How Many Calories Should a Woman Have In a Day
Guess what? It’s 2 weeks until Memorial Day weekend. Uh oh. Kind of came up fast didn’t it? And you tell yourself this every year. You are definitely going to start getting primed and ready for summer this year. But you didn’t. That’s okay, don’t sweat it. Life is for having fun. Besides, there is no simple answer to how many calories should a woman have in a day. Or a man. Like so many other things, it depends. Let’s take a look.
It’s Almost Pool Season
Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve all been there. The never-ending search for ways to lose weight, stay fit and in shape, and the search for just how many calories is healthy, and how many is too much. Overall the whole process of trying to count your calories and figure out just how many you need can be stressful not to mention time consuming and limiting. Sites can say that you need to eat less calories to maintain a good weight, or might not even recommend the right amount. If you’re stuck on trying to figure out just how many calories you need to eat in a day, follow along with the rest of this article.
Lots of Factors
First of all, how many calories should a woman have in a day depends on multiple factors. Age, weight, height and how active a woman is will determine the exact amount of calories that should be eaten each day in order to stay healthy. On top of that, if you’re looking to lose or gain weight then the number of calories that a woman should eat can differ. The first numbers we’ll discuss will be based on a woman of some numbers that several articles refer to as average height and weight, which is 5”4 and 126 pounds.
For women who are inactive and don’t work out too much, they’ll need to consume less calories. From ages 14-18, a woman who doesn’t get active very often will only need to consume about 1,800 calories per day. This number spikes at ages 19 through 25, where 2,000 calories should be consumed per day. After 25, the number will drop back to 1,800 up until age 50, where it will then drop to 1,600 for all remaining ages.
Activity Level
The calorie count is lower for women who are less active because there’s less opportunity to burn them off. If the calories being consumed aren’t also being burned off by physical activity, that’s what will cause weight gain. The case is different for women who are more active though, they’ll need to eat more calories because they’re burning them off more frequently.
Women who are moderately active will need to consume 200 more calories than those who aren’t. For example when a woman is 21, she’ll need to consume 2,200 calories rather than 2,000. From that number, women who are active need to consume 200 more than that. When an active woman is 21, she’ll need to consume 2,400 calories, 400 more than the base amount. Activity level has a big influence on the number of calories needed. Lots of moving parts to get to the answer of how many calories should a woman have in a day.
Want to Lose Weight?
As mentioned previously, this number fluctuates depending on each situation that someone’s in. If a woman desires to lose weight, the amount of calories that they consumer per day will be lower than that of someone who desires to maintain their weight. For example, if someone is looking to lose one pound each week, they need to lower their calorie intake by 500. If someone wants to lose two pounds a week, then the calorie intake needs to be lowered by 1000.
While the reduction of calorie intake seems extreme compared to the amount of weight being lost, it can actually be helpful. In order to lose weight, you must burn more calories in a day than you consume. If a woman isn’t very active and is consuming 2,000 calories per day, it can be really difficult to burn more than is being consumed. So lowering the calorie count a bit can help to make it easier to burn more calories in a day.
If you’re looking to lose weight, the best way to go about it is to slightly lower calorie intake and become more active. Being more active is what burns off calories much faster, meaning you’ll probably cross the amount that you’ve consumed in a day. The average amount of calories that you burn in a day is about 2,000 for the average woman. That’s why lowering it just a bit and becoming more active can be the most effective way to lose weight in a healthy manner.
Want to Gain Weight?
Yes, I know. This isn’t something you hear about often but it does happen. The case is different for those looking to gain weight. If you’re looking to add on a few pounds, it’s usually better to try to add it slowly. You just want to make sure you don’t go overboard and consume too much, especially unhealthy foods. Gaining weight slowly should equal to increasing calorie intake by an additional 300 to 500 calories. Gaining weight quickly on the other hand will equal to an increase of 700 to 1,000 calories per day. The trick with gaining weight though is that it isn’t as easy as just increasing calorie intake.
If you’re looking to gain healthy weight, you’ll need to be exercising a bit or be on a weight training program. Otherwise, all the extra calories that you eat will go straight to body fat instead of being healthily stored in your body for gaining weight. Adding weight, in both men and woman, is usually seen when someone is into some real serious physical activity and training.
The Fear Factor
Most women have a fear of consuming too many calories, even if they’re incredibly active. Seeing a big number like 2,000 next to how many calories they should eat can be scary, and thus they opt out for eating less calories. Most people in general don’t realize that eating less calories means less energy though. So in turn of eating less than the daily recommendation of calories, it can be helpful in losing weight, but you’re also giving yourself less energy during the day. Don’t be afraid of consuming the recommended amount of calories unless you see an increase in your weight.
While these numbers are the recommended amount for the average woman, these numbers vary depending on quite a few factors. They’re a great base to follow though, so if you should be consuming 2,000 calories a day but want to lose weight, all you need to go is lower that number enough so that you’re burning more calories than you are eating.
Conclusion
Bottom line for how many calories should a woman have in a day is it depends. Many factors including age, activity level, and various health factors will have an impact on this.
Women and men both get caught up the whole counting calories agenda. While I don’t count calories I do tend to be almost always consciously aware of what I am putting into my body. At the end of the day we should strive to the the right amount of the good foods that fuel our bodies. It’s fine to add some not as healthy foods too, just remember your body will treat you as well as you treat it.
Cheers!
Mat A.
