How Many Calories Do I Burn in a Day Without Exercise?

October 18, 2025 •

5 min read

Your body burns 60-70% of its total daily calories simply by performing basic functions like breathing and pumping blood. This is a key factor in determining how many calories do I burn in a day without exercise and understanding your body's baseline energy needs.

Quick Summary

This article explores the components of your resting metabolic rate, including Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT), to help estimate daily calorie burn without formal exercise.

Key Points

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR): Accounts for 60-70% of your total daily energy expenditure and covers the calories your body burns at complete rest for basic functions.
Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT): Refers to all the calories burned from daily physical activity outside of planned exercise, such as cleaning, walking, and fidgeting.
BMR Calculation: You can estimate your BMR using formulas like the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, which requires your age, gender, height, and weight.
NEAT's Impact: NEAT can vary by up to 2,000 calories between two individuals of similar size, making it a critical and highly variable component of daily calorie burn.
Factors Influencing Calorie Burn: Your metabolic rate is affected by your body composition (especially muscle mass), age, gender, and genetics, but also by lifestyle factors like sleep and activity level.
Increasing Everyday Burn: Simple strategies like taking the stairs, standing more often, and fidgeting can increase your NEAT and boost your daily calorie expenditure without structured workouts.

Understanding Your Daily Calorie Burn

Your body is a remarkable machine, constantly expending energy even when you are at rest. The total amount of energy you burn in a day, known as your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE), is composed of three main components: Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT), and the Thermic Effect of Food (TEF). While planned exercise (Exercise Activity Thermogenesis, EAT) is an important part of overall health, the vast majority of your daily calorie burn comes from these three non-exercise components. Understanding each can provide a clearer picture of your body's energy needs and help in managing your weight effectively.

What is Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)?

Your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is the number of calories your body needs to accomplish its most basic, life-sustaining functions while at complete rest. These involuntary activities include breathing, circulating blood, cellular repair, and regulating body temperature. BMR accounts for approximately 60-70% of your TDEE, making it the single largest component of your daily calorie expenditure.

For most people, calculating BMR is done using a formula, as a precise laboratory measurement requires strict, controlled conditions. The Mifflin-St Jeor equation is widely considered to be one of the most accurate equations for estimating BMR for most individuals.

Calculating Your BMR with the Mifflin-St Jeor Equation

To calculate your BMR, you will need your weight in kilograms (kg), height in centimeters (cm), and age in years. You can convert imperial measurements if needed.

For Men: $BMR = (10 imes ext{weight in kg}) + (6.25 imes ext{height in cm}) - (5 imes ext{age in years}) + 5$

For Women: $BMR = (10 imes ext{weight in kg}) + (6.25 imes ext{height in cm}) - (5 imes ext{age in years}) - 161$

For example, a 30-year-old woman weighing 77.4 kg and standing 157 cm tall would have a BMR of approximately 1,516 calories per day.

The Hidden Burn: Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT)

Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis, or NEAT, is the energy you burn from all physical activity that is not planned exercise. This can be a substantial and highly variable part of your daily energy expenditure, with differences of up to 2,000 calories per day between people of similar size. It's the cumulative effect of a multitude of small movements that add up throughout the day.

Examples of NEAT include:

Walking to your car, desk, or to the grocery store
Performing household chores like cleaning, gardening, and cooking
Fidgeting, such as tapping your foot or bouncing your knee
Taking the stairs instead of the elevator
Pacing while on the phone

Factors Influencing Your Resting Calorie Burn

Several factors can influence your BMR and overall resting calorie expenditure. While some are beyond your control, others can be modified to support your health goals.

Factors that affect your resting calorie burn:

Body Composition: Muscle tissue burns more calories at rest than fat tissue, so individuals with higher lean body mass have a higher BMR.
Age: BMR naturally decreases with age, primarily due to a gradual loss of muscle mass.
Gender: Men typically have a higher BMR than women due to higher lean body mass and less body fat on average.
Weight and Height: Larger and taller individuals generally have a higher BMR because they have a larger body mass to support.
Genetics: Genetic factors play a role in determining your metabolic rate, although lifestyle has a much larger impact.
Sleep: Lack of sleep can negatively alter your metabolism and hormone levels, which may reduce your resting calorie burn.

