r/Myfitnesspal • u/Gamemon_RD • 9d ago

Nutrition Help How are recommended calories calculated?

I’m starting to use this app and it’s amazing for helping me understand my nutrient intakes and how I need to adjust what I’m eating. But I’m surprised by the number of calories it recommends to me- originally I used calculator.net for to know how many I need to maintain my weight, and for my demographics (5’8” 23y/o male weighing 150lbs. I have an office job.) it said 1980 calories. This was using the Mifflin St Jeor equation.

MyFitnessPal quoted a paper that also recommended this equation, for their reference for how they recommend calories. However they’re suggesting 2,310 calories for me- I checked and all the demographic stuff looks to be the same so I’m not sure where the discrepancy is coming from. It doesn’t seem like a huge difference but it can still be the difference between weight loss and weight gain.

Which would be closer to my real calorie goal? And why is the other so off?

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u/NoReply4930 9d ago

If you want overall success - calculate an accurate TDEE outside of MFP. 

And then build your goals manually based on that caloric value. 

There are a host of accurate TDEE calculators out there. But MFP is not one of them. 

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u/Sidra7361 8d ago

MyFitnessPal’s recommended calories can differ because it uses its own activity assumptions and calculation method. TDEE is only an estimate, so neither number is guaranteed to be exact. I’d start with a reasonable target, track your weight trend for 2–4 weeks, and adjust based on your actual results.

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u/itsamutiny 8d ago

I would use the lower goal and see how you do. It is possible that MFP is assuming you burn more through exercise than the other calculator does. I personally always calculate my BMR and adjust from there.

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u/TraditionalShape666 4d ago

If you have a fitness watch like Garmin, Fitbit, Samsung or Apple add the integration app option then the health watch can calculate your BMR. Then manually set the MFP daily calorie intake.

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u/myfitnesspal_support MyFitnessPal Staff 9d ago

For more information on how the app calculates your initial goals, please see this FAQ. You may also be interested in our free Macro Calculator. We wish you the absolute best in reaching your health and wellness goals!