Knowing your BMR is crucial for losing weight — here’s how to find yours
Your basal metabolic rate helps you figure out how many calories your body burns each day, and it's the most important starting place for losing weight.
No matter what your goals, when it comes to nutrition and body recomposition, knowledge is power. And understanding a few key principles, like how to track macros, calories and how to exercise more effectively is especially important if weight loss is your goal.
If you want to lose body fat, gain muscle or maintain your weight, an important metric you should know about is Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). Your BMR is the minimum number of calories that your body needs to function at rest. You may think you only need energy to exercise or complete tasks, but your body has a specific energy need just to complete basic functions like breathing and regulating your hormone levels.
Your BMR is not in itself a tool for weight loss, but it can be a helpful starting point for figuring out how to adjust your diet and exercise goals. The problem with a lot of diets and weight loss programs out there is that they are "one size fits all." But every person is different, so taking one meal plan and applying it to multiple people just does not work. Your BMR is calculated based on several different factors that are personal to you, like your age, gender, current weight and activity level.
