Calories for a Man's Diet
Calories are in simple terms a measure of energy from food. They are amounts of energy used to do something. Calories in foods differ based on fats, proteins and carbohydrates and affect how men maintain, loose or gain weight. Calories work with other factors such as lifestyle and can often be misconstrued and therefore misunderstood.
-
Significance
-
Calories are very essential for our everyday lives. The calorie requirements vary with every man, and are based on a number of factors such as genes, ratio of muscle to fat, health and age. If you are trying to loose, gain or maintain your weight, the amount of calories you consume will differ. Regardless of the goals, it is important to understand how calories apply to you and your body structure.
Base Metabolic Rate
-
The Base Metabolic Rate (BMR) is a formula used to determine the sufficient amount of calories needed to perform daily physical and psychological tasks. It is calculated using principles of height, weight and age. The formula for calculating a man's BMR is as follows: BMR = 66 + (13.7 x Weight) + (5 x Height) - (6.8 x Age) = Daily calories required. Some of the factors that affect BMR include physical activity such as exercise, sports and work life. While it is a good system to determine daily requirements, it lacks accuracy in establishing the recommended calorie counts for extremely lean, muscular and severely obese people.
-
Weight control
-
The amount of calories a man needs differs depending on fitness goals. For a man trying to maintain his weight, the BMR formula gives an indication of how much calories are required to maintain his current weight. Men desiring to loose weight have to cut down their calorie intake so that their expenditure outweighs their intake. To lose weight it is recommended to cut your daily caloric intake by 20 percent, which can be anywhere from 300 to 500 fewer calories a day. Weight or muscle gain requires the opposite, which involves eating more calories.
Exercise
-
Exercise and physical activity play a major role in helping determine how many calories you need a day. Fitness extremists such as Michael Phelps and Lance Armstrong burn well over 3,000 calories a day and require high-caloric intakes to maintain their physical activity. The more active you are, the more calories you need to make it through the day. Less active men on high-calorie diets, likely will gain weight because energy in (calories) is greater than energy used. When establishing a diet or nutritional plan, keep in mind your physical activity.
Misconceptions
-
It is not simply calories that will make you gain or lose weight. If that were the case, many heavy-set men who consume insufficient calories would still be able to lose a lot of weight. What you eat works hand in hand with the amount of calories you eat to determine whether you gain or lose weight. Two people eating the same amount of daily calories can have very different body structures depending on what makes up their daily meals.
-
