Weight loss is all about burning more calories than you eat. Since your body requires energy even when you don’t do anything, you can create a caloric deficit with just dieting. However, a healthy nutritional plan and regular exercise together can bring you even better results especially when used with a TDEE calculator.
To calculate how many calories your diet should provide, and how many you should burn during a workout, it is crucial to know what your daily calorie expenditure is. And that is what a TDEE calculator can help you with.
What Factors Affect the Number of Calories You Burn Daily?
Your body always requires energy. Your total daily energy expenditure, or TDEE, is the number of calories that you burn a day. It includes energy that you spend performing any physical activity, resting, digesting food, and producing heat.
To fully understand what your energy expenditure is, you need to know how your body produces the energy that is spent on the maintenance of all the vital processes. By consuming food, you fuel your body. The components from the food contain energy in the form of calories, which are later burned by your body, providing it with fuel.
Your TDEE may vary depending on your level of physical activity on that particular day. The intensity and duration of your physical activity may determine your weight and physique.
Oftentimes, people who perform little to no physical activity while following a Western diet may find themselves gaining weight pretty quickly. That is why sometimes the TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) calculator can help a person figure out the reasons why they are gaining weight by comparing the number of calories they consume with their energy expenditure.
How Can a TDEE Calculator Help in Weight Management?
If a person wants to slim down, they need to reduce the number of calories they consume so that it would be lower than their required daily caloric intake. This can be reached with the help of a balanced nutritional plan and an increased amount of physical exercise. However, to slim down healthily, a person should make sure that their caloric deficit is adequate.
To safely trim a couple of inches of fat, experts recommend reducing your weekly caloric intake by 3500-7000 calories. Since 1 pound of fat equals 3500 calories, in such a way, you will be able to shed 1-2 pounds (0.45-1 kg) a week.
To explain this in actual numbers: assuming a person’s daily requirement is 2500 calories, they will have a total calorie requirement of about 17 500 calories in a week. If such a person wants to slim down, they need to subtract between 3500 and 7000 calories from their 17 500 weekly calorie requirements. This will leave them with a total weekly calorie intake of about 10 500 to 14 000 calories (1500-2000 calories per day).
And it goes both ways. So, if a person wants to gain weight, they need to increase their caloric intake so that it would be higher than their TDEE.
What Does TDEE Calculator Do?
The main task of a TDEE calculator is to determine how many calories you burn a day. It also displays the body mass index (BMI), basal metabolic rate (BMR), macronutrients, and other essential data about a person.
The TDEE calculator prioritizes the following three factors:
- Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)- As you may already know, you burn calories even when you rest. Your body requires a certain amount of energy to maintain the proper functioning of your body. This is called the basal metabolic rate (BMR). Your BMR may vary depending on factors like age, sex, weight, height, body composition, and others. Knowing your BMR can be very helpful when it comes to counting calories and weight loss.
- Duration and intensity of physical activity- If you want to slim down, you need to increase your physical activity levels. This doesn’t necessarily include only your training sessions at the gym. Your daily tasks at work or your cleaning routine at home all require energy and can add to your caloric deficit, and so should be considered when you are calculating your TDEE.
- The thermic effect of food- This may be unknown to you, but eating also burns calories and adds to weight loss. The number of calories that you burn when munching and digesting food varies depending on the type of food you consume. Digestion of some types of food can be more energy consuming than others.
The above presented three major factors that can help you determine your TDEE since physical activity makes up 20% of it, the thermic effect of food takes 10%, and your basal metabolic rate makes up 70% of your total daily energy expenditure.
Most formulas that are used by different types of TDEE calculators consider a person’s activity levels as well as the food they consume. Other factors include a person’s sex, weight, height, and workout routine.
Conclusion
To be able to successfully manage your weight, you need to understand how much energy your body requires. You can calculate your total daily energy expenditure with the help of a TDEE calculator. If your goal is to shed a couple of pounds, then you need to make sure that your diet provides you with fewer calories than your TDEE.
If you want to build muscle, your caloric intake should be higher than your TDEE, and your diet should include plenty of protein. Keep in mind that no matter what your goal is, you need to ensure that you reach it healthily, with the help of a balanced diet and regular exercise.
DISCLAIMER:
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!