Calculate Your Basal Metabolic Rate to Lose Weight
Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the total number of calories that your body needs to perform basic, life-sustaining functions. These basal functions include circulation, breathing, cell production, nutrient processing, protein synthesis, and ion transport. You can calculate the basal metabolic rate using a mathematical formula.Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is the total number of calories that your body needs to perform basic, life-sustaining functions. These basal functions include circulation, breathing, cell production, nutrient processing, protein synthesis, and ion transport. You can calculate the basal metabolic rate using a mathematical formula.
Online BMR calculator
If you are looking to reach or maintain a healthy weight may find it helpful to calculate your BMR.
Put your height, weight, and age intoonline calculator to find your basal metabolic rate with the addition of daily activity. The calculator provides you with an estimate of the total number of calories you burn each day.
Increase Daily Calorie Expenditure
Use BMR to Lose Weight
Once you understand BMR and you get a good estimate of your number, you can use it to help you reach or maintain a healthy weight. First you can try to increase your basal metabolic rate, then you can increase the total number of calories you burn each day to help you reach your goal.
Change Your BMR
A combination of factors determines your basal metabolic rate. Genetic factors, age, gender and body composition all play a role. There's not much you can do to control genetics, age or gender. But you can change your body's fat to muscle ratio to boost your metabolism.
So how do you change your body composition?
Build muscle! Even when your body is at rest, lean muscle mass will burn more calories than fat. And you don't even have to be a bodybuilder to see benefits. Several studies have shown that after just a few weeks of resistance training you may be able to see a 7%-8% increase in resting metabolic rate.
Increase Daily Calorie Expenditure
The total number of calories you burn each day is heavily dependent on your basal metabolic rate. But you can also burn more calories each day by making changes to your diet and activity level.
Your basal metabolic rate combined with two other factors can give you an idea of the total number of calories you burn each day.
- Basal metabolic rate accounts for about 60%-75% of total calories burned each day. Increase muscle mass to burn more calories.
- Activity thermogenesis: (non-exercise movement and exercise) accounts for about 15%-30% of total calories burned each day. Increase daily movement to burn more calories.
- Thermic effect of food: (calories burned from eating and digestion) accounts for about 10% of total calories burned each day. Choose healthy protein-rich foods to make a small difference.
If you can burn more calories than you consume, you will create a calorie deficit or negative energy balance.
A calorie deficit of 500-1000 calories per day should result in a 1kg weight loss per week.
