Let’s talk Macros
What am I supposed to eat? This is a question that so many of us have asked ourselves as we are being constantly bombarded by this diet or that. We hear one day that something is healthy and will elongate your life, but then the next day we find out it’s actually really bad for you. So what gives? Luckily, something you can always depend on is your macronutrients. The three main macros are carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
What do carbohydrates do?
- Main source of fuel
- Provide energy throughout the day
- Supply energy to the brain
- Aid in fat metabolism
What do proteins do?
- Build muscle
- Repair torn muscular tissues
- Are the building blocks of bones, blood, etc
- Maintain pH and fluid balance
What do fats do?
- Store energy
- Keep the organs protected
- Aid in messages being sent between cells
- Carry vitamins in between cells
What is listed above are just a few of the many things that macros do for the human body. Plenty of diets exist today that suggest one severely reduces their consumption of one or more macronutrients. For example, the ketogenic diet has one greatly reduce the number of carbs they eat and instead replace those calories with fat. Or, for a while, fat was considered the devil, and everything you would see in a grocery store had a low-fat option that everyone assumed was healthier.
But carbs, fats, and proteins are called macronutrients for a reason-your body needs them, and they are the most important for your body. Therefore, no severe elimination should occur. If elimination does occur, then the services that nutrient provides for the body will not run nearly as efficiently as they should.
So the real question is how many of each macronutrient do YOU need to be consuming on a daily basis? That all depends on your body weight and how many calories you eat. Follow along with the steps and calculate for yourself, as an example is used.
STEP 1: Figure out how much you weigh.
Example: I weigh 150 lbs.
STEP 2: Figure out how many calories you need to be eating daily.
Example: I need to eat 2,000 calories a day.
STEP 3: Learn how many calories are in 1 gram of carbohydrates, fats and proteins.
1 gram of carbohydrates=4 calories
1 gram of protein=4 calories
1 gram of fat=9 calories
STEP 4: Calculate the amount of protein you need to eat.
Formula: # of lbs you weigh x 1= # of grams of protein
Example: 150 lbs x 1= 150 grams of protein
150 grams of protein x 4 calories= 600 calories
STEP 5: Calculate the amount of carbohydrates you need to eat.
Note: Fifty percent of the average person’s diet should consist of carbs.
Formula: # of daily calories needed x 0.5= # of calories eaten from carbs
Example: 2,000 calories x 0.5= 1,000 calories
(1,000 calories / 4 calories= 250 grams of carbohydrates)
STEP 6: Calculate the amount of fats you need to eat.
Formula: total amount of calories needed – answer from step 4 – answer from step 5= # of calories eaten from fats
Example: 2,000 calories – 600 calories – 1,000 calories= 400 calories
(400 calories / 9 calories= 44 grams)
As you can see above, calculating the macronutrients needed in your daily diet is not too complicated. But how do you know if you are eating the right amount? Labels on the back of every food item will have how many grams of carbs, proteins, and fats exist within a single serving. You now know the conversion rate of calories to grams if you need to apply that as well. You can also use free apps (that offer premium upgrades) such as MyFitnessPal to keep a record of what you are eating to make sure you are staying on track!
To health and happiness