Calculate Calories for Fat Loss and Muscle Growth After 40
Most women over 40 are either undereating without realizing it or following random plans that don’t match their metabolism or their goals. This tool removes the guesswork by generating personalized targets for fat loss, maintenance, and lean building based on your age, height, weight, and activity level.
It also gives you a protein target that supports muscle tone, strength, and appetite control. This calculator uses your personal details to create calorie and protein targets tailored to your body, giving you a clear and realistic starting point so you can take intentional steps toward your goals.
Add your information below to view your personalized numbers.
Calorie + Protein Calculator for Women Over 40
Get personalized numbers for fat loss, maintenance and lean build plus a simple breakdown for three or four meals per day.
These numbers are a starting point. Your progress and biofeedback guide adjustments.
What Your Numbers Mean
Each calorie target plays a specific role in transforming your body. Understanding these phases helps you make better decisions about your goals and timing.
Fat Loss Calories
This is a controlled, sustainable calorie target designed to help you lose fat while preserving as much muscle as possible. Fat loss calories should be used intentionally for shorter, focused periods of time, not year-round. When paired with strength training and adequate protein, this range improves muscle definition while supporting steady progress.
Maintenance Calories
This range supports metabolism, energy, balanced hormones, recovery, and overall well-being. Many women over 40 discover that their body responds even better when they spend time in maintenance instead of trying to diet year-round. Maintenance is where your metabolism stabilizes, cravings disappear, and strength improves. This phase often lays the foundation for more successful fat loss later.
Lean Build Calories
This phase gives your body enough fuel to build muscle and improve body composition over time. It is not a bulk. It does not mean overeating. It’s simply a slight increase that supports strength, better training performance, and a more sculpted shape. If you want visible muscle tone or improved metabolism, the lean build phase is where that transformation is created.
Protein
Use your personalized protein range to support muscle growth and preservation, recovery, and appetite control. The lower end of the range is ideal if you are new to tracking, easing into higher protein or if you have fifteen or more pounds to lose. The higher end is helpful if your goal is improved muscle tone and better training performance. Focus on consistency rather than perfection and aim for thirty to fifty grams at each meal to make hitting your daily target easier.
Why I Suggest Focusing on Calories and Protein
Your calories and protein are the two biggest drivers of results for women over 40. Calories determine whether your body is in fat loss, maintenance or building mode, and protein supports muscle tone, recovery, strength, and metabolism. When these two anchors are in place, everything else becomes much easier to manage.
You can fill in your fats and carbs based on preference. Some women feel better with higher carbs, others feel better with higher fats. Both can work as long as your total calories and protein stay consistent. This gives you flexibility while keeping the foundation strong.
Carbs should be used intentionally around your workouts. Having carbohydrates before training improves energy, strength and performance, and including carbohydrates afterward supports recovery, replenishes energy, and helps your muscles use protein more effectively.
Before Your Workout (Pre-Workout)
Aim for 20–40 grams of carbs about 60–90 minutes before training.
Examples: banana, rice cakes with honey, oatmeal, fruit, or half a protein bar with carbs.
After Your Workout (Post-Workout)
Aim for 25–50 grams of carbs to support recovery and muscle repair.
Examples: rice or potatoes, fruit with yogurt or cottage cheese, a protein shake with fruit, or a wrap or balanced bowl.
Quick rule of thumb:
If you train first thing in the morning with little time, even 10–15 grams is better than nothing.
Keeping things simple is what makes consistency possible, and consistency is what creates results.
How to Use These Numbers
Your results are a starting point, not a rigid rule. Here’s how to make the most of them.
Start with the phase that matches your current goal.
Track your intake consistently for one to two weeks to understand your real averages.
Use weekly averages to evaluate progress rather than focusing on day-to-day fluctuations.
Pay attention to how your energy, hunger, mood, strength, and digestion respond. These cues help you understand whether the phase is right for you.
Make small adjustments over time rather than large jumps. Slow, steady changes produce the best long-term results.
Common Questions
Do I need to be exact with these numbers?
No. These numbers are a realistic starting point. You don’t need to hit them perfectly. Consistency over time is far more important than precision. Aim to be close most days and evaluate your weekly averages.
Will these numbers change as I progress?
Yes. Your metabolism, strength, and daily habits shift as you build muscle, lose fat, or increase activity. Small adjustments may be helpful over time. This is normal and expected in a long-term transformation. As your weight or body composition changes over time, it is best to recalculate your numbers depending on your goals.
Can I begin in any phase?
Yes. Choose the phase that aligns with your current goal and your readiness. Many women benefit from beginning in maintenance or lean build to restore energy, stabilize hunger, and support better fat loss down the road.
Do I need to track calories forever?
No. Tracking is a tool to build awareness and consistency. Once you learn portions, hunger patterns, and what your body needs, you can transition to a more intuitive approach.
Your Next Step
Now that you have your personalized numbers, you can choose the level of support that fits your goals and how you prefer to train.
If you want structured training you can follow independently, you can use these numbers inside the Strong by Shauna Membership. The membership includes science-backed workouts for women over 40, a full workout library with home and gym options, video demonstrations, form cues, mobility sessions, and access to members-only challenges and resources. It’s your go-to place for consistent programming you can follow at your own pace.
If you want individualized support with your calories, nutrition, workouts, progress, and phase adjustments, you can apply for 1:1 coaching. This is where I create your plan for you, monitor your progress, adjust your calories and workouts as needed, and guide you through each phase with personalized strategy and accountability.