Energy requirement

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Energy requirement

Everyone has individual energy requirements, as energy consumption depends on a variety of factors, e.g. age, gender, health status and weight. The energy requirement shows you how much energy you consume per day and can therefore help you to plan your food intake if you want to gain or lose weight, for example.

If you want to determine your energy requirements, you need to determine your basal metabolic rate and assess your activity level. The physical activity of different occupational groups is represented by the PAL value (Physical Activity Level). You can find out which activity level corresponds to your lifestyle in the PAL table below. Your basal metabolic rate per day depends on your age, gender and weight. The table shows you how to calculate it.

Once you have calculated your basal metabolic rate and determined your PAL value, multiply the two kcal values together to find out what your daily energy requirement is.

Basal metabolic rate and PAL value

You can use the following table to calculate your basal metabolic rate (see Biesalski, Grimm & Nowitzki-Grimm, 2020, p. 39):

Age groupFormula for predicting the basal metabolic rate
Women10 - 18 yearsGU = 0.056 * body weight (in kg) + 2.898
19 - 30 yearsGU = 0.062 * body weight (in kg) + 2.036
31 - 60 yearsGU = 0.034 * body weight (in kg) + 3.538
over 60 yearsGU = 0.038 * body weight (in kg) + 2.755
Men10 - 18 yearsGU = 0.074 * body weight (in kg) + 2.754
19 - 30 yearsGU = 0.063 * body weight (in kg) + 2.896
31 - 60 yearsGU = 0.048 * body weight (in kg) + 3.653
over 60 yearsGU = 0.049 * body weight (in kg) + 2.459

 

The basal metabolic rate is given here in MJ/day. To get your metabolic rate in kcal/day, simply multiply the value by 239.

You can use the following table to determine your PAL value:

Physical activityPAL value
Only sedentary/lying activities1,2

Exclusively sedentary activities (office job) with little physical activity in your free time

1,4-1,5
Predominantly sedentary activities. Partly walking or standing activities with a moderate amount of sport in leisure time1,6-1,7
Predominantly walking/standing activities and a moderate amount of sport1,8-1,9
Physically demanding job with a lot of additional activities in leisure time2,0-2,4

 

Once you have calculated your basal metabolic rate and determined your PAL value, you can now calculate your energy requirements by multiplying the two values together. Make sure that you have multiplied your basal metabolic rate by a factor of 239 so that you get a value in kcal as a result.

Example:

Anna is 23 years old, weighs 60 kg and is studying biology. She therefore sits at her desk a lot, but is also out and about a lot, goes for walks and occasionally meets up with friends to do sport. She therefore has a PAL value of 1.7, which means that her basal metabolic rate is 0.062 x 60 + 2.036 = 5.756 MJ/day. To get the calories per day, the value must be multiplied by 239. This results in a basal metabolic rate of 1376 kcal/day. As a student, she has a PAL value of 1.7, so Anna has a total energy expenditure of 1376 x 1.6 = 2202 kcal/day.

Biesalski, H., Grimm, P. & Nowitzki-Grimm, S. (2020). Pocket atlas of nutrition. 8th edition. Stuttgart: Georg Thieme Verlag.