# How do you work out no. of calories needed



## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

I'm trying to build my diet a bit more but not sure how to work out how many calories my body needs per day and for growth. Any help?

This applies same to protein etc.


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

you should be aiming for 15-18 times your bodyweight for growth

200lbs * 15= 3000 calories

200lbs * 18= 3600 calories

as you can see there is a 600 calorie range to work in, you will need to fine tune to find out what works best for you. Start off at 15 times bodyweight and increase if you are not making the gains you require.


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

yeah, il go through my diet and see what im averaging at in terms of intake on calories etc.

cheers


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## Hamiltons Gym (Feb 10, 2009)

minilh said:


> you should be aiming for 15-18 times your bodyweight for growth


A bit high I think. You'll end up with a lot of fat as well to get rid of.


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

stuart hamilton said:


> A bit high I think. You'll end up with a lot of fat as well to get rid of.


what would you recommend?

you physique would hint you know what your talking about lol

just noticed you live in Colchester, I live in Ardleigh (15 min drive) and go to the Colchester Sixth Form


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## FAT BOY (Dec 19, 2005)

http://www.fitday.com/fitness/Login.html?_a_Date=1233446400.

put your daily intake on here for a week this will show you your macros and daily calerie intake once you have your average intake and if you are maintaining your current body weight then you have a starting point .and can increase from there, aim for 1,5 grms of protien per pound of bodyweight , take your fats and carbs from clean sources keep it simple

fb


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## cellaratt (Jul 16, 2008)

FAT BOY said:


> FitDay Free Calorie Counter and Diet Journal: Login.
> 
> put your daily intake on here for a week this will show you your macros and daily calerie intake once you have your average intake and if you are maintaining your current body weight then you have a starting point .and can increase from there, aim for 1,5 grms of protien per pound of bodyweight , take your fats and carbs from clean sources keep it simple
> 
> fb


izza: Thanks for that bro...:becky:


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## FAT BOY (Dec 19, 2005)

lol no problem my friend


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## BigDingTowerGym (Feb 17, 2009)

aw no. do the maths 22 stone or just under . whats that like? 300lb x 15 and 18

OMG 4500 AND 5400 G dam!


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

you wont build on anything less, work out what you are eating now then post it up, if you or anybody else can build mass on anything less than 15 times bodyweight you are very gifted, 4500 for 22 stone is nothing, I would go as far to say it is chicken feed


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

by the way phelps eats 8000 calories per day


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

il work out my calorie intake and what my body needs at the mo, think from my scales it was around 2060 or so, I'm just under 14st.

Would that sound roughly accurate?


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## FAT BOY (Dec 19, 2005)

thats probably your maitenence level m8 you now need to now were those caleries come from . then gradually increase til you start to gain .

remember if you whant to be twenty two stone then thats fine eat accordingly but not eveybody wants that kind of bodyweight , you may never have to go above 4,000 caleries to achive the mass you want horses for courses m8


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

well i want to basically just keep building weight at a steady rate, but keeping it clean and have the minimal level of fat. there no point in me putting 100lbs and have it all fat. i wanted to aim for around 250lbs, see how i look and feel about my physique and either get bigger or lean up and improve my definition.


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

Here is a chart from a book by will brinks I have put your weight in as 90 kg I have used the top end on all results

20-25 Kcals multiplied by weight (90) 2250 weight loss

25-30 Kcals multiplied by weight (90) 2700 weight maintenence

30-35 Kcals multiplied by weight (90) 3150 slight weight gain

35-45 Kcals multiplied by weight (90) 4050 weight gain for active people.

As you can see your calorie intake is too low, you would actually be in a weight loss situation. Your scales do not take into account your bodybuilding needs.

Another point to remember is your water intake.

CALORIES EXPENDED WATER REQUIRED

2000 66-100 ounces

2500 83-124 ounces

3000 100-149 ounces

4000 116-174 ounces

5000 132-198 ounces

there are 128 ounces in a gallon of water and that would be the minimum recommendation regardless of calories expended. Water helps to eliminate fat and is a must 2 glasses with your meals would cover your intake.

It would be good if a few members could post their calorie intake and current bodyweight ime sure this would help matt, he is obviously a bit worried about gaining fat


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

so if im reading this right, I should be consuming between 3150-4050 kcal and drinking around 116-174, that around 4.5 - 5 litres?

