The Anti-Diabetes Diet - (4) Know Your Calorie Quota
We have looked at how to calculate your optimal weight at the previous article.
Now, let's use that figure to calculate how many calories you need to eat each day! All it takes is one simple equation.
Optimal weight (kg) x Basal Metabolic Rate x Physical Activity Level
"Basal Metabolic Rate" is the amount of energy required to keep your body functioning at rest at room temperature (20℃/60°F).
It varies depending on gender, age and ethnicity. Here are the basal metabolic rates for Japanese people of different ages.
Age BMR (M) BMR (W)
18 to 29 24.0 23.6
30 to 49 22.3 21.7
50 yrs+ 21.5 20.7
"Physical Activity Level" is divided into 3 grades depending on how you spend your days.
Level 1: You spend most of your time quietly indoors = 1.5
Level 2: You work indoors, but you have an active commute and exercise moderately = 1.75
Level 3: You are active a lot of the time and exercise vigorously = 2.0
Take, for example, a 30-year old man, who is 170 cm tall, with a physical activity level of 1.75. 64 (optimal weight) x 22.3 (basal metabolic rate) x 1.75 (physical activity level) = 2,498. He should be consuming about 2,500 calories a day.
If you have a high BMI and are trying to lose weight, the website of Britain's National Health Service (NHS) has a useful tool for calculating daily caloric needs adjusted for an elevated BMI.
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