[vc_row enable_grid_lines=””][vc_column][vc_column_text] Whether your goals are to lose body fat, gain muscle, or simply maintain your current body composition, having an understanding of calories and macronutrients will be important. By modifying caloric intake and macronutrients you can achieve your body composition goals.
Maintenance
To maintain your current body composition you must be in energy balance, meaning that the energy or calories going into the body must be equal to the energy or calories being used by the body. To determine approximately how many calories your body needs for maintenance you can use the following equation to calculate your estimated energy requirement (EER).
EER for adult men = 662 – (9.53 x age [y]) + PA x (15.91 x wt [kg] + 539.6 x ht [m])
EER for adult women = 354 – (6.91 x age [y]) + PA (9.36 x wt [kg] + 726 x ht [m])
PA refers to physical activity level:
Sedentary (daily living activities) men and women = 1.00
Low Activity (30-60 min moderate activity) men = 1.11 women = 1.12
Active (60+ min of moderate activity) men = 1.25 women = 1.27
Very Active (120 min moderate activity or 60 min vigorous and 60 min moderate) men = 1.48 women = 1.45
For example: A 40 year old man with a low activity level who weighs 77.1 kg and is 1.78 m tall.
EER = 662 – (9.53 x 40) + 1.11 x (15.91 x 77.1 + 539.6 x 1.78)
= 662 – 381.2 + 1.11 x 2187.2
= 662 – 381.2 + 2427.8
= 2708 calories
In terms of macronutrients, the average adult requires 0.8-1.0 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight and 0.5-1.5 grams of fat per kilogram of body weight. Carbohydrates should make up 45-65% of total daily calories, or about 3-5 grams per kilogram of body weight.
Losing Body Fat
To lose body fat you must be in a calorie deficit. On average, to lose one pound of body fat you need to be in a deficit of 3500 calories. For a healthy weight loss, it is recommended to lose about 1 pound of fat per week. This means a deficit of approximately 500 calories each day for a week to lose one pound of body fat. Therefore, to calculate the approximate calorie intake necessary for losing body fat, subtract 500 from the number of calories required each day for maintenance.
For example: Someone who needs 2708 calories for maintenance and wants to lose 1 lb per week
2708 – 500 = 2208 calories
Once you have calculated the number of calories needed to be in a deficit, it is important to understand how much of each macronutrient should make up these calories. This can also be done in maintenance to better understand your macronutrient needs.
Proteins
The average adult requires 0.8-1.0 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, or approximately 10-15% of energy intake. One gram of proteins is 4 calories. Therefore, to determine how many calories each day should come from proteins, first multiply 0.8-1.0g by body weight in kilograms. Then multiply the grams of protein needed per day by 4 calories per gram of protein.
For example:
77.1 kg x 0.8 g = 61.7 g/day 61.7 g/day x 4 calories = 246.8 calories/day from proteins
Fats
The average adult requires 0.5-1.5 grams of fat per kilogram of body weight, or 25-35% of energy intake. One gram of fats is 9 calories. Therefore, to determine how many calories each day should come from fats, first multiply 0.5-1.5 by body weight in kilograms. Then multiply the grams of fat needed per day by 9 calories per gram of protein.
For example:
77.1 kg x 0.5 g = 38.5 g/day 38.5 g/day x 9 calories = 346.5 calories/day from fats
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates should make up approximately 45-65% of total daily calories, or 3-5 g/kg/day for the average adult doing light to moderate physical activity. Similarly to proteins, one gram of carbohydrates is 4 calories.
For example:
77.1 kg x 5.0 g = 385.5 g/day 385.5 g/day x 4 calories = 1542 calories/day from carbohydrates
Calories and macronutrients do not have to be tracked long-term to maintain your goals. This is just a simple tool to assess what you are currently doing and what your nutrition should look like in order to meet your goals. Once you are comfortable with what your nutrition should look like after a few weeks you can continue to eat this way without tracking.
Gaining Muscle
Being in a calorie surplus can aid in muscle gain. However, the surplus needed is very dependent on training, current body composition and macronutrient intake. Increased calorie intake alone will not result in an increase in muscle mass rather than fat mass. Resistance training is necessary to gain muscle, as well as adequate protein intake.
To keep things simple, focus on increasing your protein and carbohydrate intake around training. Increasing protein intake to 1.2-2.0 g/kg/day while resistance training can aid in muscle gain. The timing of protein intake throughout the day can influence muscle protein synthesis. Consuming approximately 0.25-0.3 g/kg of protein after resistance exercise and every 3-5 hours in the 24-48 hours following exercise can enhance muscle protein synthesis.
Carbohydrate intake can be increased to 5-7 g/kg/day to fuel resistance training and also aid in recovery by restoring muscle glycogen. Muscle glycogen is important for fueling moderate or vigorous intensity exercise. It is especially important to consume carbohydrates after exercise if you will be training again in the next 24 hours. Fat intake should remain between 0.5-1.5 g/kg/day or 25-35% of energy intake.
Many individuals are looking to gain muscle while also losing body fat. This can be done, as you can gain muscle in a calorie deficit if you are strength training and have a higher protein intake. However, your body will use fat stores to fuel the body in this case and can take much longer to achieve.
Kait Clarke is a graduate of Algonquin College’s Fitness and Health Promotion Program and she is a CSEP Certified Personal Trainer. She also has a graduate certificate in Nutrition for Sport and Performance at Niagara College. Her goal as a personal trainer is to create a compassionate and comfortable environment for her clients to thrive. You can find Kait training clients out of our Glebe location.
