Macros or macronutrients are the three categories of nutrients you eat the most and provide you with most of your energy – protein, carbs and fats.
If you've heard the term "macros" before or even some rumblings about a macro counting-type diet, but don't know what it is, I've got you. I break it down and answer your questions. What are macros? What is a macro counting diet anyway? Should you be counting your macros? Spoiler alert: It's not as complicated as you might think. Whatever dietor eating pattern you're already following might even be taking macros into consideration and adjusting the ratio of macros you eat. It's really all semantics. If you haven't heard of macros, perhaps the terms carbohydrate, protein, and fat feel more familiar. Here are the details.
What Are Macros and Why Should You Care?
The term Macronutrients (macros) stems from the Greek word "makros", meaning large. Macronutrients are nutrients you require in large amounts. They are needed in such large quantities because they supply all of your daily energy. Macronutrients are essentially your calories from food broken up into three major nutrient groups:
Carbohydrates
Protein
Fat
Each macronutrient provides important nutrients for daily function and survival, and getting the right balance of all three is crucial for maintaining lean muscle, burning fat, and staying healthy. Meaning tracking macros may play a key role in changing your body composition.
Macros also play a part in supporting better energy control, mood balance, appetite, and overall fitness performance.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are the body's quickest and easiest source of fuel, and the preferred source of energy for your brain. They are especially important for high endurance training and explosive strength (needing to be quick on your feet and pushing heavy objects requires carbs). They are also the source of energy your body uses when your fight or flight mode kicks in! When you eat carbs they are either used for immediate energy or stored in your muscles or liver as a reserve source of energy. When you eat too many carb calories or aren’t using all the carbs you consume, excess carbs can be stored as fat.
Fat
Fat is your source of long-lasting energy and plays a role in supporting good health through nutrient storage and hormone production. At rest, and during moderate training, the body prefers to use fat for fuel. This is because fat provides more calories for less work (it has twice as many calories per gram as carbs). You can also store a lot more fat for reserve fuel compared to carbs that are limited by muscle and liver capacity. Calories from fat can be used for immediate energy but, when calories are in excess, fat is stored as body fat.
Protein
Your daily protein needs are directly related to your body weight and fitness level. Protein is the builder nutrient - working to actively maintain, repair, and create just about every single cell in your body. This is exactly why high protein intake is recommended to help build muscle. Higher protein consumption may also support fat loss.
Macros vs Calories
Weight loss is achieved by decreasing the quantity of what you eat (aka reducing your daily calorie intake), whereas fat loss requires you to change the quality of your diet. In other words, fat loss or muscle gain can be triggered when you start tracking your macros because of the way your body utilizes them. Calorie control is the first step in changing your body. Fine-tuning your macronutrient intake is the next level up.
Macronutrients vs. Micronutrients
There is a lot of talk around an "if it fits your macros" (iifym) approach to dieting, but macronutrients are only one piece of the puzzle. There are also micros to consider when it comes to nutrition needs. Micronutrients (micros), on the other hand, are nutrients needed in smaller amounts, and they do not provide a source of calories to the diet. These include all of the essential vitamins and minerals we need each day. You can likely eat a lot of unhealthy foods and still hit your macros, but you'll get better results if you focus on diet quality as well. I'm talking about choosing more nutrient-dense foods instead of just focusing on your daily macros.
Is Alcohol a Macro?
This is a question I get asked A LOT!! Alcohol is also technically a macro since it provides calories, but is not considered an essential nutrient for health so it is often left out of macro diet plans. You should still track your calorie intake from alcohol since this will definitely affect your progress and ability to lose weight or gain muscle. Alcohol provides a significant amount of calories - in fact, each gram of alcohol provides seven calories per gram.
If you are looking to lose body fat you may want to consider drinking less alcohol. Your body will prioritize metabolizing toxins from drinking before other macros, slowing down your metabolism and increasing how much fat you are storing from food. This can prevent you from burning as much fat.
So now what?
If you’ve come from a dieting or restrictive eating past, you are well aware of the systemic harm diets have been long causing which has only worsened in the social media day and age. Food is meant to fuel our bodies, so we want you to understand that through some basic science, but more importantly, we want you to FEEL the difference. How long does that take you may wonder? As quick as five days and as long as 14 days! (And potentially as long as 3-6 months with a history of hormonal or metabolic damage.)
What happens is people get to feeling better and then they go back to their old ways, disrupting the changes that were only just beginning to take place. Our bodies are not robots and we can’t reprogram them automatically, we have to do this manually and consistently over time.
Our cells are constantly in a cycle of cell proliferation, repair, death, replenishment etc. and we are literally built and repaired on the cellular level from nutrients we absorb from the food we eat. Do you want a house built of sticks and mud or steel bricks and mortar? You have the profound opportunity to make those changes with every food choice you make!
In addition to eating your macronutrients combined together, I encourage you to utilize real food sources, eating as many colours in fruits and vegetables as possible. I ask you to get a minimum of five a day, but more is even better! As you start adding in more colors and eating proper combinations of macronutrients, many other things fall into place from a dietary standpoint: fiber, omega-3, and antioxidant intake, improved digestion and absorption and more. While our bodies work to get back to a place of optimal functioning, it prioritizes healing what’s most important first. Your fat cells will eventually begin decreasing and your weight loss will come, but it may be slower as your body recovers and repairs long term damage. You will become a better version of yourself instead of just shrinking down.
Be patient with yourself.
Trust the process.
You’re allowed to succeed!
Love,
Liz
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