Estimate your daily calorie requirement during the maintenance, weight gain, or dryness phase.
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1) Is it worth quantifying your diet?
2) Theoretical calculation of the daily calorie requirement
3) How to use this result?
4) How do I apply this estimate of my daily calorie requirement?
5) Examples of dietary programs
6) Conclusion on the daily calorie requirement
Is it worth calculating the daily calorie allowance, or is it useless and does more harm than good?
Note. For understanding, we use the word “caloric content ” instead of”calorie”. In fact, it’s still calories.
Should you quantify your diet?
When we talk about daily calorie requirements, we put the concept of quantitative analysis at the center of the discussion.
In my opinion, the first question to ask is: “Can we eat randomly and achieve results in bodybuilding?»
The answer is obvious: yes, because few bodybuilders calculate what they consume every day, and at the same time demonstrate a good physique.
So there is no obligation to quantify your diet to make progress.
But the second question deserves to be asked: “Will we be better off if we quantify what we eat?»
The answer is yes again.
So, if you are a practitioner who wants to make maximum progress, that is, gain weight, and you want to build as much muscle as possible with a minimum of fat, then quantifying what you eat will really help you. ; as if you are dry and want to lose as much fat as possible with a minimum of muscle.
Clearly, if you are truly interested in achieving the best possible results, knowing that as a natural bodybuilder you never progress quickly, then it is in your best interest to consider your daily calorie requirements. and quantify your food.
Personally, from the moment I started counting my calories in 2006 during my first drying out, my physique began to really transform.
Before that, I ate at random, and although I progressed, this was not optimal.
Now let’s see together how to estimate your daily calorie requirement to improve it.
Estimated Daily Calorie Requirements
This tool was created by Fabrice, who used four established formulas.
They provide an estimate of basal metabolic rate, which is then adjusted to suit your goals.
Complete the fields below and click Calculate to get an estimate of your daily calorie requirement:
How to use this result?
You should be aware that the first three formulas are based on age, height and weight, while the last is based on lean mass, which is estimated based on the specified fat mass.
In addition to a rough estimate of the costs of exercise, BMR can vary from one person to another depending on, for example, outdoor temperature and fat history.
Indeed, the more “fat” we have in the past, the lower our basal metabolic rate: this explains why sometimes people who were overweight in the past may consume less than half of the daily calorie requirement. estimated to stay on balance.
Conversely, if we have always been relatively dry, the numbers will undoubtedly have to be revised upwards.
The amount of muscle you have is also very important to your calorie needs as well as activities you do outside of your sport. Sitting at the computer does not “burn” the same amount of calories every day as if you were a bricklayer.
Regardless, these formulas give a good estimate, as I consume about 4000 calories for a weight of 103 kg with a norm of about 14% fat for 1m95 with daily physical activity to support me. This corresponds to the daily calorie requirement calculated using formulas that are a good starting point.
In practice, instead of using formulas, we calculate what we ate in the week when the weight remained the same, and determine the daily calorie requirement. From there, we increase by about 5% if we want to gain weight without making too much fat, and shrink by about 10% if we want to dry out without losing too much muscle to begin with.
The diet cannot work indefinitely and needs to be adjusted based on your results week after week (you can read this for how to do this.
Finally, don’t be too strict in your diet. Your results are independent of a few grains of rice.
How to put this estimate of daily calorie requirement into practice?
Knowing what to consume is interesting, but how to do it in practice?
When I started quantifying my diet, I started weighing everything I ate, from meat to starch and vegetables.
Although at first it seems like it’s better to meet our daily calorie needs with greater precision, there is no need to weigh everything afterwards.
Eating 100 or 120 grams of meat will not significantly change your calorie intake.
For vegetables, which often contain less than 50 calories per 100 grams, this changes even less.
On the other hand, whether you are dry or gaining weight, your intake of carbohydrates, in particular their main sources such as starchy foods and cereals, is important to quantify with precision because all the loops are around them.
It is very difficult to visually assess what 100 grams of starch is, even more if you want to appreciate it cooked, because the weight can vary dramatically depending on the duration of cooking and the amount of water you use.
This is why I advise you to purchase a small digital scale (not a needle scale) for weighing raw starchy foods and cereals.
At first we think this is restrictive, but over time it becomes a habit and, above all, avoids overeating and / or wasting food.
You don’t need to weigh the rest of your diet, because, on the one hand, the weight of the meat or fish you buy is indicated on the package, and on the other hand, the consumption of vegetables. optional.
For other foods, I recommend using benchmarks such as “one fruit” or “20 almonds” rather than systematic weighing as the weight is unlikely to change and will not affect your results.
Diet Program Examples
I invite you to see together three examples of a diet program based on my coaching experience since 2006 and several thousand students on my website.
These are just examples of customization to suit your metabolism, your activity, your tastes and your budget.
Thus, the selected products are replaceable, their quantity should be increased or decreased depending on the development of your physical condition over several weeks in accordance with your goals.
Your diet should be personalized little by little: especially, you shouldn’t stick to the latest diet published in the magazine of the month, where you are encouraged to eat chicken and rice six times a day (I’m exaggerating a little, but we’re not far from the truth).
Any disappointment should be avoided lest cheating food turn into a snack.
If you want to know more about how to personalize your diet, know that I have collected all my experience in several books on the subject.
In addition to theory, these are primarily practical and easy-to-use books that will allow you to waste time and limit mistakes as much as possible.
The first example might work for a 75 kg man who wants to gain mass without a fat history, a sedentary profession and training four times a week:
The second example might be for a 55kg woman who wants to support herself with a fat history with a sedentary profession and exercising three times a week:
The third example might be suitable for a 90 kg person who wants to dry out, who has a “fat” history with a physical profession and training five times a week:
For Vegetarians and Vegans:
The word supplementation in the sample diet programs is obviously optional, but will help you better benefit from the effects of your exercise and limit the damage.
The goal is to show you the “best” examples so that if you have the budget and the desire to do your best, you know what to do.
Daily calorie requirement display
Estimating your daily calorie requirement is a good starting point when you want to get the most out of your efforts under the bar.
After that, the reference concept will be easier to use on a daily basis, and this is what I advise you to do, in addition to starchy foods and cereals, which should always be weighed if your goal is to make maximum progress. . At first glance, for the reasons mentioned above, it is difficult to manage these categories of products.
Finally, keep in mind that your diet will change over time.