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Is my BMR all my calorie needs for the day?

BMR accounts for the calories required for basic functions such as breathing, the circulation of blood, and maintaining body temperature. Anything we do above this e.g. sitting, walking, running, will increase our energy requirements. The more active we are the greater our energy requirements for the day.

Basal Metabolic Rate

Accounts for between 50 – 75% of your daily energy needs

Varies by age, by weight, by height, by gender

Varies by the amount of lean mass that you carry, and the amount of fat mass

Decreases with age because we slow down and lose muscle mass as we get older

Use of Equations

In clinic or at home settings,  we use equations to calculate out BMR or RMR. This helps us  to understand our caloric needs, without having to have a lab assessment. If I calculate  my BMR and RMR using my weight, height, age, and being female I get:

BMR = 1259kcal per day

RMR = 1162kcal per day.

So you can see there is just a slight difference between the two. From here, I will refer to BMR as it tends to be the term used most often.

How do we know how many calories we need in 24 hours?

To estimate our total calorie requirements we can use different systems, depending on the type of individual concerned. For the general population we make use of a factor which suggests the amount of calories an individual might need across a day.

For a sedentary worker ie a person who works in an office and goes about their daily life without much of anything else, we use a factor of 1.4. This refers to a Physical Activity Level. The more activity is absorbed into that person’s day, the higher the factor we use. For example  we might use 1.6 for an individual who runs for a half an hour three times per week, but is also a sedentary worker.

If I consider myself a sedentary office worker who is not doing much activity, perhaps achieving 8 –  10k steps per day, my total requirements look like this

1259 x 1.4 = 1762kcal per day

If I consider myself as sedentary, achieving 10k steps per day,  but active in an exercise class  3 times per week or more, my requirements increase

1259 x 1.6 = 2014kcal per day

What is a metabolic equivalent?

For the most part a dietitian will use clinical judgement and experience to assess the factor to make use of when calculating an individual’s energy requirements. But if the individual is seriously active, then a different system will be employed in an effort to be as accurate as possible. In this case a sports dietitian will  use metabolic equivalents.

Metabolic equivalents or METS are estimates of the energy used by the body during particular activities relative to the basal metabolic rate. Running  might have a MET value 8.0, this means the body is working 8 times as hard as it normally does at rest, but only across the minutes the individual is actually running. METS are based on consumption of oxygen and have particular values for different sporting activities. As a sports dietician I will use these MET values and apply them to the number of minutes an individual is performing a single sport, or range of sports, to assess their energy requirements.

This way of working is slightly more complicated, but more applicable when an individual is very active.

What are  UK Physical Activity Guidelines

Physical activity guidelines  describe exercise generally as light, moderate or vigorous; this really refers to what the MET value will look like for that type of exercise.

Light = < 3.0 metabolic equivalents (METS) per minute

Moderate = 3.0 – 5.9 METS

Vigorous = ≥ 6.0 METS

Current UK physical activity guidelines suggest we all need to carry out at least 30 minutes of moderate activity per day ie warm but not sweating, on at least five days per week. If we cannot make this happen we can work out more vigorously ie 3 times per week for 25 minutes each time – but this time we do have to sweat.

If you would like me to help you with your sports nutrition or weight change needs, please get in touch. You don’t have to be an athlete to enjoy the numbers game.

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Eat to a pattern Whether your pattern is 3 meals per day or 3 meals and a snack, stick to what works for you. This will help you to train your body to identify hunger signals.  If  you feel hungry  in between these eating episodes, you can consider whether you are actually hungry, or if you are craving something else.

Take a breath before opening the fridge or cupboard door. Maybe put a sticker on the front to remind you of the more mindful approach you are trying to adopt. Counting out 60 seconds may help you walk away. Sometimes we all just need a moment.  And if you would like a breathing exercise to try, why not consider this one which looks to mindful breathing as a helpful way to centre you.

Ask yourself what is going on Are you really hungry? Perhaps you are just  bored? Maybe you are  tired? Is work stressing you out?  Identify why you think you might be hungry and figure out if you really need to eat, or if you just want to eat.

If you are not hungry

Walk away. And if you don’t need to eat think about how you could comfort yourself in a different way. I like to do something physical, as it distracts my brain and helps me concentrate on something else. Leaving the house and walking in the park, or just walking around the block can be enough to dissuade me from messing with my eating routine. Find your ‘go to solutions’ by trialling different distraction techniques.

If you are hungry

Eat sitting down. This helps with digestion and metabolism of food, and allows the body to optimise absorption and use of nutrients.

Serve food on plates or in bowls. Don’t eat from the fridge, or from packets or bags. Lay the table and make your food look nice. Use a napkin. Treat yourself as you would a friend you invited for a meal.

Enjoy a measured amount. Using smaller bowls and plates can help us manage our portion sizes as food tends to look bigger the smaller the plate. If you are still hungry when you have finished, you can always go back for more.

Take your time at the table. Sometimes setting a timer for 20 minutes can help, even longer if you have opportunity to relax and rest after the meal. Another idea is to use chopsticks if you are not used to them, or using your non-dominant hand to eat. Eating differently helps to slow us down also.

Take small bites. Put your spoon or fork down in between mouthfuls. Sit back. Chew well. Breathe. Then lean forward and enjoy another mouthful. Repeat. Try not to add to what’s already in your mouth, but wait until you have had a proper swallow before having some more food. This helps with savouring and enjoying the deliciousness of the food we are consuming.

Sit and eat without distractions. So no TV or screens or other devices. Don’t even have them on the table. We can all do with eliminating some technology from our lives. Let your mealtimes be the beginning of some  tech free time.

How does it all feel?

Consider the senses. Spend your first 5 minutes noticing the food. What does it look like? How does it smell? What is the texture like? Can you pick the food up? Does the food crackle or sizzle before or during eating. Food can be so interesting, we just need to remind ourselves.

Pay attention. Consider your body and how you are feeling. Remember you don’t have to eat everything on the plate. You are allowed to leave food behind.

If these top tips for mindful eating feel challenging to achieve by yourself, get in touch. I will be happy to help you implement this mindful way to improving your eating and your health.

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