Nutrition Targets & Auto-Adjustment
How your macro targets are calculated and why they shift after weigh-ins.
Your calorie and macro targets start as an estimate and then adjust to what your weigh-ins show, because any formula is off for some people.
Where targets start
Your initial macro targets come from your stats (weight, height, age, sex, activity level) and your goal (cut, maintain, bulk). For adults that is the Mifflin-St Jeor equation times an activity multiplier, the same math behind the free TDEE calculator and macro calculator.
Why they change
Your real expenditure differs from the formula's estimate. As weigh-ins come in, the app compares your weekly trend (the average of your last 7 days against the 7 before) with the rate your goal calls for. If you're off that rate, it moves your calories, by about 150 kcal by default, then waits at least a week before changing them again so the trend can show what the change did. If you're losing faster than is safe for your bodyweight, it adds calories back straight away.
One weigh-in won't move your targets
Day-to-day weight swings from water and food volume are normal, and the app averages them out before it adjusts anything. Your targets won't react to a single number on the scale.
Reading an adjustment
When your targets shift, the app explains the reason: for example, that your weekly change was faster than your target rate, so it added about 150 kcal to the macro your plan adjusts first. The adjuster has limits it won't cross on its own. It keeps protein at 1.6 g per kg of bodyweight or more and won't take calories below a minimum (1,500 kcal for men, and 1,200 for women or when sex isn't set). At that point it tells you to talk to a dietitian or doctor rather than eat less.
Where to go next
More guides
MuscleBuddy 101: What's Where and Why
A quick orientation to the app: what Plan, Train, Nutrition, Health and Community do, and how they connect.
Logging Your First Workout
The logging flow: starting a session, recording sets, RPE/RIR, and how offline mode keeps you covered.
Understanding Your Program & Progression
How double progression, linear, RPE and the other progression methods set your training loads from what you log.
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