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You do the math

Running & FitNews, Jan-Feb, 2003

Losing weight may never be easy, but it's easier if you start by nailing down a mathematically-sound plan to guide you. Balance your dietary budget as you would your checkbook: if you want to rid yourself of excess weight, you must take in fewer calories than you use. Setting a reasonable goal will help too. Calculate how many calories your body uses per day, then reduce the number by 20%. Let that be your caloric intake, and watch the pounds peel away.

Begin by multiplying your weight by 10 calories per pound. This number is an estimate of your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR), the amount of fuel you burn by simply breathing, pumping blood and growing hair.

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Add to your RMR between 25 and 50% of your RMR, depending on how active your lifestyle is--apart from purposeful exercise. If you work at a computer eight hours a day, you burn less calories than someone who paints houses for a living. Similarly, if you walk up three flights of steps coming out of the subway each morning, you burn more calories than your equally-sedentary colleague with V.I.P. parking near the door of the office.

Next add in daily calories burned from purposeful exercise. (If you typically exercise just three times a week, you'll have to divide total calories by seven to obtain a daily value.) Refer to page two for a list of activities and their approximate caloric values. In general, you can guess about 400 to 600 calories per hour of aerobic exercise. The number will be on the higher end of the spectrum for heavier individuals. The final added figure is the amount of calories you use daily. For example, a 180-lb. computer programmer who runs one hour a day uses (180 x 10) + (1800 x .25) + 600 = 2,850 calories per day.

To lose weight, subtract 20% of the calories. Divide this number by three, and you've got a caloric guidepost for each meal. In addition to a balanced diet including protein and carbohydrates, remember to eat healthy fats to avoid feelings of hunger during the day (see Running & FitNews, Nov/Dec 2002). Pay attention to food labels and serving sizes, and you'll be right on track with your weight goal.

(Adopted from Food Guide for Marathoners: Tips for Everyday Champions, by Nancy Clark, M.S., RD., 2002, Sports Nutrition Publishers, 160 pp., $14.95)

You do the math

Running & FitNews, Jan-Feb, 2003

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