BMR vs. RMR: A Key Distinction

While the terms Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) are often used interchangeably, there is a technical difference. BMR is measured under very strict laboratory conditions: after a full night's sleep, a 12-hour fast, and in a temperature-controlled, fully rested state. RMR, on the other hand, is measured under less stringent, but still resting, conditions. Because RMR includes low-effort activities like digestion and sitting upright, it is slightly higher than BMR by about 10-20% and is considered a more practical estimate for everyday use. For the purpose of estimating your daily calorie burn without exercise, RMR is a more applicable metric.

Comparison: Common BMR Formulas


Feature	Mifflin-St Jeor Equation	Revised Harris-Benedict Equation
Year Introduced	1990	1984 (Revision)
Accuracy	Considered the more accurate option for modern populations.	Less accurate than Mifflin-St Jeor, especially for overweight individuals.
Use Case	Ideal for most people seeking a balance of simplicity and accuracy.	Can be used, but generally superseded by newer formulas.
Key Inputs	Age, gender, weight (kg), height (cm)	Age, gender, weight (kg), height (cm)
Formula for Men	$BMR = (10 imes ext{kg}) + (6.25 imes ext{cm}) - (5 imes ext{age}) + 5$	$BMR = 88.362 + (13.397 imes ext{kg}) + (4.799 imes ext{cm}) - (5.677 imes ext{age})$
Formula for Women	$BMR = (10 imes ext{kg}) + (6.25 imes ext{cm}) - (5 imes ext{age}) - 161$	$BMR = 447.593 + (9.247 imes ext{kg}) + (3.098 imes ext{cm}) - (4.330 imes ext{age})$

How to Increase Your Calorie Burn Without Exercise

While your BMR is relatively fixed, you can significantly influence your NEAT, thereby increasing your total daily calorie burn. Incorporating more movement into your daily routine is an effective way to boost your metabolism. Try some of these simple strategies:

Use a standing desk or take walking breaks every hour during work.
Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
Do household chores manually, such as hand-washing dishes or vacuuming thoroughly.
Stand up and walk around while on a phone call.
Park farther away from building entrances to increase your walking distance.
Fidgeting, such as tapping your feet or shifting your weight, can also contribute to calorie expenditure.

Conclusion: The Total Picture of Your Energy Expenditure

Understanding how many calories do I burn in a day without exercise is essential for effective weight management. Your body's BMR accounts for the majority of your daily energy use, but the additional calories burned through Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT) are highly variable and offer a significant opportunity to influence your total expenditure. By focusing on increasing everyday, low-impact movements, you can boost your metabolism and support your overall health. Remember, every bit of movement counts and a more active lifestyle, even without formal exercise, can have a cumulative and positive effect on your well-being. For more information on metabolism and weight loss, you can consult resources like the Mayo Clinic.

Frequently Asked Questions

BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the minimum energy required to sustain life at complete rest in controlled, fasting conditions. RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) is a more practical measure of calories burned during a normal resting state, including minimal activities, and is about 10-20% higher than BMR.

You can increase your calorie burn by boosting your NEAT. This includes incorporating more small movements throughout your day, such as standing instead of sitting, taking the stairs, walking short distances, doing household chores, and even fidgeting.

Yes, resting metabolic rate naturally decreases with age, primarily due to a gradual loss of muscle mass. This means an older person will typically burn fewer calories at rest than a younger person of the same weight and height.

NEAT is often a larger contributor to daily energy expenditure than planned exercise for most people, but it does not replace the specific health benefits of structured exercise. Both NEAT and exercise are important for total calorie burn and overall health.

Muscle tissue burns more calories at rest than fat tissue. This is why individuals with a higher lean body mass generally have a higher BMR and burn more calories throughout the day, even without exercising.

Yes, insufficient sleep can alter your metabolism and hormonal balance, which can lead to a reduction in your resting metabolic rate. Good quality sleep is crucial for maintaining a healthy metabolism.

Based on average figures, a sedentary person might burn between 1,200 and 2,400 calories per day, depending on factors like age, gender, and weight. This is a combination of BMR and a small amount of NEAT.