hey guys! happy tuesday!  i mentioned before that i was planning on getting metabolic testing done and last night was the night!

let me rewind a bit and take the time to thank janetha for talking me through a nervous breakdown and showing me this post, from ashley. to be honest, after my 24 day challenge, i started to do some research on how many calories i should be consuming a day, there were SO many different  opinions that i just panicked and didn’t know what to do.  i texted janetha and she was more than happy to listen and give advice.  she sent me to ashley’s page, and that’s what made decided i want to get metabolic testing done so i could know my exact numbers and be confident in how i was fueling my body.

so, last night, i had a Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) test done to determine how many calories i burn each day.  during the quick, ten minute test, i was hooked up to a machine, through a breathing tube (nose plugged), which analyzed oxygen levels of air i was breathing.  the results from the test can then help determine how many calories i need to gain or lose weight and reach my weight loss goal.  the test also includes 45 minutes to talk with a Registered Dietitian to set up an individual meal plan.

after the test was done, the RD took my weight, height, goal weight, and also took down notes on an average 24 hour period in my life (she asked for an average gym day).  here’s what i told her:

• 4:30 a.m. alarm goes off
• 5:00 a.m. eating half a VO2 bar and drinking spark + arginine extreme pre-workout
• 5:15 a.m. workout (weight training followed by 20 mins of cardio)
• 7:15 a.m. protein shake + piece of fruit (watermelon or apples)
• 9:30 a.m. snack – rice cake + some sunflower seed butter
• 12:30 p.m. lunch – leftovers – probably a lean protein, complex carb, and some veggies
• 3:30 p.m. snack – quest bar
• 5:00 p.m. by this time, i usually have about 100-120 oz of water
• 6:30 p.m. dinner – lean protein (fish, bison, ground turkey) + two servings of veggies
• 9:00 p.m. snack – protein cake (i used the recipe at the bottom of the post) or protein shake
• i also explained how i am getting my daily vitamins through MNS 3 packets.

she complimented me on the fact that i balance protein with a carbs pretty well.  i learned that from body-for-life (and janetha) and know that’s the best way to keep myself hungry, without feeling deprived.

my RMR results were as follows:

• Weight – 287 lbs
• Goal weight – 170 lbs
• Height – 5 ft 7 in
• Resting Energy Expenditure – 2,434 calories
• Estimated exercise burn – 304 cals (in 30 mins of exercise)
• Estimated lifestyle & activity burn – 729 cals (a little high, in her thoughts, since i have a desk job)
• Metabolism – 14% faster, compared to a typical person of similar sex, age, height, and weight. which means i can’t use ‘i have a slow metabolism’ for weight gain.

3,467 calories – my total energy output

never would have thought my metabolism was faster than average, with all the damage i’ve done to it in the past.

the RD explained to me, that for the most part, overweight people have a higher than normal metabolism because they use more energy doing normal day-to-day activities (like walking to the car or going up the stairs).  this all made a lot of sense to me.

my recent ‘plateau’ made sense, as well.  i was eating/logging about 1,200-1,300 calories a day, thinking i was getting enough food to fuel my body, but not too much to where i wouldn’t lose weight.  turns out, my body was in starvation mode.  i was eating too few calories to properly fuel my body.  everything started to fall into place and i realized i was actually hurting myself, when i thought i was doing the right thing.

we went over how many calories she thought i should consume on workout days and non-workout days.  you can see from the photo above, she wants me to keep non-workout days at around 1,400-1,600 calories, and workout days to around 1,600 to 1,800 calories.  these calorie amounts don’t seem extremely high to me, but i’m so used to eating 1,200-1,300, it will take some getting used to.  after logging all my meals for the day, today, i realized that my day is going to be calorie heavy for dinner, which is something i don’t want to happen.  i need to plan my meals better and keep them all about the same amount of calories.  i’m going to try and keep my macros around 45/35/20 (protein/carbs/fat).

all-in-all, i thought this was a very successful experience.  i learned a lot, and i feel confident that i will be able to fuel my body properly with these tools!  i’ll continue to check in with the RD to let her know how my progress is going, whether i’m losing weight or not, and if there are any adjustments in my calories that may need to be made.

have a great day!