Jon-Carlo Astorina

Contributing Writer

Calculating Calorie Requirements

*Note: Every BODY is different. What works for one may not work for another. Without a personal evaluation it is not possible to formulate a “cookie cutter” plan that is guaranteed to work. The following details are what I have found to be, generally, successful methods. *

Putting a diet together can be a daunting task. Follow these simple guidelines to put together a diet that suits your goals and needs.

Taking your body type into consideration, use the below equations to determine your caloric baseline.

Endomorphs – body weight x 14.

Mesomorphs – body weight x 15.

Ectomorphs – body weight x 16.

*Example: A 200 pound endomorph would have maintenance of approximately 2,800 calories.

If the goal is to gain, you want to do so slowly. Bulking does not mean stuff your face with junk food, nor does it mean eating until you burst, every chance you get. You want to put on muscle, not fat. I recommend starting by adding 500 calories to your maintenance number. Track your weight weekly and when you stall, simply add another 100 calories at a time.

If the goal is to lose weight, subtract 500 calories from your maintenance number. Just like with bulking, you want the change to be slow. Losing too much too fast will result in muscle loss, not fat loss.

Once your calorie requirements are determined, you need to figure out where the calories will come from. The general guideline I start with is 50:30:20 (Carbs, Protein, Fat), give or take a little…

For example, if our 200 pound subject wants to gain muscle, he would need roughly 3,300 calories per day to start. With 20% of his calories coming from fat (approximately 73 grams of fat). With 50% of his calories coming from carbs (approximately 413 grams of carbs). With 30% of his calories from protein ( 250 grams of protein; That’s 1.25 grams/lbs of body weight). I would formulate the diet as follows, to round the numbers evenly and bring the protein a little higher:

70 grams of fat = 630 Calories
400 grams of carbs = 1,600 Calories
275 grams of protein = 1,100 Calories

Total: = 3,330 Calories
When trying to cut weight, I calculate it slightly different. I start with fat again and assign 25% of my calorie allowance. Protein comes next at a strict 1.5 grams per pound. Carbs follow in whatever amount is left to fill the calories.

For example, if our 200 pound subject wants to lose weight he would be looking at the following calories:

200×14 = 2,800 maintenance.  2,800 – 500 = 2,300 calorie diet.

63 grams of fat (25%) round down to 60 = 540 calories
300 grams of protein (1.5g per pound) = 1,200 Calories
140 grams of carbs (remaining calories) = 560 Calories

Keep in mind, a good carb meal or “reefed” is recommended weekly when taking in less than 1 gram of carbs per pound of body weight.

Good Luck!

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Jon-Carlo Astorina is a Team JBT Athlete

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