So
you want to lose gain or maintain your weight. Great! Now that you’ve identified your goal
you are working out 3 hours a day sticking to a gruesome workout routine. But
you’re not seeing results fast enough. There’s a chance that your success is
being hindered by what you’re putting inside your tummy, after all the kind and
amount of food we eat impacts our physique and wellbeing. So today we’re going
to talk about meal plans!
Everybody’s
goals and needs are different. Keeping individual clinical conditions in mind,
please talk to your physician/dietician before following any kind of meal or
diet plans you see off the internet or magazines.
Now, we come to the
post. What should be your ideal meal plan? How much meat or veggies should you
be eating? Must you eliminate carbs from your diet altogether? To answer these
questions we have to first know a couple of terms that’ll make your life easier
when it comes to deciding on your food habits and keeping healthy.
BMR or Basal Metabolic Rate, and the closely related resting metabolic rate, is the rate of energy expenditure by humans and other animals at rest, and is measured in kJ per hour per kg body mass. (source: wikipedia)
The body fat percentage of a human or other living being is the total mass of fat divided by total body mass; body fat includes essential body fat and storage body fat. Essential body fat is necessary to maintain life and reproductive functions. The percentage of essential body fat for women is greater than that for men, due to the demands of childbearing and other hormonal functions.
The table below from the American Council on Exercise (not an official government agency) shows how average percentages differ according to the specified groups and categories:
BMR or Basal Metabolic Rate, and the closely related resting metabolic rate, is the rate of energy expenditure by humans and other animals at rest, and is measured in kJ per hour per kg body mass. (source: wikipedia)
The body fat percentage of a human or other living being is the total mass of fat divided by total body mass; body fat includes essential body fat and storage body fat. Essential body fat is necessary to maintain life and reproductive functions. The percentage of essential body fat for women is greater than that for men, due to the demands of childbearing and other hormonal functions.
The table below from the American Council on Exercise (not an official government agency) shows how average percentages differ according to the specified groups and categories:
Description
|
Women
|
Men
|
Essential
fat
|
10–13%
|
2–5%
|
14–20%
|
6–13%
|
|
Fitness
|
21–24%
|
14–17%
|
Average
|
25–31%
|
18–24%
|
32%+
|
25%+
|
The body
mass index (BMI), or Quetelet index, is a
measure of relative weight based on an individual's mass and height.
The factor for Imperial or US customary units is more precisely 703.06957964, but that level of
precision is not meaningful for this calculation.
To formulate a customized
meal plan which tells us how much protein, carbs and fats we should be
consuming daily to maintain, lose or gain weight depends on the following
calculations below:
Body weight = <your weight goes here (in kgs or lbs)>
Body fat percentage = <your body fat %, measured by fat callipers or electronic devices>
Fat weight = <body weight x body fat percentage>
Lean weight = <body weight- fat weight>
BMR at rest = <your BMR at rest goes here>
BMR in motion = <your BMR in motion goes here>
*you can calculate BMR online and the best online BMR calculator I found is linked here.
Average BMR = <[(BMR in motion + BMR at rest)/2] ± 200-500 calories>
Body fat percentage = <your body fat %, measured by fat callipers or electronic devices>
Fat weight = <body weight x body fat percentage>
Lean weight = <body weight- fat weight>
BMR at rest = <your BMR at rest goes here>
BMR in motion = <your BMR in motion goes here>
*you can calculate BMR online and the best online BMR calculator I found is linked here.
Average BMR = <[(BMR in motion + BMR at rest)/2] ± 200-500 calories>
Now to maintain your
weight, you have to maintain your avg. BMR value through the intake of your
fundamental food groups-proteins, carbohydrates and fats. While if you want to
lose or gain weight you have to deduct or add 200-500 calories to your avg. BMR
value respectively. Going way over or under the margin of 200-500 calories at a
time can be harmful and is not recommended.
Proteins, carbohydrates and
fats are the three main food groups and ALL THREE of them are important in your
diet in different quantities, apart from minerals and vitamins which boost the
absorption of the three fundamental food groups and strive to keep you healthy
and alive.
But how much should you incorporate in your daily diet out of the 3 categories of food?
For that we use BMR values to calculate our amounts.
But first what you should know is what 1 gram of these three macros amount to in calories.
But how much should you incorporate in your daily diet out of the 3 categories of food?
For that we use BMR values to calculate our amounts.
But first what you should know is what 1 gram of these three macros amount to in calories.
1 gram of protein yields about
4 calories
1 gram of protein yields about 4 calories
1 gram of protein yields about 9 calories
1 gram of protein yields about 4 calories
1 gram of protein yields about 9 calories
PROTEIN MULTIPLIER:
1 g to 15 g per pound of lean weight is the scale here. If your goal is to lose weight you have to keep to the lower end of the scale and if you want to gain muscle you go higher up the scale right up till 15 g.
So daily protein requirement = protein multiplier x your lean weight
Daily protein requirement in calories = daily protein requirement x 4 calories
1 g to 15 g per pound of lean weight is the scale here. If your goal is to lose weight you have to keep to the lower end of the scale and if you want to gain muscle you go higher up the scale right up till 15 g.
So daily protein requirement = protein multiplier x your lean weight
Daily protein requirement in calories = daily protein requirement x 4 calories
FAT MULTIPLIER:
0.35 g to 0.50 g per pound lean weight. If your goal is to lose weight you have to take into consideration the lower end of the scale and if you want to gain weight you go to the higher end of the scale right up till 0.5 g.
So daily fat requirement = fat multiplier x your lean weight
Daily fat requirement in calories = daily fat requirement x 9 calories
0.35 g to 0.50 g per pound lean weight. If your goal is to lose weight you have to take into consideration the lower end of the scale and if you want to gain weight you go to the higher end of the scale right up till 0.5 g.
So daily fat requirement = fat multiplier x your lean weight
Daily fat requirement in calories = daily fat requirement x 9 calories
CARBS REQUIREMENT (daily):
in calories = Avg. BMR – (fat + protein daily requirement in calories, as calculated above)
in grams = carbs requirement in calories / 4
in calories = Avg. BMR – (fat + protein daily requirement in calories, as calculated above)
in grams = carbs requirement in calories / 4
What you get from here is a
mathematical quote of your daily macros requirement; you can play with certain
numbers till you get your ideal calorific quota.
for example, here is a carbohydrates intake table for you to refer to,
for example, here is a carbohydrates intake table for you to refer to,
For Accelerated fat loss :
0-50 g
For Fat loss : 50g-100g
For Maintenance : 100g-150g
For Weight gain : 150g-300g
For Excessive weight gain :
300g and above
Keeping these values in
mind you can amp up your protein and fat consumption while decreasing or
increasing your carb intake to meet your daily caloric needs. Through a series
of permutation and combination you can reach your daily macro intake and
monitor it by either writing them down or using a web/mobile application to do
it for you. Don’t fret if you don’t keep true to the exact numbers, these are
after all just numbers and will not make or break your life. Food should never
be something that adds to the amounts of stress we already face in life. So go
easy on yourself with the numbers, but stick to the basic quotas and eat moderate amounts of everything to reach your
goals faster.
And don’t forget to incorporate vitamins, minerals, supplements and loads of water in your diet!
And don’t forget to incorporate vitamins, minerals, supplements and loads of water in your diet!
Stay happy, stay healthy.
Till next time J
Till next time J
