Lesson 3: How many calories you should consume according to your goal

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Take me literally when I say “measure all servings of food with measuring cups, not with your eyeball!

How many calories should I consume is possibly the most common question. Before beginning you should have a pen, paper, and calculator or open a spread sheet for easy calculation. Understand that the formula I present here is not precise, it is merely an estimate.

Introduction:

There are 3 possible routs to travel when determining calorie consumption.  Rout one is weight management and the strategy is for your calorie consumption to equate to your calorie expenditure.  Rout two is to incur a deficit; therefore your consumption will be less than your expenditure resulting in weight loss.  Rout three is obviously for weight gain and consist of consuming more calories than expending.

There are 4 factors to consider when determining caloric needs:

1. Basic Energy Needs
2. Additional Calories for Daily Activities
3. Digestion
4. Your Goal

Step 1: Determine Your Basic Energy Needs

Basic energy needs is the energy your body requires if you were to lie in bed all day.  Basic energy needs are determined by multiplying your body weight by 10 if you are a woman and 11 if you are a man.

Males:                  Basic Energy Needs = Body Weight X 11

Females:              Basic Energy Needs = Body Weight X 10

Male Example:                  170 lbs X 11 = 1870 Basic Energy Needs in calories

Female Example:             140 lbs X 10 = 1400 Basic Energy Needs in calories

Step 2: Determine Your Additional Calories needed for Daily Activities

The additional calories needed for daily activities are determined by a ranking of your life style.  There are four rankings and your classification may vary day to day as does mine.

• Sedentary Lifestyle: consist of mainly sitting, driving a car, lying down, sleeping, standing, reading, typing, or other low intensity activities.  If you are stuck in front of a computer all day and drive to the office then it is likely you live a sedentary lifestyle
• Light Activity: consist of light exercise such as light office/house work, grocery shopping, and a few errands all of which last for no more than two hours
• Moderate Activity: heavy office/housework, gardening, dancing , or brisk walking (very little sitting)
• Very Active: consist of active physical sports, or in a labor intensive job such as construction work

When determining your lifestyle ranking factor in exercise separately.  Determining caloricburn can be a difficult task if you are without a heart rate monitor.  Click on the image ad to the right to find quality heart rate monitors at a prices slightly lower than the norm.  If you choose not to purchase a monitor then you can estimate you burn 300-500 calories for every hour of exercise.

Okay, by now you should have an idea where you rank, it is now time to find a multiplier for the upcoming formula.

• Sedentary Lifestyle: 20%
• Light Activity: 30%
• Moderate Activity: 40%
• Very Active: 50%

Do you recall your basic energy needs which was your body weight times 10 for females and 11 for males?  Okay now we must multiply your basic energy needs by your lifestyle ranking to determine your additional calorie needs for daily activities.

Basic Energy Needs X Life Style Ranking = Additional Calories For Activity

Male: 1870 BEN X 30% = 561 Additional Calories

Female: 1400 BEN X 30% = 420 Additional Calories

Okay, thus far we have determined two of the three caloric needs in a day.  We have:

Basic Energy Needs (BEN):

Male Example: 1870

Female Example: 1400

Additional Calories for Daily Activity (AC)

Male Example: 561

Female Example: 420

Let’s move on to the third and final calorie need.

Step 3: Determine Your Calories Needed For Digestion

I understand that the outcome in the formula for calories needed for digestion is minimal but please include it in your calculations.  You simply multiply your basic energy needs by 10% or .1

Male Example: 1870 X .1 = 187 Calories Needed For Digestion

Female Example: 1400 X .1 = 140 Calories Needed For Digestion

Step 4: Totals

Let’s add the basic energy needs, additional calories needed for daily activity, and calories needed for digestion together to get the total calories needed to maintain weight.  After this step we can determine what we will need to achieve weight loss and weight gain.  So lets add them together.

Male Example: 1870 + 561 + 187 = 2618

Female Example: 1400 + 420 + 140 = 1960

If you are exercising I recommend you factor that into your calculation only for the days you exerecise.  If you exercise at a low to medium intensity for one hour at a time then I esitmate you burn 200-300 calories and if you exercise at a high intensity then you may be burning as many as 500-600 calories.  If this is the case you need increase your intake by that amount for each day you exercise.

The total you have is an estimate of what you will need to maintain your current weight, now lets figure what it will take to gain or lose weight.

Step 5 (Final Step): Tailor Your Intake for Your Goal

Weight Loss:  It is safe to lose .5 – 2 pounds of body fat each week.  Remember that 1 pound of body fat is equivalent to 3500 calories and if you would like to lose 1 pound of body fat in one week you will need a weekly caloric deficit of 3500.  Three thousand five hundred divided by seven equals 500.  In this case you will need to reduce your daily caloric intake by 500 calories in order to lose 1 pound of body fat each week.  If we apply this to the two examples I have been using, the male would subtract 500 from 2618 and get a total of 2118 calories per day.  The female would subtract 500 from 1960 and get a total of 1460 calories per day.

Also note that according to the National Institute of Health Obesity Education Guidelines recommend the following intake reductions for weight loss:

BMI	Caloric Reduction Ranges
Greater than 35	500 – 1000 calories per day
Between 27 – 35	300 – 500 calories per day

If you need to determine your Body Mass Index (BMI) then use the calculator below.

Weight Gain: If your goal is to gain lean muscle mass and desire little to no body fat reduction then you should incur a caloric surplus of 500 – 1000 calories per day.  If we refer to the examples I have used throughout the course the male would add 500 to 2618 and get 3118 for the minimum and for the maximum you would add 1000 to 2618 and get 3618 calories per day.

The female would add 500 to 1960 and get 2460 for the minimum.  For the maximum you would add 1000 to 1960 and get 2960 calories per day.

Proceed by clicking on lesson 4.

Course Overview:

Introduction to Nutrition Basics

Lesson 1: What is a calorie?

Lesson 2: How body fat is acquired and lost

Lesson 3: How many calories you should consume according to your goal

Lesson 4: Macronutrients: Protein, Fat, and Carbohydrate

Lesson 5: Daily Water Intake