Calories Per Day

First of all, you will need to eat the appropriate amounts of protein, carbohydrates, and fats, and a good general rule is 1 part fat, 2 parts protein, and three parts carbohydrates.   If you are using a gram/ounce scale to measure your food, you can tell how many calories you are eating by referring to the chart below.  Click here for healthy food calorie chart.

Also, if you are working out to build muscle, in order to maintain and grow muscle, your body needs about .9 grams of protein per day, per pound of body weight.  For a more muscular male body builder, it would be more like  1.4 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day.  But for the average active person, around .9 grams is adequate.  For example, I weight 127 pounds.  127 x .9 = 114.3 grams of protein per day.   Being that a 6 ounce chicken breast has about 48 grams of protein, this isn't that difficult to achieve.

Here is a formula based on averages that you can use to figure out how many calories you need per day.  Everyone is different, so the result is not cut in stone.  However, this is an excellent general guideline.

1. Convert your bodyweight from pounds to kilograms by dividing your weight by 2.2.  My weight is 127.
   127 / 2.2 = 57.73
2. Calculate equation from step 1.
   Men: 1.0 x bodyweight in kilograms x 24
   Women: .9 x bodyweight in kilograms x 24 (that would be me)
   .9 x 57.73 x 24 = 1247
3. Based on your gender and body fat percentage, determine your lean factor.  Last time I check, my body fat was at 20%.  Here is a table to determine your lean factor (See  Table 1 at the end of the page).   My lean factor according to Table 1 below is .95.
4. Calculate your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate).  This is how many calories you burn while lying down in a 24 hour period.  Do this by multiplying the number from step 2 (mine is 51.96) by your lean factor multiplier.  So
   1247 x .95 = 1184.7 (BMR).
5. Determine your daily activity multiplier.  Mine is 1.65, working out 3-4 times per week.
   - 1.30 is the couch potato multiplier.
   -1.55 is the non-exerciser but active person multiplier.
   -1.65 is the walker, jogger, gardener, tennis player, skiier, cyclist, weight trainer multiplier.
   -1.80 is the heavy exerciser like construction worker, rock climber, football player, or soccer player multiplier.
   -2.0 is the heavy duty exerciser working out 2-4 hours per day plus 8 hours of heavy activity per day.
6. Finally, calculate your daily calorie needs by multiplying your BMR (#4) by your activity muliplier.
   1184.7 x 1.65 = 1,955 (I rounded up).

So, my daily calorie needs according to my activity level= 1,955 calories.  So I need to space out my meals during the day to equal about 1,955 calories, but not more.  If I go on vacation for a week without working out during that time, I will need to adjust my calories accordingly.  Understandably, making all these calculations can be a pain, but it's great for determining how many calories you need.  This table is based on averages from extensive studies per the International Sports Sciences Association.

TABLE 1 - Lean Factor Multiplier

Sample Diet

The below diet is a good example of how an active person should be eating.  For me, my portions would most likely be smaller than my husband's portions.  So, you can most certainly adjust the amounts of food you eat.  Also, remember that fat is 9 calories per gram, so it is easy to go way over the top with an extra two tablespoons of salad dressing with each meal.  I have found that nutritional yeast adds a lot of flavor to foods on which you would normally add cheese for practically no calories at all.   So, use just a little salad dressing then sprinkle some nutritional yeast (not to be confused with baking yeast) on your salads, pasta, scrambled eggs, etc.  If you're used to feeling stuffed after a meal, be prepared to change.  It is more of a habit to feel full that an actual body need.  A big glass of water will give you that full feeling as well, so give your body a chance and change your diet.  You will be glad you did!

Do not drink high sugar/calorie drinks : Stick with WATER and tea

You will NOT keep the weight off if you are not eating enough food.  The best way to keep weight off forever is to eat healthy mini meals about five times per day combined with an effective workout regimen.  Also, you must not over train.

The reason for this:  Our bodies are designed to survive.  Our bodies are NOT designed to look good.  In fact, the body will store fat at EVERY opportunity.  This is why diet is a fine science about which we have to be very, very diligent.  We must eat in a way that will give us energy and muscle-building nutrients.  We need to make sure the body doesn’t think we are starving so that it does not store fat.  See, the body is very resourceful and will slow down the rate at which you burn calories if you take in too little calories.  Silly, right?!!  That is because the body is hasty in thinking that it is starving.  Then, once the calorie intake increases (after starving yourself before that wedding) after a period of lowering calories significantly, the body’s metabolic burn rate is still slow, and remains that way UNTIL WE DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.

Here’s what we’re doing about it:

• Workout 3 to 4 times per week.
• Eat 5 mini (small portions) meals daily:

workout 2

Workout 2

workout 1

Workout 1

Introduction

Lose unwanted fat!  Live a happy, productive, and active lifestyle with time to play!  Gain a sense of control and ease by following your dreams, loving yourself, and feeling great!

Hi and welcome to Workout Bang.  My name is Tia Tracy, and I am a Certified Fitness Trainer at Colorado Athletic Club in Boulder, Colorado. I decided to create this blog as an inspiration to others looking to improve their health and life.  I am turning 40 this year and am in the best shape of my life.  I want to share with you the methods that I have used to reach my personal goals.

I have been working out with trainers for over ten years focusing on strength training with weights.  The last few months I have been training myself and others using the Tabata method, a type of  High Intensity Interval Training.  The results have been amazing!

Although I am not the inventor of any of the exercises that I will be showing you, I will be creating different ways of putting them together to make your workouts exciting and satisfying.  There is a ton of great information here to help you on your journey to fitness as well, so take a look at all the pages and topics.  Also, please make sure that you go to this page and read before doing any of the exercises on this site.  Also, for your safety, please consult your physician before beginning any exercise program.  If you have never done high exertion exercises, please take precaution by consulting your physician.

You may want to keep checking in as I will continue to have more great information and workouts videos posted.