The Study
Effects of increased energy intake and/or physical activity on energy expenditure in young healthy men.
This study gave different groups of young men different diets and exercise plans and measured how much energy they burned. It shows that changing how much you move can change how many calories you burn, but it doesn't prove this will work the same way for everyone else.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
When men ate more or exercised more, their bodies burned more calories at rest—even when they didn't gain or lose weight.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 546 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes—this means your body adjusts how many calories it burns at rest based on how much you eat or move, not just your muscle size.
- 2RMR went up when men ate 50% more food, and also when they exercised 50% more—even if they didn't change how much they ate.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Journal of applied physiology
Year
1994
Authors
M. Goran, J. Callés-Escandon, E. Poehlman, M. O'connell, E. Danforth
Related Content
Claims (4)
When two people consume the same net calorie deficit, their resting metabolic rates and hormone levels may differ depending on how much total energy they are expending through activity and metabolism.
When young healthy men eat fewer calories than they burn, their bodies burn slightly more energy at rest than expected based on the muscle they lose, suggesting other biological changes are contributing to this effect.
When young healthy men increase their physical activity by 50%, their total energy expenditure rises significantly, even if their food intake does not change, indicating that physical activity has a major influence on how much energy the body uses.
When young healthy men consume 50% more calories than they burn, their resting metabolic rate rises, even if their physical activity levels stay the same.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.