# Macro Calculator: Calories, Protein, Fat and Carbs

> Calculate daily calories, protein, fat, and carbs from your goal, activity, and body composition.

- Canonical page: https://www.recompai.com/tools/macros
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Calories and macros

Set calories, protein, fat, and carbs from TDEE, body fat, training experience, and the goal you are actually running.

Want calories and a 12-week timeline too? [Body recomposition calculator](https://www.recompai.com/body-recomposition-calculator)

## What your macros actually mean

A macro target is three numbers (protein, fat, carbs) that add up to a calorie target. The calorie target sets the rough direction of bodyweight: a small deficit drives fat loss, maintenance defends what you have, a small surplus supports muscle gain. The macro split decides how much of that direction is composition: muscle preserved, muscle built, lean mass spared while fat comes off.

For recomposition, this calculator selects estimated maintenance or a 5 to 15 percent deficit. Other goals use different calorie targets. These are starting estimates, not the full range of intakes at which recomposition can occur.

What changes is not the recipe but the calibration. Calculator BMR errors run about ±10 percent, NEAT swings hundreds of calories between people who look identical, and the body adapts down as the cut deepens. The numbers above are the starting line. The real workflow is checking the trend, holding the protein, and nudging the calorie target by 100 to 200 kcal until the scale matches the goal.

## How to calculate your macros

We start from your BMR (Mifflin-St Jeor) and multiply by an activity factor to get your maintenance calories (TDEE).

Then we apply a calorie shift based on goal, experience and body composition: a deeper deficit is safer with higher body fat, while a lean advanced lifter barely needs a surplus to keep gaining.

## Macro split by goal

The protein and fat rules the calculator applies. Your calorie target is your maintenance (TDEE) adjusted for body composition and goal, not a fixed percentage; carbohydrate then fills whatever protein and fat leave.

| Goal | Protein | Fat |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Lose fat | 2.2–2.5 g/kg† | 30% kcal |
| Recomposition | 2.2 g/kg† | 25% kcal |
| Build muscle | 1.8 g/kg‡ | 25% kcal |
| Maintain | 1.6 g/kg‡ | 25% kcal |

† per kg of lean body mass. ‡ per kg of bodyweight, capped at 2.2 g per kg of lean body mass. Fat holds a 0.7 g/kg floor; carbohydrate takes the rest and never drops below 50 g. Protein for fat loss stays at the recomposition setting of 2.2 g per kg of lean mass up to a deficit of about 200 kcal a day, rises with the deficit up to 500 kcal a day, and holds at 2.5 g per kg above that.

## Most macro calculators give you a number. The answer that matters is the protein floor.

Progressive resistance training provides the muscle-building stimulus. Adequate protein supports it. Calories affect the balance between fat loss, growth and recovery; a deficit is one option, not a requirement.

1.6–2.2 g / kg bodyweight

The protein floor for recomposition. Below 1.6 the deficit pulls from lean tissue. Past 2.2 the curve flattens. Extra grams stop adding retention.

0.7 g / kg bodyweight

Hormonal-health floor for dietary fat. Drop under it during a long cut and testosterone, sleep and recovery start to slide.

50 g / day, minimum

Practical carbohydrate floor for training intensity and adherence. Cuts that go lower trade performance for marginal speed.

±10% of the calorie target

Typical error band on a calculator-based calorie target. The macro split sits inside that band, so weekly trend-based adjustment matters more than chasing a perfect % split on day one.

**Protein uses lean mass or bodyweight, depending on the goal.** At 100 kg, 12% body fat implies about 88 kg of lean mass; 30% implies about 70 kg. For fat loss and recomposition, this calculator scales protein to lean mass. If you skip body fat, it estimates body fat from your BMI, age and sex. Maintenance and muscle-gain targets start from bodyweight but never exceed the recomposition dose, so at higher body fat they follow lean mass too. BMI alone cannot show this difference.

**Deeper deficits push the floor higher.** In maintenance, 1.6 g/kg is enough to retain muscle. In a contest cut, the literature pushes that toward 2.4 g/kg because the body becomes more willing to break down lean tissue for fuel. The protein target rises with the deficit, not with the calorie target itself.

**Below the floor, the macro split is preference.** Once protein and the fat floor are met, carbohydrate vs fat distribution barely moves body composition over weeks. Pick the split you can actually adhere to. Recomposition is won by hitting protein every day for months, not by tuning the carb percentage on day one.

## Macros, explained

The questions people search when the calorie target is right but the scale and the mirror disagree.

### How much protein do I actually need for body recomposition?

For most people, 1.6 to 2.2 g per kg of bodyweight per day. Below 1.6, the deficit pulls more aggressively from lean tissue. Past 2.2, the literature shows the curve flattens and extra grams stop translating into retained muscle. If body fat is known, scale to lean mass instead: 2.0 to 2.5 g per kg of LBM during a cut, 2.0 to 2.2 g per kg of LBM in true recomp.

