A Real Gem

What's Your Resting
Metabolic Rate?

By Laura Paul

From busy traders on Wall Street who sip espresso with frothed milk to moms who pacify their toddlers by frequenting fast food restaurants, Susie Klein, a registered dietician, has worked with all types of clients. No matter what their circumstances, most people want to get in shape and lose excess fat. They wonder why some people can eat all day and never gain weight while other people seem to get fat on carrot sticks and celery.

Klein, an exercise specialist with Plus One Fitness in New York City, says the answer lies in what used to be the mysterious metabolic rate.

For the past three months, Klein has been using BodyGem, a new handheld device that measures the number of calories her client burns each day at rest. The tool gives individuals an edge – an accurate reading of his or her resting metabolic rate (RMR). "It gives them a reality check," says Klein. "It's an exact science. Women especially get excited when they find out their metabolic rate." BodyGem has been on the market for about a year.

Trying to lose weight without knowing one's RMR is like trying to balance a checkbook without knowing the amount of money coming in. Klein has tested people with metabolic rates ranging from 1150 to 1900. Her own RMR is 1490.

Christopher Solar, a personal trainer at Bally Total Fitness in Carrollwood, Fla., has tested people with metabolic rates that were slightly higher, ranging from 1500 to 2300. Metabolic rate varies from person to person depending on body composition, stress, medications and habits such as smoking cigarettes. "This precisely tells you what your body burns," says Solar. "On your own, you would just be guessing."

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