Atlas
What TDEE actually means
TDEE is total daily energy expenditure — everything you burn in twenty-four hours. It stacks up from four places: your BMR, the cost of simply being alive, which is most of it; the energy spent digesting food; the movement you don't think of as exercise, like walking to the car and fidgeting; and your actual workouts, which are usually a smaller slice than people expect.
Eat at your TDEE and your weight holds. Eat below it and you lose. Above it and you gain. Everything else in nutrition is detail on top of that.
Why this calculator asks about workouts separately
Most calculators give you one dropdown that mixes your job and your training together, which is why they tend to overshoot. Someone with a desk job who lifts four times a week picks “moderately active” and gets credited for the gym twice — once in the activity band, once in their head.
This one splits them. Your daily activity covers only your job and general movement. Training, cardio and steps are added on top, separately and additively. The result is usually a few hundred calories lower than the classic bands, and closer to what people actually burn.
What to do with the number
Treat it as a starting point, not a verdict. Eat at it for two to three weeks, weigh yourself most mornings, and take the weekly average — daily weight swings with water, sodium and how recently you ate. If the average is moving the way you want, the number was right. If it isn't, adjust by a couple of hundred calories and give it another fortnight.
That loop is the entire skill, and it's the part a calculator can't do for you. It's also the part Atlas automates: it re-runs this every time your weight changes, tracks whether you hit your protein, and flags when your maintenance has moved.
Common questions
How accurate is this?
For most people, within about 10%. It can't see your thyroid, your genetics or how much you move without noticing. Two people the same height, weight and age can differ by several hundred calories. That's why the two-week check matters more than the formula.
Should I eat back the calories I burn training?
No — they're already counted. Your training is in the number above, which is why it asked. Adding workout calories on top of a TDEE that already includes them is the most common way people stall a deficit without understanding why.
Why is my protein target so high?
Because protein is what protects muscle when calories are low, and it's the macro most people under-eat. The target here is 0.8–1.0g per pound depending on your goal — the higher end while cutting.
Do I need to hit my macros exactly?
Get protein close and calories close. Carbs and fat can move around each other day to day with almost no consequence, as long as the total holds.
Atlas is educational and not a substitute for medical advice. If you have a health condition, are pregnant, or have a history of disordered eating, talk to a doctor or a registered dietitian before changing how you eat.