Daily Calories Calculator
Plan high and low days with the daily calories calculator whenever your training varies.
Open daily calculatorDaily energy spend without the guesswork
Log steps, workouts, and digestion to plan deficits, maintenance, or surplus days.
Daily energy tracking shows you how much more you burn on long run days versus desk-heavy rest days.
Use the daily calculator when you periodize training, practice calorie cycling, or want clarity before adjusting macros.
Plan today’s calories
Open the daily calories calculator to combine steps, workouts, and TEF so your targets match reality.
Understand the daily breakdown
The calculator separates BMR, NEAT, EAT, and TEF so you can see which lever changed the total.
This perspective highlights when recovery or nutrition needs to increase.
- BMR holds steady unless weight or lean mass shifts.
- NEAT rises with steps, chores, and time on your feet.
- EAT captures logged workouts; TEF grows with higher intake.
Track NEAT with step counts
Import your pedometer data or enter averages from your wearable.
Leaving workouts out of the step total prevents double counting.
- Baseline office days? Enter your standard step count.
- Long travel or event days—log the higher total so calories adjust.
- Use standing hours for jobs that keep you upright but not moving fast.
Log workouts with intensity
Choose the activity type, match the intensity, and add minutes plus sessions per week.
The calculator handles the calorie math so your totals stay comparable across sports.
- Add separate entries for strength, cardio, and conditioning blocks.
- Adjust intensity when a session is easier or harder than usual.
- Delete workouts you skipped so weekly averages stay honest.
Set maintenance, deficit, or surplus days
Once the total appears, choose the goal chips to preview calorie targets.
Keep notes on how you felt—fatigue or hunger signals whether the target was appropriate.
- Use maintenance on recovery days to refuel glycogen.
- Pick a mild deficit when you want a sustainable fat-loss pace.
- Add a surplus on heavy strength or hypertrophy days.
Before you log a new day
- Confirm BMR and weight are up to date.
- Gather step counts and workout durations first.
- Decide whether TEF should be included for today’s total.
Daily acronyms decoded
Use this glossary to match the breakdown chart on your results.
- TDEE
- Total Daily Energy Expenditure—the sum of your resting, activity, workout, and TEF calories.
- NEAT
- Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis—general movement like walking, chores, and time on your feet.
- EAT
- Exercise Activity Thermogenesis—energy burned through logged workouts.
- TEF
- Thermic Effect of Food—the energy cost of digesting meals, usually about 10% of intake.
- BMR
- Basal Metabolic Rate—the resting portion of your burn that stays fairly stable day to day.
Calculators that work alongside daily tracking
BMR Calculator
Revisit BMR whenever weight or composition changes to keep the base accurate.
Recalculate BMRTDEE Calculator
Use the TDEE calculator to set an average maintenance target across the week.
Estimate TDEEContinue learning
BMR guide — strengthen your foundation
Refresh the inputs so your daily totals start with accurate resting burn.
Read the BMR guideTDEE guide — balance the whole week
See how to average training and rest days before you set macros.
Read the TDEE guideSee also
Daily burn guide FAQ
What if I miss logging a workout?
Add it the next day or adjust minutes so your weekly average reflects reality. Consistency matters more than perfection.
Do I need to include TEF every day?
Include TEF when you want calories burned to match what you ate. Turn it off if you plan intake before meals and want the raw activity total.
How do I use daily data for weekly goals?
Track high- and low-burn days, then average the totals. Use higher-calorie refeed days when training spikes and lower days for recovery.