The number of calories you should burn a day depends on your personal factors such as your age, sex, weight, height, and activity level. Typically, the total daily calories burned (Total Daily Energy Expenditure or TDEE) ranges approximately as follows:
- Most adult women need to burn around 1,600 to 2,200 calories per day to maintain their weight.
- Most adult men need to burn around 2,200 to 3,000 calories per day to maintain their weight.
If your goal is weight loss, a common approach is to create a calorie deficit of about 300 to 500 kcal per day through a combination of diet and exercise. This could mean burning an additional 150 to 250 calories through exercise daily while reducing calorie intake by 200 to 300 calories. For a precise calculation tailored to you, the resting metabolic rate (RMR) is first estimated (how many calories your body burns to maintain basic functions at rest), and then multiplied by an activity factor to get your TDEE, which can guide how many calories you should burn in total each day including exercise. In summary:
- To maintain weight: burn the equivalent of your TDEE (typically 1600-3000 kcal depending on sex, size, and activity level).
- To lose weight: aim for a daily calorie burn creating a 300-500 kcal deficit from your TDEE with a mix of exercise and diet.
This approach helps balance calorie needs and weight goals safely and effectively without extreme cuts or excessive exercise.
