Research
Energy balance
Gaining 10% or more body weight triggers a compensatory increase in total energy expenditure (approx. 9 kcal/kg fat-free mass/day in non-obese, 8 kcal/kg/day in obese), which helps resist further weight gain.
If you gain 10% or more body weight, your body will automatically burn more calories per day (by about 8-9 kcal per kg of lean mass). This is a natural defense against obesity. However, this increase may not fully counteract the overeating that caused the gain, so conscious dietary management is still required.
StrongSupportsVERY_HIGH confidence
Maintenance of body weight at a level 10 percent above the usual weight was associated with an increase in total energy expenditure of 9 (SD) 7 kcal per kilogram of fat-free mass per day in the subjects who had never been obese (P<0.001) and 8 (SD) 4 kcal per kilogram per day in the obese subjects (P<0.001).
Why this rating
Same rigorous RCT design as N1.
Source
Changes in Energy Expenditure Resulting from Altered Body Weight
Rudolph L. Leibel et al. · New England Journal of Medicine · 1995
DOI 10.1056/nejm199503093321001
crossover · n=41Cited 1,998×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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