RMR test results - Respiratory Quotient??

getyourbeans

Hi all,

I've had metabolic RMR testing done and I have just been emailed my results. Some of the results I don't understand and I'm wondering whether somebody out there might know what it's referring to.

My Respiratory quotient is measured at 0.886 - the key summary says that
0.60 – 0.82 = Fat metabolism
0.82 – 1.00 = Protein metabolism
1.01 and above = Carbohydrate metabolism

So I assume that means my body is burning protein... is this unusual? Is there anyway I can change it to burning fat? I fasted for 12 hours before the test so I assume it's not referring to what I've eaten (that might be a really silly question).

The other results are all within the normal range for someone my age and sex, although my RR(BPM) is 12.132 - I assume this means my heart rate is at the lower end of normal - hopefully that is a good thing.

Just trying to make sense of my results so if anyone can clarify for me that would be very much appreciated!

DopeItUp

I'm not an expert but when I had my RMR tested, I was told that RQ was basically just a way to determine whether or not your results could be considered accurate. If you haven't eaten in too long, your RQ will be really low (I think <.7) and that would make the machine inaccurate. Likewise if you had recently eaten it would be >1.0 and again it would make the test inaccurate. Basically, the machine is only accurate between .7 and 1.0.

Given your reading you're right in the middle which means the results can be considered valid. I think you're reading too much into what it says about metabolism because you will be burning fat in the presence of a caloric deficit. Period.

Your BPM couldn't have been 12.132, no one has a resting heart rate that low. Even using R-R interval that's still not right. What is the units that the 12.132 is in? You can test your resting heart rate easily anyway. Normal range is 60-100. Lower is generally better, as a result of being in better shape. Athletes will be in the 40s and 50s for example.

getyourbeans

Thanks for the response - I just realised I look like such an idiot, I meant to say breaths per minute (don't quite know what I was thinking there). I'm not really stressing over the results, it's more just a curiosity about what they mean to me and whether they can be manipulated to my advantage. It actually seems to show that I'm basically bang on average, so I'm guessing the accuracy of my calorie counting must be to blame for the snails pace loss - although I do weigh everything.

Thanks for the feedback :-)