Energy Expenditure Part 2: Your Maintenance Calories

Energy Expenditure Part 2: Your Maintenance Calories

Dec 7, 2018 | Exercise, Nutrition

Introduction

This is the second and last part of my blog series on energy expenditure. In part 1, we looked into how the human body expends energy. The topics discussed in part 1 are critical for having a proper understanding of human energy balance. So if you haven’t yet, I highly suggest you read part 1 of the blog series first. (Click here to read part 1)

In this article, we will look into how you can determine your average daily energy expenditure and fat loss calories.

Your Daily Energy Expenditure

Now that you know how your body burns calories, it’s easy to see why online calorie calculators are not 100% accurate. A formula that takes a few general factors into account (e.g. weight, age, height etc.) cannot predict something as variable as your daily energy expenditure with 100% accuracy.

But even though calorie calculators are not 100% accurate, they do provide a good starting point. Instead of just maintaining a random number of calories, you at least get close to your “maintenance calories” (number of calories you burn per day) when using calorie calculators.

I would see using a calorie calculator as only step 1 in figuring out your maintenance calories. Based on how you progress with your calculated maintenance calories, you have to adjust your calorie intake.

I’ll take you through all the necessary steps of figuring out your maintenance calories one-by-one with myself as the test subject.

Step 1: Estimate Your Energy Expenditure

The Mifflin-St. Jeor equation is one of the most recent energy expenditure formulas. Because of this, it’s also considered one of the most accurate formulas. I’ve tried embedding a calorie calculator in this post, but it became a mess. So instead, please visit the link below to get an estimate of your maintenance calories based on the Mifflin-St. Jeor equation.

Visit this link to get a TDEE estimate

(Only look at the number of calories required to maintain weight, not the weight loss calories. I’ll cover those in a second.)

Let’s take me as an example. Once I’ve filled in the form, it says I need to consume around 2900 calories to maintain my weight. See the picture below.

maintenance calories

Note: With 5 strength training sessions, several in-person PT sessions, and 1 recreational football game per week, my activity is high. For most people, the activity will be lower.

Step 2: Track BW Development For 2 Weeks

Now that we have an estimate of your maintenance calories, we could go straight into eating below this calorie level and probably expect some fat loss. But if you are specifically interested in figuring out your average daily energy expenditure, it usually can’t hurt to “test” your calculated maintenance calories for about 2 weeks and see whether you’ll truly maintain your body weight.

For me, this would mean maintaining ~2900 calories per day for about 2 weeks and tracking my body weight (BW) development. I suggest weighing yourself every morning right after you wake up and visited the bathroom. You take all your weigh-ins of the week and calculate a weekly average. Then compare your weekly average body weight of week 1 and week 2.

I did this once before at the start of 2018 and I gained about 0.4 lbs. in my weekly average. Check the screenshot from my body weight log below.

maintenance calories

My calorie intake was within 2800-3000 calories on all the days. During your 2-week “test” period, I also suggest you do not deviate from your daily calorie target with more than 100 kcals up or down to get a good gauge of how your estimated maintenance calories affects your body weight.

Step 3: Adjust Calories Based on BW Change

If your average weekly BW has remained mostly the same (<0.3 lb. BW change), your calculated maintenance calories are close enough to your daily energy expenditure. If there is a significant change in BW between your two averages (>0.3 lb. BW change), you generally need to make calorie adjustments.

As a simple rule of thumb: Per 0.5 lb. change in BW, adjust your calories by 10%. This could be up or down. In my example, I gained about 0.4 lbs. in my weekly average BW measurement. For simplicity’s sake, we can round this up to a 0.5 lb. change. So I will need to lower my calories by 10% per day to maintain my body weight.

2900-2900*10% = 2610 = adjusted new maintenance calories

This is pretty accurate. From experience, once I eat around 2600-2700 calories, I maintain my body weight.

If you follow the exact same 3 steps described above, you will be able to get a good idea of how many calories you expend per day on average.

Setting Calories For Fat Loss

maintenance calories

Once you know how many calories you expend on an average day. You need to eat below this calorie level to lose fat (a.k.a. be in a calorie deficit). But how large should your calorie deficit be?

One research review done to provide evidence-based nutrition recommendations for natural bodybuilders suggests that losing about 0.5-1% of total body weight per week is most effective for preserving muscle while losing fat at a good pace. An exception here is overweight or obese individuals. Weight loss rates up to 1.5-2% per week can be effective for these populations since they have more total fat to lose.

Losing 0.5-1% of total BW in a week can generally be achieved by maintaining a daily calorie deficit of 20-25%. For obese populations that have more fat to lose research shows that a more aggressive calorie deficit (up to even a 40% daily calorie deficit) is also effective for muscle preservation and fat loss.

Calculating Fat Loss Calories Example

Now that you know how many calories you burn per day on average and have a good idea of your desired calorie deficit, we can calculate your fat loss calories.

Let’s continue with me as the example again. I maintain my body weight at 2600 calories. To lose fat effectively, I need a 20-25% calorie deficit. This comes down to the following:

2600*0.75 = 1950 = 25% calorie deficit

2600*0.8 = 2080 = 20% calorie deficit

Effective daily calorie range: 1900-2100

Summary + Fat Loss Checklist

To sum up, if you want to figure out your average daily energy expenditure, you need to go through these 3 steps:

  1. Estimate your maintenance calories with the use of a calorie calculator
  2. Eat at your estimated maintenance calories for 2 weeks while tracking your BW
  3. Adjust your maintenance calories based on your BW development

Once you’ve done this, you have a good idea of how many calories you burn on an average day and you can set your calorie deficit for fat loss.

