Pizza, BMR, Michael Phelps and Nikka

1. Here are the brutal numbers:

Two slices of peperoni pizza are about 500 calories. It takes about 45 minutes at 10 MPH ( that’s pretty fast!) on a treadmill to burn up those calories. How long does it take to eat those slices of pizza? If you are like me, about 2-4 minutes… and I don’t stop at two.

Toss in some chips, a donut and a beverage or two ( It’s Friday! Don’t judge me!) and we have a real problem.

Working out like Michael Phelps in training for the Olympics probably is not going to work for most of us. ( Phelps training schedule is six hours of swimming six days per week. He will also lift weights and stretch for an hour three days a week. ) you can read about it here.

However, this is also why he could eat over 12,000 calories/day while training for the Olympics. Here is his Breakfast:

Big bowl of porridge covered with blueberries: 500 cal

Three thick slices of French toast smothered in powdered sugar: 650 cal

Three large chocolate chip pancakes: 600 cal

Five-egg omelette: 600 cal

Three grilled cheese and fried egg sandwiches: 1000 cal

Two cups of coffee

Meal total: 3350 cal

So what’s a girl to do?!?

First, we need to know our BMR ( base metabolic rate). This is the approximate number of calories we burn just lying on the couch watching reruns of Fantasy Island. Consider it the caloric cost to live.
Here is the formula: Just grab a calculator. It’s not hard.

MALE: 66 + (6.3 × body weight in pounds) + (12.9 × height in inches) − (6.8 × age in years)

FEMALE: 655 + (4.3 × weight in pounds) + (4.7 × height in inches) − (4.7 × age in years)

Using me as an example: 66 + (6.3 x 165lbs = 1039.5) = 1105.50
(12.9 x 68 inches) = 877.20
( 6.8 X 54 years) =367.20
SO: 1105.50
+ 877.20
– 367.20
1615.50
This means I burn about 1615.50 calories a day just staying alive.

Second: Find out how many calories you burn daily through usual activity. This amount is about 20% of your BMR if you have a sedentary lifestyle such as sitting all day in an office; 30% of your BMR if you are moderately active, if your job involves a lot of moving around. 40% of your BMR if you workout 4 days/ week and 50% of your BMR if you hit the gym/run/swim everyday or do heavy lifting at work.

Third: Using me as an example: My BMR is 1615.50  and if I am sedentary, I burn approximately 322 calories per day through normal activity. ( 1610.5 x.20 = 322 )
So I add my BMR to the number of calories I burn each day to determine my caloric needs to maintain my weight. (1610 + 322 = 1932.5)

It gets a lot more complicated than this: Not all calories are created equal. But that’s a book, not a Newsnote. So for our purposes, and keeping things real simple. That is the number I need to think about.
If I can keep my caloric intake around 1900 day, I should be able to maintain my weight, plus or minus a few pounds. And, If can reduce caloric intake below 1900/day, over time I should be able to shed a few pounds.

Further, if I lower my caloric intake plus increase my physical activity, I can multiply my results. Just increasing your activity level to moderate will increase the daily calorie burn to 483 from 322 ( 1610.5 x .30)
This means I have about 161 more calories that I will burn during the course of the day. From 1932 to 2093.

It’s simple math, folks. And again, this does not take into account a host of other factors, but it gives us a place to start. And once we know where we are, we can think about where we want to go!

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Nikka Costa is like old Motown on steroids. She’s what Aretha Franklin would have sounded like if the Queen of Soul had been born 40 years later. Get your funk on for the weekend. Listen here.

Thanks for hanging with me so far. I really appreciate it! If you know someone who might like these notes, just let me know and I would be very happy to add them to the list.
GO BISON!!!!!