Mifflin-St Jeor Equation
The Mifflin-St Jeor equation, published in 1990, is the most widely validated formula for estimating Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) — the number of calories your body burns at complete rest just to keep essential functions running. It takes four inputs: body weight, height, age, and sex.
The equations are:
Men: BMR = (10 × weight in kg) + (6.25 × height in cm) − (5 × age) + 5
Women: BMR = (10 × weight in kg) + (6.25 × height in cm) − (5 × age) − 161
To turn BMR into Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) — the calories you actually burn each day — we multiply it by an activity factor ranging from 1.2 (sedentary, desk job with little movement) up to 1.9 (very hard daily training or a physically demanding job). The result is your maintenance calorie level: eat at this number and your weight stays stable. Eat below it to lose; above it to gain.
We chose Mifflin-St Jeor over the older Harris-Benedict equation because controlled studies consistently show it is more accurate for modern adults — with average error rates around 10% versus Harris-Benedict's 15–20%. It is the formula recommended by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics for clinical practice.