Guides that explain the numbers

A calculator hands you a figure. It rarely tells you which population the equation was built on, how wide the error bars are, or what the number fails to capture. These guides cover that ground, citing the original papers so you can go and read them.

51 articles, page 2 of 5

Body Composition

Why Body Composition Formulas Use Different Equations for Men and Women

Navy, Deurenberg, Devine and Mifflin all carry a sex term. Here is the biology behind those terms, how large they are, and why a binary switch is a crude proxy.

Titus Jones

Fitness

Rest Periods Between Sets: What the Research Changed

Short rest for size and long rest for strength was the standard advice. A 2016 trial and the reviews since it reversed the hypertrophy half of that claim.

Titus Jones

Fitness

Zone 2 Training: The Case For and Against the Internet's Favourite Intensity

Zone 2 is now the default prescription for aerobic fitness. The physiology is real, the evidence thinner than the enthusiasm, and the definition keeps moving.

Titus Jones

Weight Management

Metabolic Adaptation: What Really Happens to Your Metabolism in a Deficit

Adaptive thermogenesis is real, measurable, and smaller than the internet claims. Here is what the evidence shows about leptin, thyroid, NEAT and the missing calories.

Titus Jones

Nutrition

Micronutrients: A Practical Guide to Vitamins and Minerals

Which vitamins and minerals people actually fall short on, what the reference intakes mean, where supplements help and where they do nothing or cause harm.

Titus Jones

Wellness

How to Build Habits That Survive Month Three

The 21-day figure is a myth with no study behind it. Here is what the research on automaticity, implementation intentions and friction actually supports.

Titus Jones

Nutrition

Reading Nutrition Labels: What the Numbers Legally Mean

Label values are regulated estimates carrying wide legal tolerances, not measurements of the package in your hand. Here is where the slack hides.

Titus Jones

Fitness

How Many Sets and Reps? Reading the Dose-Response Evidence

Weekly sets per muscle group drive hypertrophy, and rep ranges matter less than most people think. Here is what the dose-response literature supports.

Titus Jones

Weight Management

Why Weight Loss Plateaus Happen, and What Is Actually Stalling

A plateau is rarely a broken metabolism. It is usually expenditure falling with body mass, intake creeping up unnoticed, or water hiding real fat loss.

Titus Jones

Women's Health

Nutrition During Pregnancy: What Changes, and by How Much

Pregnancy raises requirements for several nutrients far more than it raises energy needs. Here is what the evidence supports, what it does not, and where the numbers come from.

Titus Jones

Body Composition

Lean Body Mass: What It Is and Why It Drives Your Metabolism

Lean body mass is everything you are not carrying as fat, and it sets most of your resting energy expenditure. Here is how it is calculated and what it changes.

Titus Jones

Nutrition

How to Calculate Your Macros Without Guessing

Set protein from body weight, protect a fat floor, let carbohydrate take the rest. The order of operations matters more than the percentages people argue over.

Titus Jones

Read the guide, then run the numbers

Each article links to the calculators it discusses, and each calculator shows the equation and source behind its output. Every article carries a named author and a publication date. Nothing here is medical advice. Our editorial policy sets out how we source, review and correct what we publish.

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