Calculating and counting your macros is a tool that you can use that is all about flexible eating to help get you the results you want.
It works very similar to calorie counting which I have written about before, (you can check out those posts here and here). It works whether you want to gain weight, lose weight, maintain your weight, or try clean eating – without following a strict menu plan.
It might seem a little complicated at first, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll see that it is actually quite easy!
I’m going to walk you through finding YOUR macro numbers below, but first, let’s talk about why it works so well.
The term “macro” refers to macronutrients – protein, carbs, and fats.
Each macro gives you different benefits, so it can be helpful to know you’re getting enough of them. Plus, you get to see how your body responds to different macro breakdowns. For example, some people feel better with more carbs and some with less.
Planning and tracking your macros helps you choose the foods you need to eat to get you the results you want, it gives you real data rather than guessing what you’re actually eating.
The easiest way to do this is to use an online food journal such as MyFitnessPal, Cronometer, or FitBit’s food journal, It will save you a lot of time and effort.
HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR MACROS:
STEP #1: Set your “daily target calorie intake amount” since all your calculations will depend on it. This is a really good calorie calculator to help you figure this out: https://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html
STEP #2: Calculate how much of each MACRONUTRIENT you want to consume.
Protein: This macronutrient helps you build, repair, and maintain your muscle mass and it’s known as the most satiating macro, keeping you feeling full for hours after eating it. Shoot for 20% to 35% of your calories from protein.
Tip: People who work out more generally need more protein to help with recovery.
Fat: Your body needs fat to be healthy. Among other things, fat helps your body convert and use several vitamins and minerals. Experts recommend getting between 20% and 35% of your daily calories from fat.
Carbohydrates: The remaining percentage should come from carbs. Major health organizations recommend you get between 40% and 65% of your total calories a day.
Fibre: This is another number you will want to keep in mind. It’s recommended you get between 25 to 30 grams of fibre from food sources each day.
EXAMPLE: Let’s say you calculated you need 2,000 calories a day, and you work out 4-5 days a week and have a goal of losing fat/maintaining muscle – so you decide to eat 30% from protein, 25% from fat, and 45% from carbs.
30% x 2000 = 600 calories from protein
25% x 2000 = 500 calories from fat
45% x 2000 = 900 calories from carbohydrates
So you can stick with looking at just your calorie targets, but most macro-based programs actually take it a step farther and break those calorie targets into grams for each macronutrient.
Breaking it down into grams helps you be more precise.
4 calories of protein = 1 gram
4 calories of carbohydrates = 1 gram
9 calories of fats = 1 gram
So, in order to figure your gram totals, you simply divide the calories by the appropriate macro number.
From our example above,
600 protein calories ÷ 4 = 150 grams of protein a day
500 fat calories ÷ 9 = 55 grams of fat a day
900 carb calories ÷ 4 = 225 grams of carbs a day
Those are your macros.
I like to stick with a particular macro breakdown for at least a month or so to see how it works, and then changing it up a little if results stall or you feel hungry/tired/etc.
Right now you might be wondering what this all actually means and how to put it into action once you know your numbers.
I will go over that in my next blog post, so keep an eye out!
