How is a body's metabolism tested?

How is a body's metabolism tested?

John Spencer Ellis (Author, TV Show Host, Trainer and CEO, National Exercise & Sports Trainers Association) gives expert video advice on: Can prescription drugs help me lose weight? and more...

Your metabolism can be tested using a medical device which can be found at your doctor's office, with an exercise physiologist, a personal trainer, a university or a registered dietician or a clinical nutritionist. It's a very simple test which takes about ten to twenty minutes. You simply breathe through a tube, they analyze the gas exchange that takes place as you breathe in and out and that gives a value which would probably be about 1,100 to about 2000. That means you would need 1100-2000 calories a day to sustain yourself, just sitting down quietly with your eyes closed for twenty-four hours which is how many calories you would need to consume just to maintain your body's pressure as it is.