Resting Metabolic Rate! A Bet!

[DarrenL]

Dudes and Dudettes,

Im trying to work out my resting metabolic rate, and frankly, im having a mare doing so.

Ive used FOUR online calculators and they each give me four different results! (Varying from a low (?) 1,400 to 2,172)

Can anyone help if I post my vital stats?

Weight- 100 kgs (219 lbs)
Height- 6 ft 3 (ladies, if I were built in proportion, i'd be 7ft2 )
age- 26
sex- yes please. Sorry, I mean im a MAN!

Physical activity (I know we're meant to gustimate, here) i'd say very active- i cycle to work and back 3 times a week (60 miles total) on days I dont cycle to work I use my exercise bike for one hour (the computer reckons I burn between 600-700 cals per hour depending on intensity!), Martial Arts at least twice a week, a 40 minute walk most lunch times, im going to take up running.

I need to work this out because of a bet with my boss for 50 coin of the realm!(inspired by another thread on her/ keep me focused) and also because I have four months (length of the bet) before flying out to Thailand! So I need to go from 15.5 stone to what I think is my ideal weight of 13.5 stone!

Diet wise, I eat on an average day:

-one bowl of bran flakes and milk
-one protein shake and oatmeal cake (mid morning)
-ham or chicken sarnie (on brown bread!), fruit and hummus at lunch
(when im cycling, lunch will be two lean chicken breasts, and 100g of brown rice)
-one protein shake and oatmeal cake (mid afternoon)
-dinner is mostly protein based, with hardly any carbs!

any advice, help, suggestions or criticisms welcome!

Thanks!

Dazza

[carmonk]

Hmm, four months to lose two stone. Assuming you're not bloated with water retention or anything nasty like that, it's quite a task. Say you're resting rate is 1950 (my guess, not based on any maths as I've no idea how to work it out), and you expend 250 per day in exercise, that gives you 2200 per day to maintain your current weight... You need to meet a 100,000 calory defecit in 120 days to lose 2 stone, so that's a max of 2200 - (100000/120) = 1370 cals per day (rounded) to meet that target. If I've worked it out right.

Good luck...

[DarrenL]

Yeah, I think that works out right, as I worked out a figure of 1,500 cals based on one of the calculations! That's kinda why I need to know my RMR for certain!

I reckon I'm consuming around 1,500 cals at the moment! Not sure if I've worked that out correctly, it's late and I'm yawny! I'll do the maths tomorrow and post here! Any help in the mean time would be ace!

Thanks for your reply!

Edited by DarrenL on Tuesday 20th July 23:05

[carmonk]

What's probably best is if you take your best guess right now then stick to that for a month, recording daily weight and calories. At the end of the month check your progress and revise your daily cal figure up or down as needed. I doubt you'll be able to work out a single, accurate figure now that you'll be able to stick to and that will give you the loss you want.

I'm doing the same thing, as coincidentally I'm starting a regime tomorrow. 1450 cals max for me, aiming to lose 20lb but over a longer period. I spent 20 years eating 4000 cals+ a day when bodybuilding and it's hell for me to go under 2000. Luckily the engine management light has just come up on my car so I won't be able to go to the shops to buy food.

[DarrenL]

Carmonk, it sounds like you have a bigger task then I do! Let us know how you cope/feel going from 4000 cals to under 2000!

I've just worked out I actually consume 2030 calories- which means I have to pretty much cut out an entire meal to reach my target- something im not overly keen on doing...can anyone recommend a safe way of cutting out the additional 600 cals?

How good/safe/recommended are meal replacement shakes? If i go down this route, what can I expect? I dont think i'll feel 'full' as I would do after a normal meal? but would I feel hungry or have the urge to eat because im starving? are there alternatives to meal replacements that would also help me cut down?

additional info- I also have one cup of Green tea per day!

Thanks for your help!

[Buzz word]

I'm surprised that diet comes in at 2030 cals. What are you drinking? Juices can be high calories. What about switching them for flavoured water or lower cal juices? cranberry instead of orange for example

[carmonk]

Well I'm not on 4000 now, more like 2300, but I was for a long time and I've got used to eating a lot, it's literally painful for me to eat under 2000! I've never felt full for years, no matter what I eat (a few months back I bought 24 (4 packs) of those chunky 120g cereal bars, thinking I could have a couple a day for breakfast - ended up eating them all in an hour).

As far as the supplements go I'd forget about them and stick to a good diet, otherwise you'll find your wallet losing more weight than you. It's all a question of willpower at the end of the day - easier said than done, though...

[LordGrover]

You need to know your LBM (Lean Body Mass) or percentage BF (Body Fat) to get an accurate figure.
According to my spreadsheet and if I assume you're 25% BF I reckon your BMR=1,990 kcals and if you consider yourself to be "sedentary' then your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) is about 2,400 kcals to maintain.
Reduce by 10-15% for a sustainable reduction gives you about 1,900 - 2,100 kcals per day.

Link to my spreadsheet: click.

[DarrenL]

Buzzword- it doesnt thats my resting metabolic rate

Lord Grover, that spreadsheet is immense! i'm going to plug in all the figures and report back here...just need to work out my LBM/Body fat!!

[DarrenL]

So that spreadsheet wouldnt let me edit the LBM/BMI- its locked at 29.1 and my BMI is 27.9.

Anyhoo, keeping the 'locked' BMI, and the body fat of 25% (again, havent been able to work this out- which kinda skews the results?), the spreadsheet says:

BMR is 1,990
TDEE (at Moderately Active) 3,085
safe reduction of 15-20% means I can consume between 2,622 and 2,486 cals per day?? can you confirm this last big Lord Grover?

Thanks for your help, mucho appreciated!!

Edit for my idiotness...!

Edited by DarrenL on Wednesday 21st July 14:36

[LordGrover]

Please don't take it as gospel - it's just something I knocked up to help me a few years ago. Having said that I think it's close enough for government work.
It calculates the LBM and BMI from the other figures, they shouldn't need changing.
Most would say I'm quite conservative saying 15-20% but it allows you to increase/decrease as you feel fit.
The Carbs/Protein/Fat ratios are a bit arbitrary too but you're able to change those to suit.

ETA. BMI is just a fudge based on your weight in relation to your height. The figure my spreadsheet calculates is a generally accepted formula.

Edited by LordGrover on Wednesday 21st July 16:49

[h0b0]

If it helps I can give a bit of experience. June 1st 2010 I was 246llbs today I weigh 219llbs. (I estimate that I weighed a further 10llbs more before June but didn't buy scales for fear of seeing the number) My plan is to go to around 180 but will see how it goes and I look.

I have had to change my life but do not regret any of it and will continue once I have lost the weight. Just to add to the difficulty I also quit smoking at the same time. So, I now eat below 1500 calories a day including beer. I have regained a love of grilled chicken and salad eaten in pita bread. I run a 6 mile circuit 3-5 times a week in around an hour and 15 minutes At the start it was not possible to do this as the weather is always around 90 degrees outside where I live even at night and I was so unfit. I saved enough money to buy a fairly nice MTB and take that for rides as well when I am not running.

Some side effects are that dropping from drinking 30-40 pints a week to less than ten and eating less has made me a complete lightweight. Very strange as I used to be able to drink most under the table.

When I started the diet my plan was to get to 186llbs by the start of December but I look to be on course to be passed that a lot sooner.