Calorie account balance

Just like rupees and dollars, the currency your body uses to conduct all its dealings is called energy. More the investment, more the money saved; similarly, more the energy, more the reserve for your body. However, when we start spending energy, we start utilizing this reserve. The only difference between money and energy is that saving the latter will lead to undesired outcomes. Learn to invest wisely for your body with BodyFirst®.

Broadly, there are three mediums for energy expenditure:

• Basal metabolic rate (BMR):
  It’s the energy spent for metabolic processes when one is at rest but awake. The energy in this case is utilized for the functioning of vital organs such as the heart, brain, kidneys etc. The factors that affect BMR are as follows:

  Factor	Effect on BMR
  Body lean mass	More the lean mass, higher the BMR
  Body surface area	Taller or obese individuals with a larger surface area have a higher BMR
  Diet	The lower the intake of calories in the form of restrictive diets, the lesser the energy spent on digestion and hence lower BMR
  Temperature	Environmental and body temperature both effect BMR. With a rise in body temperature due to illness, BMR also increases. In extreme climatic conditions (cold or continuous heat), BMR increases.
  Exercise	Exercise contributes to an increase in lean muscle which helps raising BMR
  Hormones	An elevation in hormone levels of thyroxine and adrenaline, increase BMR
  Age	As one gets older, BMR drops
  Genetics	Genes can also predefine your BMR.

• Specific dynamic action or Thermic effect of food: It is the energy that is spent in the digestion of food. Approximately 10% of the energy ingested is utilized in the process of food digestion. However, different foods have different digestibility properties. For instance, fat is easier to digest than protein, hence, the thermic effect of protein is higher than fat.
  Fibre rich foods also require more effort to be digested and thus have a greater thermic effect. Vegetables and fruits which are fibre rich are also low in calories. In this case, the energy spent to digest the food can be more than the calories of the food item itself causing a negative calorie effect.
• Physical activity: While the above two parameters of energy expenditure are not in our control, physical activity can be totally regulated by us.
  Following is the table that can serve as your point of reference to calories burnt in different physical activities.

Calories Used per Hour in Common Physical Activities

It is always good to keep an account of your earnings and spending, be it money or calories.

References:

1. Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR): Definition, Factors and Significance. Available from:
   http://www.biologydiscussion.com/energy/metabolism-energy/basal- metabolic-rate- bmr- definition-factors- and-significance/17342
   [Accessed on 20 Nov 2017]
2. Energy Expenditure. Available from
   https://www.edu.gov.mb.ca/k12/cur/physhlth/frame_found_gr12/rm/module_c_lesson_2.pdf
   [Accessed on 20 Nov 2017]
3. Energy Expenditure at Rest and During Various Types of Physical Activity. Available from:
   http://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/biochemistry-genetics-and-molecular-biology/specific-dynamic-action
   [Accessed on 20 Nov 2017]
4. Physical Activity for a Healthy Weight. Available from:
   https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/physical_activity/index.html
   [Accessed on 20 Nov 2017]