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What you burn

``What you burn'' is the number of calories your body uses to provide the energy for everything you do, from heartbeats and breathing to running a marathon. The daily calorie requirement varies quite a bit from person to person depending on size, shape, basic metabolic rate, and degree of physical activity. A rough estimate of calories per day can be obtained by multiplying the ideal weight for your height and body type by a number based on your level of physical activity, ranging from 11 for a pure couch potato to 17 for a person engaged in heavy physical labour or strenuous exercise on a daily basis.

The following tables give estimates of the calories burned per day for men and women at their ideal weight, based on height and body type. The lower number is based on a level of activity characteristic of an office worker who does not exercise, and the high number assumes a moderate degree of physical activity, either as part of your work or through an exercise program. No table like this can be precise--use these numbers only as general guidelines. As you gain control over your weight, you'll determine precisely how many calories you burn every day.

Height in these tables is your barefoot height. ``Frame'' is a measure of the robustness of your skeleton; people vary in this regard from the extremes of ``fragile wisp'' to ``hulkin' bruiser.'' If you aren't sure where you fall on that scale, don't sweat it. As you can see from the table, the variation based on your level of activity and other factors accounts for almost as much as your frame size.

     

Daily calories burned: Men

Height Frame
Feet Inches Small Medium Large





5 1 1427-1784 1542-1928 1652-2065
5 2 1471-1839 1580-1975 1695-2119
5 3 1516-1894 1619-2024 1741-2176
5 4 1561-1951 1660-2075 1787-2234
5 5 1606-2008 1704-2129 1834-2293
5 6 1653-2066 1749-2186 1883-2354
5 7 1700-2125 1796-2245 1933-2417
5 8 1748-2185 1845-2306 1985-2481
5 9 1796-2245 1895-2369 2037-2547
5 10 1845-2306 1948-2435 2091-2614
5 11 1895-2368 2003-2503 2146-2683
6 0 1945-2431 2059-2574 2203-2753
6 1 1996-2495 2118-2647 2260-2825
6 2 2047-2559 2178-2723 2319-2899
6 3 2099-2624 2240-2800 2379-2974
6 4 2152-2690 2304-2881 2441-3051

 

Daily calories burned: Women

Height Frame
Feet Inches Small Medium Large





4 8 1171-1464 1244-1555 1365-1707
4 9 1202-1502 1281-1601 1401-1752
4 10 1234-1542 1319-1649 1439-1798
4 11 1269-1586 1358-1698 1478-1847
5 0 1305-1631 1399-1749 1518-1898
5 1 1344-1680 1441-1801 1560-1950
5 2 1384-1730 1484-1855 1604-2005
5 3 1427-1784 1528-1910 1649-2061
5 4 1472-1840 1574-1967 1695-2119
5 5 1518-1898 1620-2025 1744-2180
5 6 1567-1959 1668-2085 1793-2242
5 7 1618-2023 1718-2147 1845-2306
5 8 1671-2089 1768-2210 1897-2372
5 9 1726-2157 1820-2275 1952-2440
5 10 1783-2228 1873-2341 2008-2510
5 11 1842-2302 1927-2409 2065-2582
6 0 1903-2378 1982-2478 2124-2655

The odds are the number of calories you burn every day will fall within the range given in these tables based on your sex, height, and build. This number is of surpassing importance to anybody interested in controlling his or her weight, yet few people are aware of how many calories they burn every day.


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Next: What comes out Up: The Rubber Bag Previous: What goes in

By John Walker