We begin with a simple question, one that I asked myself, “how did I get
fat?” The answer is both simple and
complex. It is simple because the only
way that person gains excessive body fat it by eating more than the body
needs. Yet it is also incredibly complex
because everybody has a different and unique body. Using a cookie cutter or fad diet approach
will not result in permanent weight loss because it is not tailored
specifically to your individual needs.
This is the ultimate problem with trying these methods. There may be some initial changes but these
changes will not be permanent and the weight will most likely come back soon
after the program is abandoned. It was
not uniquely tailored to you.
To specifically
create program for yourself you must understand metabolism. Metabolism is
the measurement
of the energy required to maintain the human body’s current
condition. It is the sum of every
biological and chemical process that the human body goes through to maintain
life. Energy is
considered to be the ability or capacity to do work. In the human body energy is measured in the
unit of the calorie. Energy
is essential for the body to produce: mechanical work (movement of
the body and exercise), maintain and regulate body temperature. Every breath,
heartbeat, digestion, muscular contraction, and millions of other activities
affect the amount of energy required to keep the body alive. Energy is provided to the body by consuming food with
the nutrition mainly coming from protein, carbohydrates, and fats. The total amount of energy required to
adequately support the body is referred to as Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). This
does not factor in exercise. That is
another topic for another day.
BMR can be
considered to be an effective evaluation of the quality of life and health
because the body loses, or slows down, its metabolism during times of poor
health and as the body ages. Age will
naturally slow the metabolic rate and this is nothing to be alarmed about. However, research that is still in the
preliminary stages is beginning to indicate that excess body fat, particularly
in amounts that are defined as being obese, actually speeds up the aging
process. The result is that overweight
and obese people are living in physical bodies that can be considered to be far
older than the number of years lived would indicate.
As I mentioned
a moment ago, the calorie is the unit of measurement given to the amount of
energy that the body requires to support BMR. There are a few factors that affect BMR;
gender, age, height, and weight. It is
because these factors vary from person to person and between genders that a
program not designed for your specific metabolism is ultimately doomed to
failure.
Basal Metabolic
Rate is something that can be calculated and that is what we will now do. It is impossible to out exercise poor
nutrition. For those who do not engage
in regular exercise or work physically demanding jobs then BMR is the amount of
calories your body needs. Eat more than
this and body fat levels will rise bringing with it a plethora of health
problems. There are two formulas for
calculating BMR, one for men and one for women:
Male BMR = 66 + (6.22*W) + (12.7*H) - (6.8*A)
Female BMR = 655 + (4.36*W) + (4.32*H) – (4.7*A)
In the
formulas, W is weight in pounds, H is height in inches, and A is age in
years. The process of correctly
calculating BMR can be broken down in three steps: 1) Convert your height from
feet to inches, 2) insert the information into appropriates spots in the
equation, and 3) perform the calculations.
We will now work through one example each for a man and a woman.
Beginning with the man, we will assume
that he is 56 years old, 5’11’ tall, and weighs 214 pounds. This calculation can be broken down into
three simple steps: 1) convert height into inches, 2) insert the information
into the appropriate spots in the equation and 3) perform calculations. Here is how to do it using the men’s formula:
•
Step One: (5’ x
12”) + 11” = 71” Height (H)
•
Step Two:
•
Men BMR = 66 +
(6.22 x W) + (12.7 x H) – (6.8 x A)
•
66 + (6.22 x 214)
+ (12.7 x 71) – (6.8 x 56)
•
Step Three:
•
66 + (1331) + (
902) – (381)
•
1397 + 902 – 381
•
2299-381
•
Men BMR = 1918
calories
We will now follow the
same process for calculating the metabolism a woman that is 34 years old, 5’6”,
and 143lbs. Use the same basic three
step process: 1) convert height into inches, 2) insert the information into the
appropriate spots in the equation and 3) perform calculations. Here is how to do it using the women’s
formula:
•
Step One: (5’ x 12”) + 6” = 66”
•
Step Two:
•
Female BMR:
•
655 + (4.36 x W)
+ (4.32 x H) – (4.7 x A)
•
655 + (4.36 x
143) + (4.32 x 66) – (4.7 x 34)
•
Step
Three:
•
655 + (623) +
(285) – (160)
•
1278 + 285 - 160
•
1563-160
•
Female BMR = 1563
calories
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