understanding your TDEE can help you manage your health and physique by informing you how many calories you need to consume to maintain, lose, or gain weight.

It's the starting point for every single client we work with, even those who do not have a particular weight loss goal. 

In fact, all of our newest clients have shared that they really don't care about weight loss per se or a number on the scale...

They just want to feel better in their bodies. 

They want to increase their energy. 

They want to avoid being hangry and eating on the fly with zero intention. 

Even if you don't necessarily want to lose weight, you still need to understand the energy requirements of your body to meet these aforementioned goals.

To optimize your physical and mental health, you need to understand your body's unique fueling and resting requirements.

So, we start with TDEE:

Total Daily Energy Expenditure is the total number of calories your body needs to maintain its current weight over a 24-hour period.

This includes calories required for daily activity, digestion, organ function, breathing, circulation, etc.

TDEE can be calculated using factors like age, biological sex, weight, height, and activity level to provide a personalized estimate. 

Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is number of calories your body needs to perform its most basic (basal) life-sustaining functions in a fully fasted and rested state.

How do you survive on less calories than your BMR? It forces you to use other sources for fuel, including your body fat.

BMR is directly increased by the amount of muscle mass you have which is why we prioritize strength training + protein.

Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT) is the energy expended (calories burned) for everything beyond sleeping, eating, or intentionally exercising.

NEAT includes fidgeting, gardening, doing chores, walking up and down your stairs, picking something up, etc.

Increasing NEAT drastically increases total amount of calories burned daily, more than exercise.

Thermic Effect of Food is the total number of calories that you burn in a day for the digestion, absorption, and metabolism of food.

The more unprocessed, whole foods you eat, the higher the TEF.

Protein has a TEF of 25-30%, meaning only 70-75% of those calories are absorbed. 

Protein keeps you fuller longer and helps stabilize blood sugar, which is why we prioritize it at each meal.

Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (EAT) is the total number of calories that you burn in a day from your intentional workout routine.

Notice that calories burned from EAT is the least important in terms of overall TDEE. That's why focusing on nutrition is so important.

Steady state cardio only burns calories during the activity, while strength training increases muscle mass, which raises BMR for even greater calorie burn over time.

If you’ve been relying on what you did in your 20s to maintain your health and physique, you’ve likely hit a wall by now.

Because doing the extremes isn’t sustainable when you add in work, relationships, kids, energy etc.

You likely can’t spend an entire Saturday going on a 30 mile bike ride or just run more to drive fat loss.

Not only due to time constraints but also because relying on cardio and drastic calorie restriction for weight management as you age, without prioritizing protein and strength training, can lead to:

👉 increased muscle loss

👉 down-regulated metabolism (burning less calories overall due to lower BMR)

👉 hormonal imbalances that drive up appetite + increase inflammation

The secret to health and longevity is simple once you have the foundational information and prioritize the habits with the greatest ROI.

That means engaging in a full body, progressive strength training program instead of just doing chest or choosing a random YouTube workout every day.

Muscle is the organ of longevity.

Most people are under-muscled, driving all kinds of health, weight and metabolic issues.

That also means getting honest about your protein intake.

And learning what is an ACTUAL source of high protein (meat, poultry, seafood) vs. what has a little bit of protein (peanut butter).

When you join our 12-week Awaken Your Nutrition program, you’ll get the same nutrition science education that we all received to become certified by the National Academy of Metabolic Sciences.

Because when you understand the WHY, you will never yo-yo again.

Eating well and taking care of your body are skills that many of us were never taught.

Optimize your body, optimize your life.

Join Us!

If you’re interested in learning more about how to lead a balanced life without extreme dieting or excessive exercise, stay tuned to The Green Door Life.

We’re here to support you on your journey to better health with practical, sustainable habits.

[Join Awaken Your Nutrition by 5/31 for a bonus hormones training!]

Got questions? Hit reply and let's talk. We’re here to get you started and support you every step of the way.

Let's go 🔥🔥🔥

Shannon Morse and Lisa Kirby | Creators of Awaken Your Nutrition and Awaken Your Cycles

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P.S. Looking for more nutrition, health, and training support? Here are 2 ways we can help you:  

(1) WATCH OUR FREE MASTERCLASS → Learn exactly what's holding you back in terms of nutrition and exercise. Click here to register and view immediately.

(2) BOOK A FREE CALL → Talk to a team member about which program is the best fit for you based on your goals, lifestyle, budget and more. Click here to reserve your spot (first come, first serve).