The Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) Calculator estimates your basal metabolic rate—the amount of energy used while at rest in a neutrally moderate environment, and in a post-absorptive state (meaning that the digestive system is inactive, which requires about 12 hours of fasting).
BMR stands for Basal Metabolic Rate. To understand what it means, let us first understand what exactly is Metabolism. Metabolism is a sum total of all chemical processes that happen in every cell of the human body, to help it sustain life. The body digests the food it gets, to break it down into nutrition in the form of carbohydrates, amino acids, and simple sugars.
When these nutritive compounds enter the cells, enzymes work to boost or regulate them. The energy which is produced in this process is either used to build up energy stores or new tissues, or, to break down the existent tissues and energy stores to help carry out bodily functions with ease.
The process by which food is converted into energy is known as metabolism, and the speed with which this process occurs is termed as metabolic rate.
Metabolic rate is measured via two parameters viz. Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) and Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR). Both these indicators measure the amount of energy – in terms of number of calories - which a body requires to sustain and carry out its daily functions. While RMR indicates the quantum of energy which your body needs while you’re resting, the BMR is a more wholesome indicator that measures the quantum of energy a body needs to keep carrying out its vital functions such as breathing, digesting food, growing nails, and circulating blood through the body.
A person’s BMR is calculated using the Mifflin-St Jeor equation or the Revised Harris-Benedict equation.
Both these calculations are best done by trained practitioners and via best BMR calculators to help get accurate results.
The Mifflin-St Jeor equation calculates:
BMR for men as 9.99 x weight + 6.25 x height – 4.92 x age + 5
BMR for women as 9.99 x weight + 6.25 x height – 4.92 x age – 161
The Revised Harris-Benedict equation calculates the BMR for men as (88.4 + 13.4 x weight) + (4.8 x height) – (5.68 x age), and for women as (447.6 + 9.25 x weight) + (3.10 x height) – (4.33 x age). Both these calculations are best done by trained practitioners to help get accurate results.
We often hear nutrition experts speaking of calibrating the calories in one’s food intake, in order to regulate your weight to correct proportions. That is because, calories are the unit used to measure how much energy does every food item provide to the body.
Now, while consuming the right amount of calories is important to maintain an optimum body weight, it is not enough. The consumption has to be supported by ‘burning’ of those calories via exercise and a good BMR.
If you have a low BMR, that means you burn less calories for your vital functions and daily life. This, is turn, leads to the body accumulating more body fat as compared to a person with high BMR, who uses more calories for those same functions.
BMR plays an important role in your weight-calibration journey because almost 60-70% of the calories we consume are burned by the body to create energy for its vital and daily processes.
While it’s true that our genetic predisposition determines our BMR, there are also other factors which can enhance or slow it down.
The level of physical activity, exercise, developing lean muscle tissue, and proper sleep habits (which helps the body regulate glucose levels, thus providing more energy) are some factors that enhance one’s BMR.
On the other hand, crash dieting, less physical activity owing to age, high amount of body fat (fat cells are slow to burn calories), and illness or infection are some factors that slow down the BMR.
Hence, keeping oneself active, healthy, and getting a good undisturbed sleep is the key to living a healthy life by enhancing one’s BMR, and keeping a watch via best BMR calculators.
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A low BMR may indicate a slower metabolism, which can make it harder to lose weight but isn't necessarily unhealthy on its own.
To decrease basal metabolic rate, one could reduce muscle mass, restrict calorie intake significantly, or adopt a sedentary lifestyle, though these methods are not recommended for overall health.
As age increases, basal metabolic rate tends to decrease due to factors like decreased muscle mass and hormonal changes.
A good basal metabolic rate is one that aligns with your body's energy needs for overall health and function, typically falling within a healthy range for one's age, gender, and activity level.
Online BMR calculators can provide a rough estimate, but accuracy can vary depending on the formula and the information input.
To use BMR to lose weight, calculate your daily calorie needs based on your BMR and activity level, then create a calorie deficit by consuming fewer calories than your total energy expenditure.
Eating below your BMR can lead to nutrient deficiencies, fatigue, muscle loss, and a slowed metabolism, which can hinder weight loss efforts and impact overall health negatively.
Thyroxine, a hormone produced by the thyroid gland, can increase BMR by stimulating cellular metabolism.
BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) is the amount of energy expended at rest, while TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure) includes all activities and exercise throughout the day.
BMR is important because it represents the minimum amount of energy needed to sustain vital functions like breathing, circulation, and maintaining body temperature.
Factors influencing BMR include age, gender, body composition, muscle mass, genetics, hormonal balance, and environmental factors like temperature and altitude.