Learning to Eat - Harris Benedict and Michi

Sometimes when I'm feeling brave I like to take a look at those so-called "Nutrition Facts" on food labels. Ever noticed that everything on there is based on a 2000 calorie diet? I'm pretty sure I have eaten more than 2000 calories in one sitting... I always wondered if everyone was supposed to eat 2000 calories a day or what. And now I know.

If you want to figure out how many calories your body requires to maintain itself at your current size, there is a nifty formula that can help.

First you need to calculate your Basal Metabolic Rate. That is the number of calories your body would require daily if you performed absolutely no activity whatsoever. To get this number:

• Men: 66 + (6.23 x weight in pounds) + (12.7 x height in inches) - (6.76 x age in years)
• Women: 655 + (4.35 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) - (4.7 x age in years)

Once you have your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), you have to account for energy expenditure due to activity. You simply multiply your BMR by one of the factors below and you know roughly how many calories you would need to consume in order to maintain your current body mass. This process is called the Harris-Benedict Equation.

Little to no exercise	BMR x 1.2
Light exercise (1-3 days per week)	BMR x 1.375
Moderate exercise (3-5 days per week)	BMR x 1.55
Heavy exercise (6-7 days per week)	BMR x 1.725
Very heavy exercise (twice per day, extra heavy workouts)	BMR x 1.9

Knowing that number, you can try to adjust how many calories you take in, in order to gain or lose weight, or simply maintain. Personally, I think the best use for this number is to store it somewhere in the back of your head as an interesting piece of trivia. Seriously. Who wants to be counting numbers and reading labels all day? It gets old. Quickly.

What you need to do to stay healthy is eat better food. Lots of it. That doesn't mean three huge honking meals a day and snacks in between. Whenever you are hungry, eat the right thing. Nutritionists are saying now that you should eat at least five times a day. In smaller quantities. The key is knowing what to eat and having it on hand. If you are starving and all you have in the fridge is raw bacon... well, you get the point.

One handy thing I came across is called Michi's Ladder. Not sure who came up with it. Maybe someone named Michi. The higher up a food is on the ladder the better. The notes recommend staying in the top two tiers, although most of my favorite foods seem to fall to the third. It doesn't give you the full picture, but seems pretty easy to use and a step in the right direction.

Although I have never had a problem with my weight, I have followed different eating protocols in the past and found that by eating right, I have much higher energy levels and mental alertness, I don't crave "junk food," I sleep better, and so on. More on this in another post on the Glycemic Index, which I am learning about today...