Editorial policy

How formulas are chosen

A calculator ships only if its equation is published, attributable and checkable. That means a named paper, a named regulation or a named institutional standard — not another website, not a fitness app, and not an equation that circulates without an origin.

Where several equations exist for the same quantity, the page implements more than one and shows how they disagree. The default is the one with the best-documented validation in the general adult population, and the page says why it is the default.

How sources are cited

Every formula on the site carries its full citation on the page that uses it: authors, title, journal, year. The citation is the original publication, not a secondary source that reproduced it. Where a value comes from a reference table rather than an equation — MET values, for instance — the specific code and edition are given so the entry can be looked up.

What this site will not do

• It will not recommend an intake below 1,500 kcal for men or 1,200 kcal for women, or a deficit larger than 25% of maintenance or 1,000 kcal per day, whichever is smaller.
• It will not produce a plan towards a goal weight below a BMI of 18.5, and says why rather than silently refusing.
• It will not return calorie or body-fat targets for anyone under 18.
• It will not describe a body as good, bad, ideal or in need of fixing. Categories are named as the published standard names them and nothing more.
• It will not invent an author, a medical reviewer, a rating or a review count. Nothing on this site is attributed to a person who did not write it.

Review cadence

Every page carries the real date its content was last reviewed. That date changes when the content changes and not otherwise — a page whose last-reviewed date moves on every build is telling you nothing. Formula pages are re-checked against their sources when a source is revised; the Army body composition standard, for instance, changed in 2026 and the page changed with it.

Corrections

If a formula here does not match its cited source, that is a bug and it will be fixed. Report it through the contact page with the source you are working from.