I wouldn't say im worried as such about gaining fat, i just want to ensure that im eating the right amount to gain lean muscle, but so much that im ending up putting on lots of fat.

minilh - check out my diet in the beginners section, i reposted one the other week for help on improvement. be nice to see what you think.

il also work out what my calorie intake in etc during the weekend and post it in here.

thanks for all your help so far btw.


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

I would be inclined to go with the 3000 one that I posted yesterday and see where it takes you. I posted this one to show you that depending on whos book you read the calories required vary greatley. In the end it will be you who decides what your requirements are.


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

well ive tallied up my daily diet and it was actually much more than i realised.

currently:

Kcal - 3633.5

Carb - 564.49

protein - 280.29

fat - 30.58

is this enough? i mean ive stayed the same weight for a while but ive eaten a bit mroe recently and have gained a few pounds, and worked much more intensely, keeping the same routine but in less time.

your thoughts? do i need to eat more?


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

If you have stayed the same weight you will need to increase your calories, If you go for a 1LB weight gain per week you will need to increase your calorie intake by 500 per day, you will need to increase your calories by 3500 to gain 1IB if that is too much of a gain tweak your calorie intake accordingly


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

yeah. well i increased it by about 350 or so, was literally a bowl of oats or something and i started to gain again, gone up a few pounds over the week. felt stronger etc also. so dont know if its just a coincidence or something.

what would you recommend increasing it to? 4,000? more? any thoughts on my protein carb and fat intake.


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

I posted this a while back, I have put in your weight and calorie intake, I have put you in at 3900 calories you will need to alter this if it is too high. As you can see all your nutrient intake needs adjusting your fat intake is way too low

I have found a good formula to work out your nutritional requirements I will use your bodyweight of 200lbs and you can compare these figures with yours.

200lbs bodyweight multiplied by 1.5gms of protein =300gms there are 4 calories per gram so your calories from protein should be 1200

You are eating 3900 calories per day - 1200 from protein = 2700 for fats and carbs. Studies have shown that 15% is the recommended amount of fat from calories that we should be getting. We now have 3900 * .15 = 585cals from fat there are 9calories in a gm of fat so we have 585/9 = 65gms of fat.

2700-585 calories from fats = 2125 calories for carbs there are 4 calories in 1 gm of carbs so we have 2125/4 = 531gms of carbs

you are eating

PROTEIN 280.29 should be 300

CARBS 564.49 should be 585

FATS 30.58 should be 65

The protein is based on 1.5gms per pound of bodyweight but you could change that to what you desire, your carbs and fat would alter accordingly. I hope this helps


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

cheers for that mate,

well im close currently on the carbs and protein, just need to up my fat.

one thing i haven't included is dinner, which will normally consist of a meat and veg. usually something like a pork chop, steak etc. so that will make a difference.

i have put on a few pounds so 200lbs is probably spot on, making that even more useful. il up my diet to 3900-4000 and see how i go and adjust like you said as i progress.


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

If you tweak within the ranges of the formula you should pile on the muscle and keep the fat off. It is very important to keep a food diary, as you have just found out you were eating a lot more than you thought but not enough for the gains that you want. It is so easy to underestimate and easier still to overeat.


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

matt it should read this

2700-585=2115

carbs=2115/4=528.75

new readings

yours should be

280.29 300 protein

564.49 528.75 carbs

30.58 65 fat

my maths are useless


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## ArmyblokeSteve (Feb 20, 2009)

Minilh, great post! I've printed it off and will be modifying my diet accordingly!

Thanks


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

you are very welcome


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

finding it hard to add extra calories into my meals

i added a bowl of oats at breakfast on top of what i was already eating and felt really bloated and sick. i found that my calories are not split evenly during the day. i added up with the bowl of oats and was having over 1000 kcal at just breakfast.

do i just need to let me body adjust to the increase or what?

advice?


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## FAT BOY (Dec 19, 2005)

easyist way to increase your cals without eating to much more is through fats .add olive oil to your shakes a spoon of peanut butter to your meals ect fats are a lot more calerie dense than carbs


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

olive oil? never thought of that

my old diet was 3633kcal, been told i need to increase to around 3900. il edit it tonight as it is a bit bulky in areas. i bowl of alpen is 350kcal so i might add in couple bowls.

thanks


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## minilh (Jan 13, 2009)

you could eat olives and nuts throughout the day, they are loaded with monounsaturated fats yet are not very filling, so you can really pack in the calories


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## Matt741 (Nov 30, 2008)

i think i just need to even out the calories. i was eating a lot in the morning, feeling bloated and then couldn't eat for a couple hours where i should have had a meal.


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