Your calorie intake is the most important variable when it comes to fat loss. So once you’ve got this right, you are well on your way to lose fat. But, of course, effective fat loss is more than just tracking calories. To provide you with a complete overview of the key points you need to consider in your fat loss phase, I’ve designed a free 4-step fat loss checklist. Fill in your email below and I’ll send to you!

Lose Fat Without Losing Muscle

Lose Fat Without Losing Muscle

Sep 8, 2016 | Exercise, Nutrition

Muscle growth doesn’t come quickly to us natural lifters. That’s why you want to cherish every pound of muscle you build. The last thing we want to do is lose a significant amount of muscle during a fat loss phase.

If you approach your fat loss phase incorrectly, this can occur. But as you’ll see in this post, it’s more than possible to preserve muscle well while you are in a fat loss phase.

How Fat Loss Affects Muscle Growth

When your body is in an energy deficit, it will have to tap into its energy reserves. The most obvious reserve to turn to is body fat. This is why your body gains fat when you overfeed it, so it can use it in times of food scarcity.

But body fat isn’t the only energy source available that is used to balance out an energy deficit. For instance, research shows that protein breakdown also increases when you’re in a calorie deficit.

The human body builds (protein synthesis) and breaks down (protein breakdown) muscle proteins every day. If the number of muscle proteins you’ve built exceeds the number of muscle proteins you’ve broken down, you’ve built muscle.

In a calorie deficit, research shows that protein synthesis rates drop and protein breakdown rates increase. This negatively affects the amount of muscle you build and can potentially make you lose muscle if your approach is too aggressive.

lose fat without losing muscle

There are 3 main factors that can minimize (or maximize if you do it incorrectly) the negative effect an energy deficit has on muscle growth.

  1. Caloric intake
  2. Protein intake
  3. Resistance training

We’ll discuss how you can use these factors to your advantage, one by one.

Caloric Intake

You’re probably thinking that I’m going to tell you to ”maintain a small deficit” or ”keep fat loss very slow”. I’m not, the slower you’re losing fat, the longer it takes to reach your fat loss goal. Why is this not beneficial for muscle growth, you ask?

Well, research shows that the longer you’re underfeeding your body, the more susceptible to muscle loss you become. That’s why you don’t want to drag out your fat loss phase if there is no need to.

That said, severe calorie restriction is also not the answer (unless you’re morbidly obese). Research by the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences shows that muscle and strength loss is significant when non-obese individuals eat way below their caloric requirements.

So how many calories should you eat to maximize muscle preservation while still losing fat rapidly?

A good starting point is found in a scientific review paper, which was designed to provide evidence-based recommendations for natural bodybuilders (people like you, who want to gain more muscle and lose more fat).

They found that losing 0.5-1% of total body weight per week is a good starting point for those who want to improve their body composition. This generally can be achieved by maintaining a calorie deficit of roughly 20-25%. Like in this study, in which athletes lost an average of 1.2 lbs per week by maintaining a deficit of 24%.

Protein Intake

The role of protein during a fat loss phase is very simple: it increases muscle preservation and keeps you full for longer. That’s why it’s highly beneficial to maintain a somewhat high protein intake during your fat loss phase.

lose fat without losing muscle

But most people take this the wrong way. Because a higher protein intake is beneficial, they think they should stuff themselves with protein every 2-3 hours. This is not necessary.

A 2017 systematic review indicates that consuming as low as 0.7g/lb. (1.6g/kg) of body weight is able to maximize muscle growth. If you want to err on the safe side of things and make use of the satiating effects of protein, you can feel free to consume more protein in a day.

Resistance Training

The human body is quite fascinating. It’s able to survive in extreme circumstances due to its adaptive capabilities and efficiency.

It won’t hold on to muscle tissue that is not used for an extended period of time. It sees this as unnecessary extra weight, which costs energy to preserve. For the same reason, you won’t just build muscle.

You need to give your body a reason to preserve and eventually build muscle. You provide this stimulus simply by using your muscles in training. This helps explain why research by the Washington University shows that weight training increases muscle preservation in calorie-restricted individuals.

lose fat without losing muscle

To maximize muscle preservation and perhaps even build muscle during your fat loss phase (depending on how close you are to you are to your genetic limit), you need to train for progressive overload.

The training you perform in the gym is considered a stress that forces an adaptive response. Your body adapts to training by building bigger and stronger muscles so that it can deal more efficiently with the provided training stress in the near future. So for consistent muscle growth to occur, you need to constantly challenge your muscles beyond their present capacity (a.k.a. Progressive Overload)

Final Words

As you just read in this blog post, you do not need to go to any extremes to preserve muscle during a fat loss phase. As long as you eat at an appropriate deficit, consume enough protein and train regularly, you will not lose muscle.

If you are interested in learning more about maximizing your muscular potential, check out my new eBook “The Art & Science of Muscle Growth. This book translates the currently available scientific data about muscle growth in “Basic English”, so everyone can start implementing an evidence-based approach to training and nutrition.

The Art & Science of Muscle Growth

Click here to purchase this eBook