I hate math. My high school geometry teacher made a better football coach than "triangle coach." In college, I fulfilled my math credit requirement with a class called Math Fundamentals, better known around campus as "Fun for Mentals."
But it turns out that math is key when it comes to hitting your target on the scale, be it losing weight or putting on some muscle. Simple addition and subtraction, really, with a few multipliers thrown in. Calories in vs. calories out. Resting metabolism multiplied by activity levels.
Yet we tend to make weight management so complicated: Am I eating too late? Is it OK to eat carbs after dark? How many grams of protein do I need? Is grapefruit or cabbage the secret to hitting my number on the scale? Should I run at a steady pace or do sprints to lose weight fastest?
Aaaah! How overwhelming is all THAT? It's true that not all food calories are created equal - and I am a huge advocate of eating 'clean' 90 percent of the time - meaning real foods like whole grains, lean protein, lots of fruits and veggies and moderate amounts of healthy fats.
But at the end of the day, at the most basic level, it boils down to math. So keep in mind just a few numbers when figuring out how to get the figure or physique you want:
- 3,500 - calories in a pound
- 9, 4 and 4 - calories per gram of fat, carb and protein
- 500 - daily calorie deficit that would have you losing the recommended pound to 1.5 pounds per week for lasting weight loss. (Same goes for adding weight - 500 more calories a day equals a pound gained over approximately one week)
- The Harris #: This refers to the Harris Benedict Equation, a formula that takes your basal metabolic rate (resting metabolism, i.e. the calories your body needs just to breathe and have normal organ function) and multiplies it by your activity level to determine approximately how many calories you need to maintain current weight.
The Harris Benedict Equation actually involves several numbers and calculations, but lucky for us the Internet has online calculators that simply require you to enter weight, height and age.
So here's what you do:
- Start by calculating basal metabolic rate here. This is your minimum calorie needs. Any lower than this and your body is likely to think you're starving it and will go into 'survival mode' by bring your metabolism to a snail's pace. Lesson: don't starve yourself. Don't go below this number.
- Next, take that BMR and multiply it by your activity level to determine the calories you need to sustain your exercise level at the current weight. This activity factor is anywhere from 1.2 for a sedentary person to 1.9 for a high-level athlete. The guide is here. This is your daily caloric need for weight maintenance.
- Now, based on whether you need to lose or gain to be at a healthy, lean weight, you will add or subtract calories from that daily caloric maintenance number. If you are working to lose, subtract up to 500 calories a day to lose a pound a week. NOTE: The best thing to do is subtract 250 calories, a manageable change that won't feel like deprivation, and burn off the other 250 calories with exercise. If you're working to gain, find ways to add healthy, whole food calories with protein, whole grains, and healthy fats.
So there you have it. Basic math for your Badass. Happy Monday!
Coming up: Badass CEO's Favorites, the Summer 2011 Edition.