Just Wondering... (Calorie Calculating Related)

  • I was just wondering if anyone has ever used the Mifflin St. Jeor formula to calculate their daily calories. My mom is a dietitian and used this formula to calculate my calories. This is the woman's formula.

    10 x weight in kilograms + 6.25 x height in cm - 5 x age in years - 161

    Then you take that number and multiply it by your activity factor.

    1.200 = sedentary (little or no exercise)
    1.4 = lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week)
    1.6 = moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week)
    1.8 = very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week)
    1.9 = extra active (very hard exercise/sports and physical job)

    So my calories end up being ~1700 a day to lose a pound a week. I hear this method is considered more accurate than the other methods out there, but I was wondering what your guys experience was with it, if any.
  • Looks a lot like the Harris Benedict with subtle changes but the same results.

    655 + (9.6 X weight in kilos) + (1.8 X height in cm) - (4.7 X age in years)

    You're missing some things though. You need your parenthesis to make the equation work.

    Activity multiplier for maintenance:
    1. If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Maintenance = BMR x 1.2
    2. If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Maintenance = BMR x 1.375
    3. If you are moderatetely active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Maintenance = BMR x 1.55
    4. If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Maintenance = BMR x 1.725
    5. If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Maintenance = BMR x 1.9
  • I was actually surprised at the accuracy (for me, only of course, I can't speak to anyone else) of the Mifflin-St Jeor calculation. I didn't expect it to be any more accurate than the other calculators, but I was very pleasantly surprised. It came far closer to my actual experience than other estimators I've used. It still slightly overestimates my maintenance calorie level, but I think that's only because my health issues make me less sedentary than average sedentary. My actual maintenance calories are a little higher than BMR, but not quite that given for sedentary. More a factor of 1.1 or 1.05 than 1.2