Last week I taught you all about calories and how to start tracking them. This week we're going to go a step further and talk about MACROS.
So, what the fuck are macros?
Macros, or macro nutrients, are things your body needs in large quantities and are made of up three different calorie sources: carbohydrates, protein, and fats.
(On the flip side, micro nutrients are needed in small amounts - vitamins and minerals.)
Each macro has a specific calorie amount. Carbohydrates and protein are 4 calories per gram, and fat is 9. It's a shame that the most delicious macro is the most calorie dense, but here we are.
Carbohydrates are you bodies favorite source of energy. Your body fucking loves carbs. You can find them in foods such as grains, fruits, beans, and vegetables. They have three different components: fiber, starch, and sugar. Fiber and starch are complex carbs and sugar is a simple carb.
Complex carbs (think root vegetables, multigrain pastas and breads, oatmeal and quinoa) take longer to break down in your system and therefor can help you feel full for longer. This makes them extra great for breakfast. Who wants to eat a bunch of food early in the morning, only to have a stomach that's growling as soon as they get in the office? An office that probably has donuts in the break room. And since you're hungry from your non-filling breakfast, you can't resist that donut, as stale as it may be and now you're feeling guilty about eating it because you were saving those calories for a glass of wine after dinner and since a donut also doesn't have any complex carbs you're just going to be hungry in an hour...BUT now that you've learned this you can incorporate oatmeal and whole grain toast into your breakfasts and will never have to lust after a stale donut again.
Now, before we go any further let me just interrupt myself and say that simple carbs are not necessarily bad. Carbs in general are not bad. There's a time and place for each which I'll explain soon. But I'm going to say it until my voice is raw because carbs have a bad rep: carbohydrates are not bad. They won't make you fat. Remember last week when we learned that weight gain is just a matter of eating more calories than we burn? Energy balance and whatnot? Okay, cool.
When we do consume more carbs than our bodies need, they are stored as fat. When we're in a calorie deficit, our bodies dip into that stored fat for energy.
Alright. Simple carbs. Think sugar. Raw sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, corn syrup, fruit, honey, Stevia. Guess what? Your body breaks them all down the same. Keep on using honey to sweeten your coffee if you like, but don't fool yourself into thinking it's extra healthy or anything. Your body is going to do the same same thing to that honey as it would a simple syrup or straight up sugar.
Like I mentioned with the donut, simple carbs don't keep you full for long. Your body can digest them super easily and BOOM energy spike. Which is really dang convenient if you're about to do lots of moving soon, like lifting weights, your weekly soccer game, chores around the house, whatever it is.
Don't fear the simple crabs. Fruit is delicious. And also packed with a butt load of other nutrients.
The overall theme here, with foods, calories, workouts, etc is balance.
Fat. It makes everything so dang delicious. Low fat milk in your cappuccino? It's just not going to taste as good as full fat. Low fat fro you? Nah-uh. Gimme that full fat Ben and Jerry's, please.
Saturated. Trans. Monounsaturated. Polyunsaturated. Omega 3s. Omega 6s. There's a lot of different kinds. You might've heard that some are good, some are worse than the devil. Some are healthy and "clean".
Today's post is going to keep it pretty simple. I'll go more in depth in the future, but here's the gist of it:
Try to get your fats from quality, unprocessed sources when possible: avocados, nuts, fatty fish, extra virgin olive oil, eggs, cheese, and chocolate. Yep. I'm recommending you eat chocolate. Everything in balance, remember?
Let's move on to the final, and in my opinion, the more important macro: protein. When you think about protein you probably think about super bulky bros in the gym with their shaker bottles making sure to get their protein in the moment their workout is over for ~maximum gainz~. Fear not, this does not have to be you. (And I hope it isn't.) Protein itself is not going to make you bulky and you don't need to have it right after your workout if you don't want.
So what does protein actually do?
Your bodies use protein to help build and repair tissue. When you do resistance training, you're actually tearing your muscle fibers. Sounds kinda fucking weird, right? Fear not, dear reader. Your body builds additional tissues around the "injury", resulting in muscle mass. And what does your body need to help in recovery? Yup. Protein. Protein is also used to to make enzymes and hormones. It's the building block for not only your muscles, but your skin, blood, and cartilage. Your nails and hair? Made up of proteins. Pretty friggin cool.
Unlike fat and carbohydrates, our body does not store extra proteins as fat. There is no reservoir to pull from when supplies get low. That's why it's suggested to get a little bit of protein in with each meal.
Okay, okay: gotta get my protein in, and that fat won't make me fat, and that carbs are important. But how much of them should I be eating?
Calories are King. You won't gain or lose weight consistently if you're not on top of those. But since you're smart and you read last week's article and you're on top of that shit, we'll move on.
The second most important thing to track is protein. When it a surplus, it's going to help you gain muscle mass. When you're in a deficit, it's going to insure that you lose little to no muscle mass. There's no exact number you should hit, but in the range of .8 - 1.1 g of body weight. Train a lot? Aim for closer to 1.1 grams. Train only 2 days a week? Aim for closer to .8 grams. I weigh roughly 117 pounds and I workout about 4-5 times a week, so I generally aim for 1 gram per pound, giving me 117 grams.
What's important is that 117 grams is normally pretty easy for me to hit. 128 (my weight x 1.1) is harder for me to hit on the regular and it's not *incredibly* important I go that high, so I don't stress.
Alrighty, last week you learned how many calories to eat and now you know how much protein you should get. For most of you, this is enough information! You can take the rest of your calories and split your fats and carbs howeverthefuck you like. I recommend trying to get some carbs in before and after a workout, but in the end you gotta do what works for you. It could take some time and a little tweaking, but you'll get there.
As long as you're hitting your calorie and protein goal, you will see results. I promise you.
For those of you are there that like to be more specific or need a specific plan to follow, read on my friend.
So you've set your protein in the .8 grams - 1.1 grams per pound of body weight. On to fats. Aim to get .25-.5 grams of fat per pound of body weight. Really like avocados and ice cream? Aim for .4 or .5 grams if want. This will lead, however, few calories left for carbohydrates.
Unlike protein and fat, the amount of carbs you eat can change depending on if you're in a calorie deficit or a calorie surplus. More muscle means more workouts which means more fuel. And carbs equal fuel, remember?
For those of you in a surplus, aim to get 1 - 3 grams of carbs per pound of body weight. For those of you in a deficit, .5 - 2 grams per pound.
Yes, this is going to take a little bit of math. It's going to take a little bit of adjustments. Everyone has different needs and preferences, and you have to pick the numbers that work best for you.
You can even go crazy and have more carbs on workout days and more fats on rest days. CRAZY, RIGHT?! This is not a crazy rigid structure here. It's flexible. Remember the focus is on overall calories and protein targets. Don't let yourself get all nit picky and stressed out.
Give yourself time to figure out which numbers work best for you! The best way to find out if your numbers are working are to take measurements, progress photos, and take note of how your body feels.
Cool? Cool.
Go smash some goals.
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