Every day you make decisions regarding the foods you eat. You may choose healthy foods that improve your diet, or you may splurge on something sweet to celebrate a special event. With any food choice you make, it is important to consider the amount of calories that you are eating. Your body's daily caloric needs represent a narrow window. Eat too many calories and you gain weight, eat too few and you lose weight. To control your weight and eating habits, understand how to calculate the number of calories you should eat in a day.
Step 1
Figure out your basal metabolic rate (BMR), the rate at which your body's metabolism burns calories at rest. The equation below calculates your BMR to find the base number of calories your body burns in one day.
For men: BMR = 66 + (6.23 x Weight in pounds) + (12.7 x Height in inches) - (6.8 x Age in years)
For women: BMR = 655 + (4.35 x Weight in pounds) + (4.7 x Height in inches) - (4.7 x Age in years)
This is the number of calories you should eat each day if you do not exercise and do not wish to alter your current weight.
Step 2
Calculate how many calories you should eat per day when you exercise by adding the extra calories burned. A simple method of calculating the number of calories you burn during exercise involves your heart rate and one of the equations below. You can find your heart rate by placing two fingers on your carotid artery --- located on either side of your throat --- or on the underside of your wrist. Count the number of beats in one minute at the end of your exercise routine.
For men: [(-55.0969 + (0.6309 x Heart rate in beats per minute) + (0.1988 x Weight in pounds) + (0.2017 x Age in years)]/4.184
For women: [(-20.4022 + (0.4472 x Heart rate in beats per minute) - (0.1263 x Weight in pounds) + (0.074 x Age in years)]/4.184
Multiply this number by the number of minutes you exercise to find total calories burned.
Step 3
Add your calories burned during exercise to your BMR to find your adjusted daily caloric allowance. For example, if your BMR is 2,000 calories per day and you burned 300 calories with exercise, you should eat 2,300 calories that day to maintain your current weight.
Tips and Warnings
- For weight loss, simply subtract calories from your daily caloric allowance. According to MedlinePlus.com, subtracting 500 calories from your daily caloric intake results in weight loss of 1 pound per week.
- Speak with your physician before significantly altering your diet.
Member Comments