A couple of months ago I posted something about the Resting Metabolic Rate test I was going to do. Well, I had it done this Wednesday, so I wanted to give ya’ll an update.
My magic number is 2,131 Kkal. That means that if I lay down and do nothing, I will still burn 2,131 calories in a day.
The test involved me breathing in to a tube hooked up to this big machine. I had to put a clip on my nose and breath through my mouth for 10 minutes. It feels a bit weird, like you might not be getting enough air, but then you get used to it. Still, it’s somewhat uncomfortable.
After the test the doctor went over my results. Basically he gave me "kudos" on loosing 30 pounds so far. I told him what I was doing in terms of diet, exercise and all that good stuff. He explained that my loss would be more safe and consistent if I stayed close to that 2,131 number. He said that unless I am completely sedentary, which I’m not, with all the activities through the day I am burning about 2,800 – 3,000 calories. Which means that I have been forcing my body in to a semi-starvation mode when I was trying to stay at about 1,400 – 1,700 calories. My body will work better if I stick to about 2,000 – 2,200 range.
I hope this helps. If anybody has any questions about the test or the consultation that followed, let me know. I’ll check back here now and then.

Okay, I have a question. Does every gp have the equipment to test this or did you have to go to a special doctor or something? Because I have been wanting to have this done for ages.

Very good information to have! I'll have to consider having this test--maybe next time I see my dr. if it doesn't cost too much.

The numbers I get from FitDay seem to work for me, though--and that's good.

Jay

okay....so how long has it taken you to lose 32 pounds?? Is he saying that if you have been say losing 1 pound a week for 32 weeks, that if you continue with your current excersize pattern, that if you increases your calories to 2000, you could be losing 2 or 3 pounds a week instead???? How much did this test cost?? It might be something more of us might decide to have done. sounds interesting but also hard to grasp that you could eat that much more and lose possibly even more weight.

What numbers are you getting from fitday. Is it from somewhere under the reports section?? Does fitday tell you how many calories you need a day to maintain and you decide how many to take away??

To answer some of your questions:
1. I don’t think every GP would have the equipment to do the test, but they should be able to refer you to a place that does have it.
2. I did my test at Kaiser Health Education Center, it cost me $50. The Center is located at a regular Kaiser medical offices building, the kind you would go to see your GP, not the kind you would go for Emergency Room.
3. My FitDay number was close to the test number (2,050) , but I always thought it was too high, so I didn’t believe it. I saw too much variation in my numbers when I used the different formulas, at one point they varied by as much as 800 cal. I guess the biggest reason why I wanted to get it done, was to sort out all the numbers confusion.
4. I have been loosing weight since summer (August), so on average it does come to about 1 pound a week, but in reality it has been very inconsistent, some weeks I would lose 3-4 pounds, sometimes I would go for a month without loosing anything. According to the doc who did the consultation, when I brought my calories too low, I would sabotage my own efforts and according to him, if I stay at the recommended 2,000 – 2,200 range, I should be losing more consistently about 1 – 1.5 pounds per week. I know it sounds strange, but I am going to comply and see how it goes.

well....definately let us know how that goes. Thanks for all the info. Maybe I will have to look into that. Sounds very interesting. Thanks so much for sharing with us!!! Good luck!!!

Thanks Nina! I am going to give my doc a call on Monday to see who I should go to.
I am a numbers gal too and won't believe fitday until it is actually verified for my body. But, I try to stick to or lower my bmr as fitday reckons it is.

Lumifan, I use the download version of Fitday, and I don't know how the online one works. But the website says it has weight and goal planning--maybe in there somewhere. In the download version you go through a planning module to set a weight goal, and based on your estimated metabolism (which it figures according to gender, age, current weight, and activity level) tells you how much you should be eating each day to reach the goal. It also warns you if you try to go below 1200 cals a day, although it doesn't prevent that.

Jay

Hmmm. I don't know about all this. If you're getting an estimate from fitday that is enabling you to lose weight, why would you need to know your actual basal rate? The thing is, it seems to me, that your required calories will change (decrease) as you lose weight--so what is true for you at 280 or 250 will not be true at 180. The better plan, probably, would be to reach your goal weight and THEN get your metabolic rate tested, so you have a good sense of what your maintainance calorie intake should be.

Or is my logic warped?

With Fitday I discovered that the average calories per day DO change as your weight goes down.

What you say does make sense, baffled111--maintenance could be the harder part!

But in NinaV's case, she wanted verification of the numbers, and so why not get them? Now she can feel more confident about her food planning.

Jay

I had the RMR test done about six weeks ago by a registered dietician. My Oxford insurance covered the $70 or so fee.

I was told I burn 1780 just doing nothing, and up to 2100 just living an average lifestyle without any exercise. I'm away visiting DM (mom) right now so I dont have the report with me, but it did confirm to me that fitday's number for the seated work category was about spot on. Since my calorie deficit chart I've been keeping for 12 weeks is also right on target with my weightloss, I'm not sure why I thought I needed the test. Guess that's because I'm also majorly a "numbers gal" (and also a "tracker gal"). LOL.

Anyway, if you really like numbers (and I dont mean mathematics) and calorie counting, then this test may be something for you.