What should my daily intake of calories be? (2024)

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What should my daily intake of calories be? ›

Daily calories

Though it differs depending on age and activity level, adult males generally require 2,000-3000 calories per day to maintain weight while adult females need around 1,600-2,400 according to the U.S Department of Health.

According to dietary guidelines in the United States, adults 21 years old and older should consume anywhere between 1,600 and 3,000 calories per day.

If you are moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55. If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.725. If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.9.

According to the 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, most adult females require between 1,600 and 2,000 calories, and adult males between 2,000 and 2,400 calories, per day. Consequently, most people will lose weight following a 1,500- to 1,800-calorie diet.

Consuming at least 1,200 calories per day has often been touted as the minimum for basic bodily functions and to stay out of starvation mode, but the amount is actually too low. A healthy amount of calories for adult women ranges from 1,800 to 2,400 calories per day and for men it's 2,000 to 3,200 calories per day.

To shed 1 pound a week, she needs to reduce her calorie intake to 1,500 calories per day. Active: Women who are physically active and walk more than 3 miles daily need to consume at least 2,200 calories per day to maintain weight and at least 1,700 calories to shed 1 pound a week.

Daily calories

As a guide: an average man needs 2,500kcal a day. an average woman needs 2,000kcal a day.

A medium banana contains 105 calories, per the USDA's FoodData Central database. That's about the same amount of calories in a medium sweet potato or a cup of grapes. A small banana has 90 calories, while a large banana contains 121 calories.

How many calories are in 2 eggs? ›

Egg Nutrition

Eggs are one of nature's most nutritious foods. Each serving of 2 eggs (105 g) contains 15 essential vitamins and minerals, only 160 calories and an incredible amount of nutrition. The nutrition tables speak for themselves! So include eggs as part of your healthy diet!

Your weight is a balancing act, but the equation is simple. If you eat more calories than you burn, you gain weight. And if you eat fewer calories and burn more calories through physical activity, you lose weight. In the past, research found about 3,500 calories of energy equaled about 1 pound (0.45 kilogram) of fat.

This means, a 1,500-calorie diet would help her lose 20 pounds in 2 months, or at least come close, since she'd have a daily deficit of 1,200 calories with moderate exercise. Keep in mind that weight loss is typically more rapid in people who have more weight to lose.

For example, to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week — a rate that experts consider safe — your food consumption should provide 500 to 1,000 calories less than your total weight-maintenance calories. If you need 2,325 calories a day to maintain your current weight, reduce your daily calories to between 1,325 and 1,825.

That calorie blaze might resemble a five-alarm fire at certain times of the day, like when you're exercising, but the flame is always lit. Over the course of a day, your body's natural calorie burn without any activity can range from 1,300 to more than 2,000, depending on your age and sex. (More on that in a bit.)