subject: What is the Basal Metabolic Rate and how can it help me to lose weight? [print this page] Women who are on a diet with their male partner often complain that they can't lose weight as quickly as their male partner. Unfortunately, this does seem to be the case. Scientists think that the differences may be hormonal (as are most differences between women and men!) Women have more estrogen, causing them to store more body energy as fat; whereas men have more testosterone, helping them to convert body energy to muscle faster.
While we can't change our gender to help us lose weight faster, knowing your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) can help you to know what to do to lose weight faster. Your BMR is the amount of energy you need in order to maintain bodily functions like breathing, blood circulation, and muscle tone. Even when you're at rest, physically and mentally, you are still burning calories, because your body needs to burn energy to maintain these essential bodily functions. Knowing your BMR won't help you to lose weight, but it might help you to figure out how to lose weight faster, or how much exercise you must do each day to lose weight.
How to Calculate BMR
For men, BMR can be calculated using the following equation: 66 + (13.7 x your weight in kg) + (5 x your height in cm) (6.8 x your age in years) = BMR
For women, BMR can be calculated using this equation: 665 + (9.6 x your weight in kg) + (1.8 x your height in cm) (4.7 x your age in years) = BMR
Using Your BMR to Determine How Many Calories You Need
Calories are not the enemy, although to a dieter, sometimes it may seem that way! We need calories to keep the body functioning properly. The calories we consume in foods we eat are converted into energy by our bodies. This helps us to do everyday activities, like walking, moving, and even sitting. It is only when you take in more calories than you need and don't compensate for this by increasing your exercise that calories turn into the bad guy. If you take in too many calories and don't increase your activity level, the excess calories the body does not need for energy will be stored as fat in the body. If you eat 3500 more calories than what your body needs, you will gain one pound of body weight. If you burn 3500 calories more than what you've consumed, you will lose one pound of body weight.
The Harris-Benedict Equation can be used to determine your own daily caloric needs:
-If you perform little to no exercise, take your BMR x 1.2 to figure out your daily calorie needs.
-If you perform light exercise 1 to 3 days per week, take your BMR x 1.375 to figure out your daily calorie needs.
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What is the Basal Metabolic Rate and how can it help me to lose weight?
By: John Cleric
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