When it comes to keeping healthy, losing weight, keeping trim, getting energised, putting on weight, bulking, training – you name it we often speak of calories in some way or another. But do we really understand calories, and how many calories do I need?
So let’s start with what matters most – your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). BMR is the amount of energy expressed in calories that a person needs to keep the body functioning at rest. In essence, BMR affects the rate that a person burns calories and ultimately whether you maintain, gain, or lose weight. Your basal metabolic rate accounts for about 60 to 75% of the calories you burn every day.
You can do a quite simple BMR calculation online, of course you need to add calories according to exercise (TDEE, we can cover this in a 1-2-1), yet it gives you an idea of what to stick to relative to exercise.
So you know how to plan calorie intake according to exercise, based around a minimum requirement; this stops overeating but how do you count your calories and even plan eating to get the required amount?
The basics are as follows :
Fat = 9 Kcals per gram
Protein = 4 kcals per gram
Carbs = 4 Kcals per gram
Ok, so that’s the basics…how on earth am i going to work out whats in my M&S Santini Salad?
Thankfully, a sophisticated app called MyFitnessPal comes in to play here. It is really quite simple and is something that we all use at www.180degreesgym.com
Study after study has confirmed the benefits of keeping track of the food you eat and the activity you do. It’s simple – the more consistently you track your food intake, the more likely you are to lose weight. But recording everything you eat without the right tools can be tedious at best, or simply impossible at worst. MyFitnessPal is popular with us because you can log your meals quickly and easily. Their system actually learns from you. All of us tend to eat the same foods over time. MyFitnessPal remembers what you’ve eaten and done most often in the past, and makes it easy for you to add those foods again to your log. So basically the more you track your meals, the easier it becomes.
The app is free and it allows you to do the following:
- Use the easy to use food diary on the app
- Track what you eat with just a few clicks from anywhere with an internet connection – at home or at work
- A searchable food database of over 1,000,000 items
- Add your own foods and recipes at any time and access them from anywhere with an internet connection
- A personalized diet profile customized to your unique weight loss goals and your exercise, which you can input
Give it a try. Alongside our training advice and support, you could achieve greatness.
If you need help finding out your BMR or TDEE then please get in contact with us on admin@180degreesgym.com or call 01202 978407 to book a FREE consultation.
