Firstly, measure your hips, and note the figure down.
Then, measure around your stomach at your navel and note that figure.
Lastly, note your height in inches (ie. If you are 5’6″ it is 66 inches). Convert from metres to inches online if need be.
Look at the charts below and notice it is split into six columns. Two for hips, two for abdomen, two for height. This is page 216/217 in ‘The Zone’ book by Barry Sears which is a great book and well worth buying.
Find your hip measurement in inches in the far left column. You will see a number in the column next to it which is entitled Constant A. For example if your hip measurement is 43.5 inches, the correlating number is 51.99. Note down the number which is next to your hip measurement.
Then, move across to the middle two columns for your abdomen. Do the same again for your navel measurement. Note the number next to your measurement in inches, which is entitled Constant B.
Then move to the two right hand columns on the page, for height, and find your height in inches. Make a note of that number, called Constant C.
Add the Constant A and B number together, and then deduct Constant C from that number. That number is your percentage of body fat.
For Constant A I might have 50.59
For Constant B I might have 25.78.
Add them together to make 76.37.
For constant C I might have 40.23.
Deduct 40.23 from 76.37 to get 36.14. That is the percentage of body fat.
Now weigh yourself and convert your result to pounds (lbs) if weighing in kilos.
Then, multiply your weight by your percentage of body fat with a calculator.
For instance, if you are 187 lbs with a body fat percentage of 36.14%, multiply 187 by 36.14%. You would get the number 67.58. Whatever number you get is how much the fat on your body weighs in lbs.
Now, deduct the weight of the fat on your body from your total body weight. For instance, 187 lbs (total body weight) minus 67.58 lbs (total body fat). The result would be 119.42 lbs. That number is your lean body mass; what you would weigh if you had no fat on you at all.
Now, estimate how much you are exercising each week:
0.5 – No activity at all – sedentary
0.6 – Light fitness training such as walking
0.7 – Sports participation 3 times a week
0.8 – daily aerobic training or weight training
0.9 – Extensive daily weight training
1.0 – Extensive daily weight training and intense sport training twice a day
Now, multiply your lean body mass by the number next to the exercise you are doing. For instance, if your lean body mass was 119.42 lbs and you are walking every day, you would multiply 119.42 by 0.6. The result would be 71.65. This is the amount of protein you need to eat every day for your body to work properly. 71.65 grams of protein (note this is in grams).
Take that number and divide it by 7. The reason for this is there are 7 grams of protein in every stipulated protein block. (Because protein is SO essential, all other food intake needs to be balanced to it.)
71.65 divided by 7 would be 10.23. So, you would need to eat 10 blocks of protein every day, rounded down to a whole number.
Each time you eat a block of protein, you must eat a block of good fat and a block of good carbohydrates at the same time. If you eat 3 protein blocks at one sitting, you must also eat 3 fat and 3 carbs. ALWAYS. Never less, never more. That is what your body needs to be in balance.
As your measurements change each week, come back here and redo these numbers, to find your new fat percentage, your new fat weight and your allowance for protein blocks will change each week. If you start exercising more, also redo the numbers. You might go from 10 to 13 blocks a day to eat, even with a little more exercise.
Always eat the amount that is stipulated each day, otherwise the body will run on empty by the end of the day. It is not always easy. I failed a few times.
Save one block for just before bed so you can fuel your body to burn fat overnight.
If this has you totally foxed, I will happily help you. Just email me!