Keto Bariatric Macros: Calculating Your Personalized Weight Loss Plan

Calculating your keto macros is essential for achieving ketosis and staying in ketosis. The process involves determining your macronutrient intake, including carbohydrates, protein, and fat, which are crucial for supporting your health and fitness goals. To calculate your keto macros, you need to first establish your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) or daily calorie burn, which takes into account your basal metabolic rate (BMR) and your activity level. Once you know your TDEE, you can set a calorie deficit or surplus goal depending on whether you want to lose weight or gain weight. Then, you can use specific formulas or keto macro calculators to determine your optimal intake of carbohydrates, protein, and fat. For example, it is recommended to limit carbohydrates to 20-50 grams per day and protein to no more than 0.8 grams per pound of body weight. Finally, your fat intake can be calculated based on your remaining calories after accounting for carbs and protein.

Calculating your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure)

To calculate your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure), you need to first calculate your basal metabolic rate (BMR) – the number of calories your body burns over a 24-hour period while at rest. To do this, you need to take into account physical characteristics such as age, gender, height, and weight.

There are several equations commonly used to estimate BMR, including the Mifflin St-Jeor Equation, Harris-Benedict equation, and Katch-McArdle Formula. The Mifflin-St Jeor equation is often considered the most accurate, and it is used by the Forbes Health TDEE Calculator.

Once you have your BMR, you need to multiply it by an activity multiplier, which is based on your activity level. This could be anything from sedentary to very active, and it will depend on how much deliberate exercise you do, as well as other activities that are part of your job or daily life.

Other factors that can be considered when calculating your TDEE include the thermic effect of food, which is the amount of energy required by your body to process and use food. This can vary depending on the type of food consumed. For example, protein has a larger thermic effect than dietary fat.

Setting a calorie deficit

To lose weight on the keto diet, you need to be in a calorie deficit. This means eating fewer calories than your body burns in a day. The keto diet is a low-carb diet, so you should be consuming only 20 to 50 grams of carbohydrates per day. This will put your body into a state of ketosis, where it burns fat for energy instead of glucose.

To calculate your calorie deficit, you need to first work out your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) or Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR). This is the number of calories your body needs to perform essential functions while at rest. You can calculate this using your age, gender, height, and weight. There are many online calculators that can help with this.

Once you know your BMR or RMR, you need to factor in your daily activities to determine your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE). This is the total number of calories your body burns in a day. By knowing your TDEE, you can then calculate how many calories you need to subtract from your diet to reach your desired weight loss goal.

For example, if your TDEE is 2,000 calories and you want to lose 1 pound per week, you will need to consume 500 fewer calories per day (1,500 calories). This will put you in a calorie deficit, and your body will then burn its reserves of body fat for energy, resulting in weight loss.

It is important to note that the right calorie deficit will vary from person to person and will depend on several factors, including sex, age, weight, height, physical activity, and weight-loss goals. A macro calculator can help you determine a safe and sustainable calorie deficit that won't leave you feeling too tired or hungry.

In addition to creating a calorie deficit, you should also ensure you are consuming nutritious, whole foods and getting enough physical activity. This will help to maximise your weight loss on the keto diet.

Determining your body fat percentage

To determine your body fat percentage, you can use a body fat calculator, which is the easiest method as it requires no special tools or lengthy appointments with a specialist. You can also purchase a body fat scale or use skin calipers to help gauge your body fat.

There are also specific formulas for calculating an estimate of your body fat percentage. The formula differs for men and women and uses different weight calculations:

For women, the formula begins with:

Total bodyweight x 0.732) + 8.987

The tool uses fractions of each body measurement to estimate your body fat percentage.

For men, the formula begins with:

Total bodyweight x 1.082) + 94.42

The tool uses a fraction of the weight measurement to estimate body fat percentage.

You can also use the Body Fat (U.S. Navy Method) or the Body Fat (BMI method). The Body Fat Calculator uses equations developed at the Naval Health Research Center by Hodgdon and Beckett in 1984. The method requires measuring the circumference of specific body parts. The specific equations used are as follows:

Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for males:

BFP = 86.010×log10(abdomen-neck) - 70.041×log10(height) + 36.76

0324 - 0.19077×log10(waist-neck) + 0.15456×log10(height)

Body fat percentage (BFP) formula for females:

BFP = 163.205×log10(waist+hip-neck) - 97.684×(log10(height)) - 78.387

29579 - 0.35004×log10(waist+hip-neck) + 0.22100×log10(height)

Note that these calculations are only estimates as they are based on many different assumptions. For more accurate measurements, you can use instruments such as bioelectric impedance analysis or hydrostatic density testing.

Calculating your protein needs

To calculate your keto protein needs, you must first determine your fitness goal: are you looking to lose weight, gain weight, or maintain your weight? This will dictate whether you need a calorie deficit or surplus.

The next step is to calculate your daily energy needs, or your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure). This is the number of calories your body burns in 24 hours and is calculated by combining your BMR (basal metabolic rate) with your PAL (physical activity level). Your BMR is the amount of energy you spend per unit of time while resting, and is calculated using your gender, age, height, and weight. Your PAL measures how much energy you spend daily when you're active.

Once you have your TDEE, you can calculate your keto protein needs based on your activity level and fitness goal.

• Little to no exercise, maintain/sedentary: 0.6g/pound of body weight per day
• Moderate exercise 2 or more days per week, fat loss/mod active: 0.9g/pound of body weight per day
• Hard exercise 3 or more days per week, gain muscle/very active: 1.1g/pound of body weight per day

For example, a 150-pound moderate active individual looking to lose weight would need 135 grams of protein per day (150 x 0.9 = 135). To get this amount in calories, simply multiply by four (as protein provides four calories for every gram), which gives you 540 calories from protein.

Your keto fat needs can then be calculated based on your remaining calories.

Calculating your fat needs

Firstly, take your carb amount from step 2 and multiply the grams of carbs by 4 to get your calories from carbs. For example, 20g x 4 = 80 calories from carbs.

Now do the same with your protein needs from step 3. For example, 150g x 4 = 600 calories from protein.

Now, add your carb and protein calories and subtract this number from your total daily calorie needs. For example, 1800 daily calories - (600 calories from protein + 80 calories from carbs) = 1,120 calories remaining.

Now, divide your remaining calories by 9 to get the number of grams of fat you need per day. For example, 1,120/9 = 124 grams of fat per day.

Your keto macros are now complete. You can also calculate your keto macros as a percentage. To do this, divide the calories from each macro into your daily calorie needs and multiply by 100%. For example, (80/1800) x 100% = 5% of calories from carbs.

It's important to remember that keto isn't one-size-fits-all, and your optimal macros will likely vary based on your own trial and error.

Frequently asked questions