Weight loss by the numbers

Add comment May 9th, 2008 04:26pm Mike DeDoncker

If you like to do things by the numbers and you’re trying to lose weight, you can figure the number of calories you need to consume for your needs by knowing how to use two formulas.

First, figure your basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is the number of calories your body burns at rest.

This is the equation to figure BMR as it would apply to a 60-year-old person who is 5-feet-10 inches and weighs 190 pounds. I see this person in the mirror every morning.

Step one 66 + (13.8 x weight in kilograms) + (5 x height in centimeters) - 6.8 x age). One pound equals .45 of a kilogram so 190 pounds multiplied by .45 gives us 85.5 kilograms. 5-feet-10 inches is 70 inches and one inch equals 2.54 centimeters, so 70 times 2.54 gives us 177.8 centimeters. 60 times 6.8 gives us 408.

Step two Now the formula would read 66 + (13.8 x 85.5) + (5 x 177.8) - (408).

When we do the multiplication , it becomes 66 + (1179.9) + (889) - (408)

When we add the first three numbers, it’s 2134.9 - 408 = 1726.9 to get my BMR.

Step three The second formula is simply a multiplier based on the amount and type of exercise you get each week and tells you how many calories you need to stay at your current weight.

If you almost never exercise, multiply your BMR by 1.2 — in my case 1726.9 x 1.2 or 2072.28 calories per day to maintain current weight.

If you exercise, one to three days per week, multiply by 1.375; three to five days per week by 1.55; six or seven days per week by 1.725.

It takes a deficit of 3,500 calories to burn one pound of fat, so if you find a way to cut 250 calories per day from your diet while burning an additional 250 calories during your workout, you could expect to lose a pound per week. 

So what is Mike like?

Add comment May 6th, 2008 04:15pm Mike DeDoncker

Welcome to HealthyRockford.com.

Who would have guessed that taking a pass on the newsroom doughnut club could lead to a new job?

OK, there’s a little more to it than that, but my bosses here at the Register Star have assigned me to be the editor of and a writer for a new Web site called HealthyRockford.com. It’s a one-stop shop for medical, health and fitness, lifestyle and nutrition news for and about the people of the Rock River Valley.

I come into the job after 20 years writing everything from obits to politics on our news side and just short of another 19 covering local sports. I got interested in physical fitness in my early 30s after a photographer friend took what I call the “blue whale” family portrait.

I became a regular runner and weight lifter after that photo and, in 2000, stepped that up a notch and earned a personal trainer certification from what is now the National Exercise Trainers Association. I still maintain that and will be re-certifying this July.

 Since mid-March, we have been recruiting local experts — doctors, nurses, personal trainers, exercise physiologists, registered dietitians and others — to stock HealthyRockford.com with information you can use.

 When you visit HealthyRockford.com, you’ll find a searchable physician’s directory, health topics from Harvard Medical School, local and national health news and features, fitness tips, healthy recipes, a link to health-related careers and, soon, a calendar of health events in the community.

What you won’t find is a Web site that tries to take the place of appropriate visits to and conversation with your own physician.

So, welcome and enjoy.