Calculating Your Daily Caloric Needs
Athletes who are looking to alter their body composition typically want to gain muscle, lose fat, or both. There are some scenarios where gaining both fat and muscle simultaneously may be beneficial (such as during a bulk or building phase).
There are a few factors to consider when determine your caloric needs because they largely influence your energy expenditure.
Genetics
Body weight
Body composition
Training Program
Age
The largest contributor is a person’s basal metabolic rate (BMR), accounting for 65-70% of daily energy expenditure. It is an accumulation of the calories required for normal bodily functions such as breathing, blood circulation, and gastro- and renal processes.
The next component for a person’s energy expenditure is from exercise and physical activity. This accounts for roughly 20-30% of total daily energy expenditure, but may be considerably higher in athletes. The highest energy cost is typically seen in aerobic activities involving large athletes for long durations (e.g., football, soccer, basketball). Skill and power sports performed by smaller athletes often have the lowest energy demands.
Another component that can often be overlooked is the thermic effect of food or diet-induced thermogenesis which is the increase in energy expenditure as a result of digestion, nutrient absorption, metabolic work, and store of food in the body. This accounts for 10-15% of total calories burned each day.
While this is good background information to have, the likelihood that the average person may have easy access to BMR or RMR testing to find out what their body naturally burns and how much they should eat in addition to that is low. This usually includes a nutrition lab, a Dexa or Bod-Pod Scan, tests, and follow-up with a nutritionist. To make it simple, I have adapted the chart and examples in the link below to help guide you to determine your daily calorie needs for athletes based on your activity level.
Haff, G. G. & Triplett, N. T. (2016). Essential of strength training and conditioning (4th ed.). National Strength and Conditioning Association.
