Maintenance calories for a 120 kg man

A 30-year-old man weighing 120 kg at 178 cm burns about 3,250 calories a day lifting four days a week with 7,500 to 10,000 daily steps, and about 2,600 with a desk job and little activity. To lose about 0.6 kg a week, eat around 2,590 a day.

Updated

About you

Body fat is optional.

Sex
years
kg
cm
Training sessions a week

Your phone's weekly average is the honest number. Steps move your TDEE more than gym days do.

%

Adds Katch-McArdle and Cunningham, which work from lean mass instead of total weight.

Your TDEE

3,250kcal/day
BMR at rest (Mifflin-St Jeor)
2,170 kcal
Activity factor
×1.50

Calorie targets

Macros for cut

Protein
264 g
Carbs
222 g
Fat
72 g

Your BMR by formula

Without a body fat %, only Mifflin-St Jeor can run. With one, the lean mass formulas join in and Katch-McArdle sets your TDEE.

Mifflin-St Jeor2,170 kcal
Katch-McArdleNeeds body fat %
CunninghamNeeds body fat %

Your TDEE at each activity level

The classic multipliers most calculators use, applied to your BMR. Use it to sanity check the steps and sessions estimate above.

Activity levelMultiplierTDEE
SedentaryDesk job, little exercise×1.22,600 kcal
Lightly activeExercise 1 to 3 days a week×1.3752,980 kcal
Moderately activeExercise 3 to 5 days a week×1.553,360 kcal
Very activeHard exercise 6 to 7 days a week×1.7253,740 kcal
Extremely activePhysical job plus hard training×1.94,120 kcal

The calculator above starts at 120 kg. Change your age, height, steps and training days for your own number.

TDEE by height and activity at 120 kg

Worked out with Mifflin-St Jeor for a 30-year-old man. Find your height, then read across to how active you are.

TDEE by height and activity at 120 kg
HeightSedentaryLightly activeModerately activeVery activeExtremely active
160 cm2,4652,8253,1853,5453,905
165 cm2,5052,8703,2353,6003,965
170 cm2,5402,9103,2803,6554,025
175 cm2,5802,9553,3303,7054,085
180 cm2,6153,0003,3803,7604,140
185 cm2,6553,0403,4253,8154,200
190 cm2,6903,0853,4753,8704,260
195 cm2,7303,1253,5253,9204,320

Calories to cut, maintain or bulk at 120 kg

Targets for a 30-year-old man at 178 cm who lifts four days a week and walks 7,500 to 10,000 steps a day, with the pace set as a share of bodyweight.

Calories to cut, maintain or bulk at 120 kg
GoalCalories a dayWeekly change
Fast cut2,260−0.9 kg
Cut2,590−0.6 kg
Slow cut2,920−0.3 kg
Maintain3,250None
Lean bulk3,580+0.3 kg

TDEE by age at 120 kg

The formula takes 5 calories a day off resting energy for every year of age, so the same body burns a little less each decade. Worked out at 178 cm.

TDEE by age at 120 kg
AgeBMRSedentaryModerately active
20 years2,2202,6603,435
30 years2,1702,6003,360
40 years2,1202,5403,280
50 years2,0702,4803,205
60 years2,0202,4203,125

How much protein at 120 kg

Most of the research on lifters lands between 1.6 and 2.2 g of protein per kilogram of bodyweight a day. At 120 kg that is 192 to 264 g a day, with the top of the range most useful during a cut.

Other bodyweights

TDEE Calculator

Frequently asked questions

How many calories should a 120 kg man eat to lose weight?

Start from maintenance and take off enough to lose about 0.5% of bodyweight a week. For a 30-year-old man at 178 cm who lifts four days a week, maintenance is about 3,250 calories, so a cut sits near 2,590 a day. Weigh in daily, compare weekly averages, and adjust by 100 to 150 calories if the trend is off after two to three weeks.

How many calories should a 120 kg man eat to build muscle?

A lean bulk gains about 0.25% of bodyweight a week, which at 120 kg is a surplus of about 330 calories a day. That puts a man at 178 cm who lifts four days a week near 3,580 calories a day, with 192 to 264 g of protein.

How many calories does a 120 kg man burn at rest?

At rest, a 30-year-old man at 178 cm and 120 kg burns about 2,170 calories a day: that is the BMR. With a desk job and little exercise, the total for the day is about 2,600 calories.