Find out exactly how many calories your body burns each day — then get a personalized target to reach your goal.
Uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation — the gold standard in clinical nutrition research.
Every credible weight loss approach — whether low-carb, Mediterranean, intermittent fasting, or any other — works through the same mechanism: a calorie deficit. Your TDEE is the number that defines what a deficit actually means for your body. Without it, you are guessing.
Dr. Eiriny Eskander, MD, a board-certified metabolism and hormone specialist trained at UCLA and Cedars-Sinai, built the SUCCESS Program on this principle. The program starts with your exact TDEE, then layers in the behavioral, hormonal, and nutritional strategies that make that deficit sustainable over 12 weeks.
The Mifflin-St Jeor equation used here is the most accurate BMR formula validated in peer-reviewed research. It accounts for weight, height, age, and sex — the four variables with the strongest independent effect on resting metabolism.
TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) is the total number of calories your body burns in a day, including your basal metabolic rate plus all activity. It matters because eating below your TDEE creates a calorie deficit — the only proven mechanism for fat loss. Without knowing your TDEE, you are guessing at your calorie target.
This calculator uses the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which is the most validated BMR formula in clinical research and is preferred by dietitians and physicians over older formulas like Harris-Benedict. It is accurate to within ±10% for most people. Individual variation in metabolism, muscle mass, and hormones can affect actual TDEE.
One pound of fat contains approximately 3,500 calories. To lose 1 lb per week, you need a daily deficit of 500 calories below your TDEE. This calculator applies that 500-calorie deficit automatically when you select 'Lose Weight.' For sustainable results, Dr. Eskander recommends not going below 1,200 calories (women) or 1,500 calories (men).
If you selected an accurate activity level, your exercise calories are already factored into your TDEE. You should not eat them back. If you underestimated your activity level, your actual TDEE is higher — which is why tracking weight trends over 2–3 weeks is more reliable than any single calculation.
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