Your Basal Metabolic Rate

Our Basal Metabolic Rate or BMR is an estimate of how many calories we would burn if we were to do nothing but rest for 24 hours. It represents the minimum amount of energy needed to keep our bodies functioning, including breathing and keeping our heart beating. The release of energy in this state is sufficient only for the functioning of the vital organs, such as the heart, lungs, brain and the rest of the nervous system, liver, kidneys, sex organs, muscles and skin. BMR decreases with age and with the loss of lean body mass. Increasing muscle mass increases BMR.
The Harris Benedict Equation is a formula that uses your BMR and then applies an activity factor to determine your total daily energy expenditure or calories.
Harris Benedict Formula
Calculate your BMR (basal metabolic rate):
Men BMR = 88.362 + (13.397 × weight in kg) + (4.799 × height in cm) - (5.677 × age in years) Women BMR = 447.593 + (9.247 × weight in kg) + (3.098 × height in cm) - (4.330 × age in years) Multiply your BMR by the appropriate activity factor, as follows:
• Sedentary (little or no exercise): BMR x 1.2
• Lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week): BMR x 1.375
• Moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week): BMR x 1.55
• Very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week): BMR x 1.725
• Extra active (very hard exercise/sports & physical job or 2x training): BMR x 1.9
Your final number is the approximate number of calories you need each day to maintain your weight.
BULKING & CUTTING
Your adjustments to your BMR will all depend on what your goal is. As a general rule of thumb 3,500 calories equals about 1 pound (0.45 kilogram) of fat, So if it is your aim to lose weight it is estimated that you will need to burn around 3,500 calories to lose 1 pound. So if you cut around 500 to 1,000 calories a day from your typical Nutritional intake, you would potentially lose about 1 to 2 pounds a week. What about bulking? So if you add an additional 500 to 1,000 calories a day to your standard intake you could potentially gain 1 to 2 pounds a week. This of course wont all be muscle, there will be some fat. But can I build muscle and lose fat at the same time? Yes its totally possible however it will be at a slower pace. We are all different. We all have different needs. Get to know your body, get to know what it needs and get to know what works for you.