What is BMR (basal metabolic rate)?

What your BMR tells you

Cleveland Clinic says BMR makes up about 60 to 70% of the energy you use each day, so it's the biggest part of your calorie needs.

Digesting food uses about 10%, and the rest goes on movement.

What affects it:

• BMR is higher in people who are bigger or have more muscle, and generally higher in men.
• It tends to fall with age, mostly because of muscle loss.
• An underactive thyroid lowers it and an overactive thyroid raises it, one reason thyroid health and weight are linked.

What moves your BMR

You can't change your age, height or genes, but building muscle with strength training is the main healthy way to nudge your BMR up.

What helps:

• Eat regular, balanced meals with enough protein.
• Stay active.
• Sleep well.

Eating far too little, skipping meals or fasting can make your body slow its energy use to protect itself, so very low-calorie diets often backfire.

Is BMR on a report?

BMR isn't on a blood report. It's usually estimated with an equation that uses your sex, weight, height and age, and some body-composition machines also give an estimate.