### Does the carb-versus-fat split matter for fat loss?

Not nearly as much as people assume. Once protein and the ~0.7 g/kg fat floor are met, body composition over weeks is set by total calories and the protein floor. Not by the carb percentage. The split that matters is the one you can adhere to. Higher carbs usually win for training intensity and hunger management; higher fat usually wins for satiety on smaller meals.

### Why does the protein target go up when I cut harder?

A bigger deficit signals the body more strongly that fuel is short, and the body will pull from any source it can, including muscle. Higher protein blunts that signal: it provides amino acids the body would otherwise extract from lean tissue, and it has a high thermic effect that makes the deficit feel less like deprivation. The protein target rises with the deficit, not with the calorie target.

### What is the minimum carb intake during a recomp?

Practical floor is around 50 g a day for most people, set by training intensity and adherence rather than by metabolism. Recomposition is intensity-sensitive: the lifts have to drive a real stimulus to sit at the top of the compositional pile. Carbs below 50 g start to drag bar speed and session quality, which silently lowers the training stimulus the recomp depends on.

### Should I track macros around training?

Total daily intake matters most. Within that, two practical patterns help: spreading protein across 3 to 5 meals keeps amino acid availability high across the day and fits most schedules, and a carb-leaning meal in the 1 to 3 hours before training supports intensity when it is high. Beyond that, nutrient timing is a small lever next to hitting protein and the deficit every day for months.

### How accurate is a macro calculator?

The calorie target carries a typical ±10% error from the BMR estimate alone, and the activity multiplier widens that band further. Treat the output as a starting point. Eat at it for 7 to 10 days, watch the weight trend, then adjust calories by 100 to 200 kcal a week. Hold the protein floor while you tune. The macro split converges quickly once the calorie number is right.

### Why does this calculator weight the protein target by lean mass?

Because the muscle that needs defending is the lean part. A 90 kg lifter at 12% body fat carries about 79 kg of lean tissue; a 90 kg lifter at 30% carries about 63. Scaling protein to total bodyweight gives both the same target, although the second carries about 16 kg less lean tissue. The calculator uses the body fat you enter, or an estimate from BMI, age and sex, to scale fat-loss and recomposition targets to lean mass and to cap maintenance and muscle-gain targets at the recomposition dose. Which basis fits best at higher body fat is not settled in the research; this is the calculator's choice.

Recompose with Recomp AI

## Macro targets are a starting point. Track intake and review trends.

Recomp AI helps log meals and follow weight trends. Review calories and protein alongside waist, training and recovery as your goal changes. These numbers are starting estimates.

[Download on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/app/recomp-ai-body-recomposition/id6749103634?pt=127576777&ct=recompai_website&mt=8)

[Android waitlist](https://www.recompai.com/auth/sign-up)

## References

- [Murphy C, Koehler K. Energy deficiency impairs resistance training gains in lean mass but not strength: A meta-analysis and meta-regression. Scand J Med Sci Sports, 2022;32(1):125-137.](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34623696/)
- [Antonio J, Ellerbroek A, et al. A high protein diet (3.4 g/kg/d) combined with a heavy resistance training program improves body composition in healthy trained men and women: a follow-up investigation. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2015;12:39.](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12970-015-0100-0)
- [Morton RW, Murphy KT, et al. A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength. Br J Sports Med, 2018.](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28698222/)
- [Helms ER, Aragon AA, Fitschen PJ. Evidence-based recommendations for natural bodybuilding contest preparation: nutrition and supplementation. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2014.](https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1550-2783-11-20)
- [Hall KD, Sacks G, et al. Quantification of the effect of energy imbalance on bodyweight. Lancet, 2011.](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21872751/)

## Related calculators

[TDEE Calculator Walk through the BMR + activity + TEF math behind the calorie target.](https://www.recompai.com/tools/tdee)

[Body Fat Calculator Sets the deficit limit and lets the protein target scale to lean mass.](https://www.recompai.com/tools/bodyfat)

[Protein Calculator Dig into the protein dose: how it scales to lean mass, per-meal targets, and the range that protects muscle across activity levels.](https://www.recompai.com/tools/protein)

[How to set your macros Turn your TDEE and goal into three numbers you can hit: protein, fat, carbs.](https://www.recompai.com/resources/macros-recomposition-targets)

[Body recomposition calculator Estimate maintenance, a calorie and protein target, and a 12-week fat and lean-mass projection. Results depend on the model assumptions and your response.](https://www.recompai.com/body-recomposition-calculator)

[Body recomposition guide Lose fat and build muscle at once. The three levers, the timeline, and how to know it is working.](https://www.recompai.com/body-recomposition)

## Related

- [All calculators](https://www.recompai.com/tools)
- [Body Recomposition Calculator: Calories, Macros, Timeline](https://www.recompai.com/body-recomposition-calculator)
- [Body Recomposition: Lose Fat and Build Muscle at Once](https://www.recompai.com/body-recomposition)

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