How many calories need to be burned each day to lose weight?
May 15, 2025
Source: Cainiu Health
Dr. Yu Yongchao
Introduction
At the same time, the level of daily physical activity also affects energy expenditure. Lightly active individuals, such as office workers, expend an additional 100-300 kilocalories (kcal) per day; moderately active individuals, such as salespeople who move around frequently, expend an additional 300-500 kcal per day; and highly active individuals, such as manual laborers or athletes, expend more than 500 kcal per day.
Generally speaking, burning 500-1000 kcal more than you consume each day can help with weight loss.
For weight loss, women typically need to burn 1200-1500 kcal per day, while men usually need to burn 1500-1800 kcal per day. This is because the basal metabolic rate (BMR) consumes most of the energy, and it is related to factors such as age, gender, and body composition. Women generally have a lower BMR than men, so they burn relatively fewer calories.
Additionally, daily activity levels also affect energy expenditure. Sedentary individuals, such as office workers, typically burn an extra 100-300 kcal per day; moderately active individuals, such as salespeople who move around frequently, burn an extra 300-500 kcal daily; and highly active individuals, such as manual laborers or athletes, may burn more than 500 kcal extra per day.
By controlling diet to reduce calorie intake and combining appropriate exercise to increase energy expenditure, achieving a daily calorie deficit within the aforementioned range can lead to healthy weight loss, avoiding bodily harm caused by excessive dieting or exercise.
