Energy Balance

Energy Balance

The truth about “calories in and calories out”.

You might be a believer in this rule.  If I am 150 lbs and my daily energy expenditure is 1800 calories per day (because this is what the online calculator told me) and I eat 1800 calories per day, than I will stay the same weight.  If I eat less than 1800 calories I will lose weight.  Sounds simple and there is a lot of good science to back up this philosophy.

There is only one problem.  It never seems to work in real life with most people.  The reason is that true energy balance needs an increase in activity and an increase in proper micronutrients to really work.  In most cases, I have found that people living by this method are not exercising regularly and not eating properly. I have found that they are eating under their daily resting metabolic rate (RMR) and are not losing, but gaining fat.  What they do lose, in the very short term is muscle and water, with very little coming from fat stores.

So why is this happening?

It happens for a number of reasons. The most likely being a low RMR (resting metabolic rate), which in turn makes you a thrifty calorie burner and great at storing fat.  Your pro-hormone levels are not activating properly.  Maybe you are insulin sensitive, have high cortisol, thyroid is high or low, growth hormone is low or testosterone or estrogen is too low or too high.  Perhaps you continually looked for a quick fix to your fitness challenge and tried 1 or more of the many fad diets that are advertised.  Any of these reasons could explain the challenges most people face in reaching there fitness goals.

Let me tell you another little secret.  You know those magazine pictures that show these dramatic transformations from fat and frumpy to lean hard body…you know the ones with the house wife who now has abs. Firstly some are fake, surprise. But some are real. I have even met a few of these individuals, and can vouch for there ability to change and keep it off.  In every case, 100% those men or women increased daily activity, lifted weights and did cardio. They also increased daily calorie consumption. In most cases they doubled or even tripled calorie consumption and used supplements.  They also ate very differently than there old habitual way of eating.

Nutrient partitioning

Nutrient partitioning refers to how many calories are directed into muscular stores verses how many calories are directed into fat stores when you consume food.

Well what the hell does that mean?  Here is a simple explanation. Everybody wants to put on muscle while losing fat. There is only 1 problem. This is very difficult. This is because of nutrient partitioning thresholds.  You may have a fat gain threshold of 2000 cal a day. If you eat more than 2000 cal per day you tend to gain fat stores.  You want to gain muscle to, but you have a muscle threshold of 2200 calories per day.  You need to eat at least 2200 cal to gain any substantial muscle.  So to gain muscle you always gain some fat as well. Very frustrating!

Here’s where I give you the good news.  You can lower the muscle gain threshold.  I would say 90% of trainers don’t have any idea how to do this.  But yet again most trainers can’t teach someone to squat properly, let alone construct a proper program.  Sorry… you want the secret of how to change the muscle to fat ratio!  First your 2000 cal (number of calories depends on client evaluation) must be more nutrient rich. So you see a calorie just isn’t a calorie. 

The ratio of protein to carbs to fats has to be balanced.  If I told you that a person eating 600 calories of protein, 800 calories of carbs (mostly sugars) and 600 calories of fats (mostly of it being trans and hydrogenated fats) would not see the results that a person eating 1000 calories of lean protein sources, 500 calories from carbs (mostly fruits and veggies and fibre rich grains) and 500 calories from fats (the majority from omega 3 fish oil and an equal division on saturated and polyunsaturated omega 6 and 9 fats).

Here are some food examples of nutrient rich protein, carbs and fats.

Fish

Eggs

Chicken breasts

Lean red meat

Cottage cheese

Milk protein isolates

Whey protein isolates

Green vegetables

Salads

Legumes

Low glycemic index fruits

Oatmeal

Sweet potatoes

Mixed grain bread

Fish oil, flax oil, olive oil

Mixed nuts

Your success here truly depends on being properly evaluated. At TopShape we do this for you. We can also instruct you to do this yourself if you choose our online personal training package.  Check back for follow-ups on this subject in the near future. Good luck!

TopShape Fitness.