week) : BMR x 1.55

  If you are very active (hard exercise/sports six to seven days a week) : BMR x 1.725

  If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports and a physical job) : BMR x 1.9

Online Tools

• There are also several websites that offer tools that can provide you with a rough estimate of how many calories you need to maintain your weight (Find a link to one in the Resources section.) Most of these tools rely on basic math equations that factor in the statistical input you provide. These tools will usually ask your height, weight and activity level and then use these numbers to generate a rough estimate. Some of the more advanced online tools may even ask you to input specific activities you participate in to help provide more exact results.

The Bottom Line

• The best advice for someone trying to maintain his or her weight is to focus on eating healthy, nutrient-rich, low-glycemic foods that provide steady energy throughout the day. These types of foods not only provide a steady fuel for physical activities, they help suppress hunger allowing you to feel satisfied whether you're trying to shed pounds or just trying to stay about the same.