Most of us wonder how many calories we need to take in on a daily basis. You see guidelines for 2000 calories a day and most nutrition labels are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Throw that out the window. There are a lot of factors that play in to how many calories you need. Gender, age, weight, height, activity level, breastfeeding (lots of mommies out there including myself), muscle mass ect. A good starting point to figuring out your caloric needs starts with your BMR. BMR is your Basal Metabolic Rate. This is the amount of energy expended by your body on a daily basis while your body performs its vital functions. Once you know how many calories you burn on a daily basis you alter your caloric needs based on the factors mentioned above.
Today I am going to share with you some formulas that were shared with me by Camie Cragg at CCF- Camie Cragg Fitness.
BMR formula
Women: BMR = 655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) - ( 4.7 x age in years )
Men: BMR = 66 + ( 6.23 x weight in pounds ) + ( 12.7 x height in inches ) - ( 6.8 x age in year )
The BMR formula uses the variables of height, weight, age and gender to calculate the Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). This is more accurate than calculating calorie needs based on body weight alone. The only factor it leaves out is lean body mass and the ratio of muscle-to-fat a person has. Keep in mind leaner bodies need more calories than those with more fat. Therefore, this equation will be very accurate, but those with more muscle mass (will underestimate calorie needs) and those with a higher amount of fat(will over-estimate calorie needs).
Harris Benedict Formula
To determine your total daily calorie needs, multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor, as follows:
If you are sedentary (little or no exercise) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.2
If you are lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.375
If you are moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.55
If you are very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.725
If you are extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training) : Calorie-Calculation = BMR x 1.9
My BMR is 1440. I am moderately active (3-5 days a week). I need 2232 calories to maintain my current weight. However, I am breastfeeding right now, so I need to factor that in. You burn about 500 calories per day if you are exclusively breastfeeding. It is estimated you burn about 20 calories per ounce of milk produced. So to maintain my weight I actually need 2732 calories per day.
Losing Weight (creating a deficit)
There are about 3500 calories in a pound of body fat. To lose weight you need to create a deficit. So, if you create a 3500-calorie deficit through diet, exercise or a combination of both, you will lose one pound per week. If you create a 7000 calorie deficit you will lose two pounds per week and so on. When you lose 1 lb about 75% of it is stored fat and 25% is lean tissue. Since you are losing lean tissue, building muscle is pretty imporant when losing weight. Muscle also burns fat, so, the combination of diet and exercise is best for lasting weight loss.
If you want to lose fat, a useful guideline for lowering your calorie intake is to reduce your calories by at least 500, but not more than 1000 below your maintenance level. For people with only a small amount of weight to lose, stick with a 500 calorie deficit, 1000 will be way to much.
***Women should NEVER eat less than 1200 calories per day
***Men shoud NEVER eat less than 1800 calories per day
***A note to my breastfeeding and soon to be mamma's! (Since there seem to be a lot of us right now. Big summer and fall of 2011 I guess!)
As breastfeeding mom, I am trying to take in roughly 2200 - 2700 calories per day and creating a deficit by excercising 3-5 times a week. On the days I excersise I need more calories, so I take in about 2700. When I don't excersise I don't need as many calories so I take in about 2200. Mamma's remember it took 9 months to put that baby weight on and it won't fall off overnight. Do not try to restrict calories too much, losing weight too quickly causes your body to release toxins. You do not want those toxins in your breastmilk!
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