Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) Calculator

• Gender

Men are statistically proven to have a higher BMR than women, as men’s free fat mass is on an average more than women’s.

• Height (in cms)

Irrespective of weight, individuals who are tall and thin usually tend to have a higher BMR than their shorter counterparts, owing to the greater surface area of their skin.

• Weight (in kgs)

The BMR is calculated using the body’s lean mass, i.e., the muscle mass as it requires a lot of energy to maintain itself. So, if the muscle mass increases, then the BMR is also higher.

It must be noted that the BMR is calculated under a controlled environment where an individual’s nervous system is in an inactive state, i.e., the body and mind must be in a resting or sleeping position.

• Mifflin-St Jeor Equation

This is the latest equation currently in use by most basal metabolic rate calculators available online and has been proven to throw up accurate BMR results. The equations are devised separately for males and females, based on the ‘S’ factor.

BMR (measured in Kcal/day) = 10W + 6.25H -5A +S

Where,

W = body weight in kgs

H = height in cms

A = age of the person in years

S = +5 Kcal/day for women, and -161 Kcal/day for men

• Harris-Benedict Equation

Since 1919, the Harris-Benedict equation is the oldest and most commonly used equation by basal metabolic rate calculators for the longest period until the arrival of the Mifflin-St Jeor equation. The equation was subsequently revised to sharpen the accuracy of the BMR result, and two separate equations are employed for men and women to determine their BMR using a BMR calculator for men and women.

• Revised Harris-Benedict Equation for Men

BMR (measured in Kcal/day) = 13.397W + 4.799H - 5.677A + 88.362

• Revised Harris-Benedict Equation for Women

BMR (measured in Kcal/day) = 9.247W + 3.098H - 4.330A + 447.593

Where,

W = body weight in kgs

H = height in cms

A = age of the person in years

• Sedentary

If your body is physically inactive for a large period with minimum or zero exercises, the number of daily calories required by the body is calculated by multiplying your BMR with 1.2.

• Lightly Active

Lightly active persons usually work out for 1-3 days of the week. Multiply the BMR with a factor of 1.375 to calculate your daily caloric intake.

• Moderately Active

People who work out for at least 3-5 days of the week fall into this category. Their daily calorie requirement is to be calculated by multiplying the BMR with a factor of 1.55.

• Very Active

For very active individuals who exercise every day throughout the week without fail, the daily caloric intake is estimated by multiplying their BMR by 1.725.

• Extremely Active

For those who undertake a physical job involving strenuous work, multiply the BMR by 1.9 to determine their daily caloric needs.

• Free Fat Mass (FFM)

It is defined as the weight of the body minus the body fat in the tissues. In simple terms, the FFM is what is commonly termed muscle mass or lean mass. A high ratio of FFM to fat mass is known to increase the basal metabolic rate. The more the lean muscle mass over fat mass, the greater is the BMR.

• Genetic Makeup

Each person’s genetic makeup is different, and with varying metabolic rates encoded into their respective DNA, the BMR also differs.

• Dietary Habits

Small meals, evenly spaced between intervals are known to increase the BMR, and starvation has demonstrated that the BMR levels could drop by nearly 30 percent.

• Physical Activity

A reasonable amount of physical activity that you undertake in a day affects your BMR. Physical exercise, especially body-building exercises ensure that the FFM in the body increases resulting in a higher BMR.

• Body Temperature

Whenever the body temperature rises, the pace of various chemical processes in your body grows even faster, creating a higher energy demand. Thus, the BMR increases as the body temperature also increases. Similarly, in colder regions, your body requires extra energy to raise its temperature to an optimum level. Thus, the BMR increases in such cases too.

• Hormonal and Reproductive Health

Hormones such as the thyroid gland are responsible for the regulation of metabolic rate, and when there is a high prevalence of this hormone in the bloodstream, the BMR increases. Menopause in women can have an impact on the BMR figures depending on the female hormonal levels in the body. Similarly, the BMR also increases in pregnant women due to the growth of a foetus inside their wombs. The BMR of the baby is also accounted for while calculating the daily calorie supply.

• Supplements

Certain supplements such as caffeine, are known to increase the BMR, to accelerate weight loss.

If you want added medical protection, you should also look into getting a health insurance plan for yourself and your family. With the skyrocketing cost of healthcare, a good health insurance plan will keep you financially covered so that you can focus on your well-being without any stress.