Your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) indicates the number of calories your body needs each day to simply perform basic functions. From the time we go to sleep one night until we go to sleep the next night our body is using calories to fuel the body. Almost 3/4 of the calories eaten each day is used by the body for this purpose.
The basal metabolic rate is influenced by many different factors including (but not limited to) the following:
gender
genetics
age
environment
physical activity
drugs (some drugs slow down the BMR dramatically
lifestyle habits
chronic dieting
eating disorders
disease
temperature
hormones
You need calories each day to:
If a person eats more calories than the body needs, a weight gain will result. There are 3,500 calories stored in every pound of body fat. If a person eats 500 calories more a day than the body needs for a week (7 days), a weight gain of 1 pound per week would result.
Breathe
Build new red and white blood cells
Build muscle tone
Sleep
Think
Read
Pump blood throughout the body
Raise or lower body temperature
Flip on a light switch
Knowing what your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is will help you maintain your weight by knowing approximately how many calories you need each day to perform basic bodily functions. It can help you determine your exercise needs.
Exercise
Fix dinner
Change a flat tire
etc.
Use the formula below to figure your BMR. Then answer the following questions about your body needs for good health:
How many calories do you need each day to maintain your weight?
If you decrease your calories by 500 each day and add exercise, approximately how many pounds might you expect to lose per week?
How does exercise affect your BMR?
Does your BMR naturally decline with age, or remain the same throughout your life?
What would happen if you decreased your caloric intake drastically to say, 800 calories per day? How dangerous would that be?
Use the formula below to determine your BMR. Use this tool as a guideline
Description
Formula:
Multiply your weight in pounds x 24 (24 hours in a day) divided by 2.2 (the amount of energy needed to raise body temperature by 2 degrees celcius).
Body Weight (Pounds) x 24
2.2
Example of a person who weighs 150 pounds:
BMR per day = 150 x 24
2.2
150 x 24 = 3,600
3600 divided by 2.2 = 1,636,3636.......
= 1,636 (Round number to the first period)
*This 150 pound person would need 1,636 calories per day to maintain weight
* Use this number as a guideline. Increasing physical activitywill allow a person to eat more calories and still maintain weight. This formula doesn't figure in genetics, ethnicity, age, etc.
Aerobic exercise will help the body burn fat, while anaerobic exercise (strength training) will increase muscle mass. The higher the muscle mass in the body, the more calories the body will use to sustain life.
Tooele County Health Department Division of Community Services
151 North Main Street • Tooele Utah • 84074
(435) 277 - 2440 • Fax (435) 277-2444
gender
Breathe
Knowing what your basal metabolic rate (BMR) is will help you maintain your weight by knowing approximately how many calories you need each day to perform basic bodily functions. It can help you determine your exercise needs.
