unlock the nutrition code - macros
The world of nutrition is VAST and overwhelming, even for those that consider themselves food experts. New studies and new diets are constantly popping up, adding to the confusion. So, if you’re feeling lost, you’re not alone.
Don’t despair! There is hope! Although nutrition is a freakin’ rabbit hole of information - most of us will not need to have a deep deep understanding of food in order to live a healthy life and achieve a healthy body composition. Thank God, right? Throughout my years of training clients and what I’ve found to be practical for me (a mom of 4 and entrepreneur) is to reduce food down to MACROS.
no matter how long you’ve felt like a food failure - you will be able to master this….
If you want food to be easy, here’s what you need to know: Macros aka Macronutrients
Macros are nutrients we need in large quantities and there are only 3 - that’s it! And I’m sure you’re familiar with them already: Protein, Fat & Carbohydrates. This is how your body determines what it’s going to do with the food you eat. It’s literally like a food code. Okay, so if you’ve already heard of these things, then why isn’t food easy yet, right?! Well, you’ll need to know how you can apply this knowledge to your daily life.
All food is made up of one or more of the 3 macros. Fruit is almost entirely made of carbohydrates. Bacon is fat and protein but no carbohydrates. Nuts have a little of all 3. You got the picture.
So, the bigger question is: how do we figure out how much of each thing to eat?
Now that you have the raw tools, you need to use this free calculator to determine your daily calorie needs: https://tdeecalculator.net/
This website will also give you suggestions for your macros based on your goals. Play around with it and find a macro plan that fits your goals. Don’t be scared of the numbers! Forget every diet, friend or random influencer that has suggested that you cut a certain macro or do something very restrictive with your food.
Once you’ve identified your macro plan, write those numbers on a note for your fridge and take a picture or put them in your phone. What I also like to do after that is decide how many times I like to eat and divide each macro goal by the number of times I eat. For example, if my daily goal is 150g of protein and I eat 5 times a day (including snacks) I would have 30g of protein each time I eat. Then write those “per meal” numbers down.
“if it fits your macros” is an effective plan that can adapt with you throughout your life
I like to call this your “food budget.” I want you to spend your whole budget every day trying not to go over too often. Usually I find that clients are more full then they were when they were “winging it” and they often feel overwhelmed/scared by the amount of food. Try not to be afraid of this - hitting your macros is going to force you to eat a lot healthier than you may be used to and those foods are more satiating! Your body will adapt by burning more calories and you won’t continue to feel that full. You’re also going to have more energy!
How do we know what the macros are in each food???
The best tool I’ve ever used for this is the MyFitnessPal app. It’s easy to use, the database is huge and you can scan barcodes. It doesn’t get any easier than that.
Okay, so you’ve figured out your calorie and macro needs, you’ve got them posted on your fridge and you’ve downloaded the app.
What is the next step?
Start entering your food! When you’re learning about which foods hit your macros, you should enter the food before you eat it. Let’s say you usually eat oatmeal with blueberries and almonds for breakfast. So, put that in and see how it breaks down. You’ll see that it’s mostly carbs with a little protein and a little fat. Then, you start playing with the numbers until they match your macro plan. For example, if the oatmeal had 5g of protein and you need 30g, then what will you add to get the remaining 25g? Once you get your foods dialed in, you can confidently check that meal off the list!
Wash, rinse and repeat for the remaining meals of the day!
this simple pattern is both effective and flexible. If your needs change, the macros change with you. Seeing the results at the end of the day is rewarding and once you get to know your food and what works for your macros, you become empowered to make better choices and to crush goals!
Sometimes we know the right thing to do, but we are struggling to be consistent. Check out this post about 3 Steps to Being More Consistent
