Where's Your New Year's Resolution?

If weight loss was one of the resolutions you committed to on January 1st, 2009, by now you should have made some progress. If you don't feel like you are making progress, it's time to take a step back and ask yourself WHY NOT!!

As a Registered Dietitian/ Nutritionist, I've found that most people haven't been successful with weight loss not because they haven't been trying. Most people, when they are ready, are very focused and even though they do slip every so often, they typically stay on the right path. They were unsuccessful because they had no idea of how many calories they should eat just to maintain basic physiological functions. One of the most fundamental and difficult questions is, how many calories do I burn?

Your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) is a measure of the number of calories your body burns each day to maintain life. Your RMR is equal to approximately 60-70% of daily total caloric expenditure and also relates to how much lean body mass you have. Basically, your resting metabolic rate gives you the number of calories your body would need if you were to lie in bed all day and not expend any other energy or exert effort. The remaining 30% of calories burned come from your body's daily physical activity such as digestion, daily living and exercise.

The reason why you should measure your RMR is that your body is unique and your metabolism and caloric needs will differ from one person to the next even if you both weigh the same. Some of the factors contributing to your body's metabolism are age, height, gender, body composition, activity level, medications, exercise intensity and duration as well as varying physical and environmental influences. Estimating your RMR based on equations could be very inaccurate and counterproductive to meeting your weight and body fat goals since it is affected by so many factors.

What happens when you have your RMR measured is that a machine measures the volume of oxygen that you breathe in and out. Because oxygen is needed to break down food for metabolism, measuring it gives you an accurate representation of what your metabolism is. The test itself is noninvasive since you just have to breathe. It takes 10-15 minutes and after it is done, you will know exactly how many calories your body needs in a 24-hour period just to maintain itself at its current weight. This allows a program to work and not cause your body to go into starvation mode and not lose!!

Some thing to note is the condition in which you have your RMR measured. It is more accurate to have your RMR measured first thing in the morning after an overnight fast of at least 12 hours. Be sure not to exercise, drink caffeinated beverages, or eat anything the morning of your test.

At the Nutrition Performance Center in Syosset we measure Resting Metabolic Rate and utilize the results as part of our Weight Management program or it can be done ala carte. After we know that number, we help you build your own personal calorie budget for weight loss based on your own individual physiology without the guess work.

For more information about the Nutrition Performance Center and the services we provide, check us out on the web at www.npc4results.com.