In order to find out how many calories you should be taking in to lose weight, you are going to have to do a little math. Once you know how many calories you should be eating every day you will have to start reading labels and adding up the calories in your daily meals
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In this article I am going to show you how to decide the total amount of calories you will need to take in . You will have to add in different types of exercise to lose weight, but I will talk about that in a different article.
Why is so important to know how many calories you need to lose weight? Because calories is king and your total daily calories will always win over exercise.
You can run for 3 hours every day and not lose weight if your total calories is too high. One last thing before we get into the math, weight loss is so much more than eat less and exercise more. Let me say that again, weight loss is so much more than eat less and exercise more.
There are 12 reason we get fat. In this article I am only going to discuss the first one on the list. Look for my other articles that address the other 11 reasons you get fat.
1. Too Many Calories
2. Not Enough Calories
3. Not Enough Movement
4. Adaptation to Imposed Demands
5. Carbohydrates / Insulin Resistance
6. Stress, Cortisol & Fluid Retention
7. Poor Sleep
8. Food Allergies or Intolerances
9. Xenoestrogens, Pollutants, Chemicals & Toxins
10. Leptin Insensitivity
11. Low Thyroid / Metabolism
12. Genes
Ok, now let’s find out how many calories you need to lose weight.
Step 1) Find Your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)
English 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 years)
Metric BMR Formula
Women: BMR = 655 + (9.6 x weight in kilos) + (1.8 x height in cm) – (4.7 x age in years)
Men: BMR = 66 + (13.7 x weight in kilos) + (5 x height in cm) – (6.8 x age in years)
Example.
A 40 year old male that weighs 200 pounds and is 5 foot 8 inches tall.
To determine height in inches, take the height in feet time 12, and then add the inches for your total height in inches.
5 x 12 = 60. Then 60 + 8 = 68 total inches tall.
Men: BMR = 66 + (6.23 x 200 pounds) + (12.7 x 68 inches) – (6.8 x 40 years old)
BMR = 66 + (1246) + (863.6) – (272)
BMR = 1903.6.
You can also use an on-line BMR Calculator Here
http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/
Step 2) Determine Your Daily Calories.
The Harris Benedict Equation is a formula that uses your BMR and then applies an activity reason to decide your total daily energy expenditure (calories). The only reason omitted by the Harris Benedict Equation is lean body mass. Remember, leaner bodies need more calories than less leaner ones. Therefore, this equation will be very accurate in all but the very muscular (will under-estimate calorie needs) and the very fat (will over-estimate calorie needs).
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
Total Calorie Needs Example
If you are sedentary, multiply you’re BMR (1903.6) by 1.2 = 2284. This is the total number of calories you need to maintain your current weight.
For weight loss, our goal will be 500 calories below this number.
2284 – 500 = 1784
So for the example above, this person should be eating 1784 calories a day.
Find your BMR and write it down here__________.
Now use Harris Benedict Equation to find out how many calories you need to maintain your weight and write it down here_________.
Now subtract 500 from the above number and write it down here________. This is your daily calorie limit.
