Jean in Newcastle Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 He's 5'5", exercises vigorously 1 hour a day but is fairly sedentary otherwise. I've been googling but have gotten answers ranging from 1400 to 2800 calories a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 How close is he to reaching his full growth potential? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 How close is he to reaching his full growth potential? Um, is there a way I should know? (This isn't a snarky question, I really don't know!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Um, is there a way I should know? (This isn't a snarky question, I really don't know!) Yeah, there are calculators for that. http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/growthcharts2/a/height_predictr.htm They were accurate for my two older girls, but the third one with sleep apnea was supposed to be a couple of inches taller. I started using them about 10 years ago, maybe? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lauren R. Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Um, is there a way I should know? (This isn't a snarky question, I really don't know!) You usually can estimate with the Parents Height, with this : http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/usefultools/l/bl_height_pred.htm?gender=NaN&mhf=NaN&mhi=NaN&dhf=NaN&dhi=NaN&page=1 No idea about the calorie thing though. ETA: LOL wrote it at the same time as Barb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Do you feel he isn't eating enough? Do you think he needs to lose weight? These factors would probably influence the answer. My guess would be that he could eat around 2,000-2,500 calories and be within range. However, the above would change that answer. We don't even think about calories for my kids. They eat the portions they want. We do regulate the actual food eaten and limit sugar and such, but otherwise, we just let them eat. Dawn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingnlearning Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 IME-6000 calories a day. HTH! LOL I'd assume the 3K, provide a ton of healthy food and fluids, and hope for the best. My nearly 14 year old son at 5' 10.5" busy active but not cardio active kid eats 3K on average and is naturally thin. We have chickens and he loves fried eggs, thank heavens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 It just seems that unless both you and your husband are pretty short yourselves, a 5'5" 14yo is gearing up for a large growth spurt and will be needing more food. My brother grew almost a foot in height between the ages of 13.5 and 15. He ate all day long and still looked like a skeleton. He doesn't resemble a skeleton anymore, however :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livingnlearning Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 I just flippantly asked my son how many calories he needed a day and he said as many as he can get. YMMV :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 It just seems that unless both you and your husband are pretty short yourselves, a 5'5" 14yo is gearing up for a large growth spurt and will be needing more food. My brother grew almost a foot in height between the ages of 13.5 and 15. He ate all day long and still looked like a skeleton. He doesn't resemble a skeleton anymore, however :tongue_smilie: The 14 year old is already taller than both dh and I. But, dh is Asian. I bring European blood into the equation. I'm only 5'4" but I have brothers who are 5'8" and 6'. Ds is a bit on the chubby side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 The 14 year old is already taller than both dh and I. But, dh is Asian. I bring European blood into the equation. I'm only 5'4" but I have brothers who are 5'8" and 6'. Ds is a bit on the chubby side. Hmm, it sounds to me like he needs to be less sedentary the rest of the day? The interesting thing is, vigorous exercise for an hour only burns about as many calories as wandering around the mall for 2 hours. Maybe he just needs to move more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 Hmm, it sounds to me like he needs to be less sedentary the rest of the day? The interesting thing is, vigorous exercise for an hour only burns about as many calories as wandering around the mall for 2 hours. Maybe he just needs to move more. Which will lead me to my s/o thread. . . (really!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted June 30, 2011 Share Posted June 30, 2011 Which will lead me to my s/o thread. . . (really!) LOL, okay. And to answer your first question, here's how I would do it. As long as your son doesn't have an abundance of muscle, a BMI of 25 or greater (about 150 pounds) is considered overweight. A healthier weight would be closer to 130 or 140. If you take his ideal weight and multiply it by 15 or 16, that should give you the calories needed for basic metabolism and to fuel growth while slowly reaching a better weight. If he had a growth spurt ahead of him all bets are off, but from what you are saying it doesn't sound that way. If he'd done growing, you would multiply his ideal weight by 13 or 14 for basic metabolism. Then you add on what he is burning through exercise. So 140 x 15 is 2100 calories if he is still growing. Another 300 calories for exercise is 2400 calories. If he is finished growing then it would be closer to 140 x 13 is 1820 plus 300 is 2100. Barb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted June 30, 2011 Author Share Posted June 30, 2011 Yeah, there are calculators for that. http://pediatrics.about.com/cs/growthcharts2/a/height_predictr.htm They were accurate for my two older girls, but the third one with sleep apnea was supposed to be a couple of inches taller. I started using them about 10 years ago, maybe? One calculator said that he will be 5'6". Another said that he'll be 5'10"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.