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Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)

A hot topic in the health and fitness arena is metabolic rate. You hear people say “I wish my metabolism was faster” or “why is my metabolism so slow”.  Everything we do in life can affect our metabolism including what we eat and drink, our sleep levels, stress, lifestyle and temperature.  A basic way to measure this is to find out our Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), which is the amount of calories required to keep our bodies functioning at a “rested” state. To determine the amount of calories you need daily, you will need to know your weight, height, age and activity level, which I will explain a bit later on in this post. There are two formulas to find out our BMR:

• BMR Calculation for Women: 655 + (4.35 × weight in pounds) + (4.7 × height in inches) – (4.7 × age in years)
• BMR Calculation for Men: 66 + (6.23 × weight in pounds) + (12.7 × height in inches) – (6.76 × age in years)
  Once you have found out your BMR from one of the above formulas, you then need to multiply your BMR by your “activity level”.

• Little/no exercise: BMR x 1.2 = Total Calorie Need
• Light exercise(1-3 days/wk): BMR x 1.375 = Total Calorie Need
• Moderate exercise (3-5 days/wk): BMR x 1.55 = Total Calorie Need
• Very active (6-7 days/wk): BMR x 1.725 = Total Calorie Need
• Extra active (very active & physical job): BMR x 1.9 = Total Calorie Need
  And there you have it, after doing these calculations, the results from these show you the amount of calories you need to either put on or lose weight. Now, if losing weight is your goal, then reduce the calories shown by 500, or if it’s to put on weight increase by 500 calories and see if your weight changes in the next few weeks. Obviously the results will all depend on your lifestyle, exercise and diet.
  Ways to Increase your metabolism
  Every time we eat and drink we can thank our metabolism for converting all those calories into energy. Our age, weight and height all factor into our metabolic rate, but there are ways to increase it. The faster our metabolic rate the faster we burn off calories in a rested state. Here are some things we can do to keep that metabolism firing and burning calories:

1. Sleep- Not getting enough sleep will seriously slow down your metabolism.
2. Drink green tea- Not only is this classed as a superfood that is high in antioxidants, but it also speeds up your metabolism. It’s also not too heavy on the caffeine at only around 50mg per cup, so by all means drink a few cups a day!
3. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) - High intensity interval training such as interval runs or circuits can jump start your metabolism and keep you burning calories long after the workout.
4. Don’t skip breakfast- Studies show the importance of quick-starting the metabolism with breakfast. Something high in protein such as eggs is a perfect way to start the day and will keep you fuller for longer.
5. Lift Weights- Not only does lifting weights help add lean muscle mass, but also increases our resting metabolic rate.
6. Add spice to meals- Next time you’re cooking up some chicken, eggs or other foods; add a dash of cayenne pepper. The heat from the pepper is thanks to capsaicin, which won’t only add a fiery kick, but it could help boost  the metabolism too.

Simon