Feel like your progress is constantly stinted due to your nutrition habits? Your macronutrient profile may not be supporting the health goals you have. We're going to dive into each macronutrient, the role they play in your body and the must knows about macros to reach your goals. The small shifts & tips we'll discuss below will play a large role in your body (re)composition, athletic performance, and achieving your overall health goals. Grab your beverage of choice & tune into must knows about macros & how to reach your goals, with your online nutrition coach!
Must Knows About Macros
You already know that food is fuel and essential to you being able to function daily and live a healthy life. Though, what you may not be keen on is how your food breaks down & how proteins, fats, & carbs all play a unique role in your body, your energy levels & your body (re)composition.
Protein
The best goes first. Okay, as an online Nutrition Coach & remote Personal Trainer , I may be biased, but only because I know how vital protein plays a role in your nutrition, no matter what your goals are AND because it’s the one macronutrient that often goes under consumed. One of the biggest distinctions between protein, fats & carbs, is that protein is the only macronutrient that is not stored in the body, meaning that it's used for nearly all bodily functions. Protein is also the leading macronutrient that supports satiety (the feeling of fullness). You may experience this most when snacking on a bag of chips or a bag of popcorn, where you're continuously eating, but you're not feeling full. These snacks alone are primarily carbs & fats, which give you energy, but don’t keep you satiated. Choosing a high protein snack is going to keep you fuller longer and lead to less mindless eating. Protein is also the main macronutrient that is responsible for building and repairing muscle. Whether you're on a weight loss, muscle gain, or weight maintenance journey, having optimal (vs. recommended) daily protein intake is going to support you in achieving those goals. The recommended daily allowance (RDA) for protein is based on scientific studies and provides a baseline need of protein intake for a general population. The RDA for protein is .36 grams per pound of body weight (.8g/kg). Throughout numerous studies, it has become even more apparent that having a more individualized approach to your protein levels and exceeding the RDA for protein can enhance performance, development within youth and aging populations, support maintaining body composition and recomposition, such as weight gain or weight loss.
Where you can start:
Start small with finding ways you can add protein into your current meals and snacks. Get clear on what your usuals are, start reading your nutrition labels & targeting higher protein foods into meals, snacks and desserts.
Then, identify where your current protein levels are, as far as grams per day, by tracking your daily food intake, based on your normal eating habits. Do this for at least 2-4 weeks to capture enough viable data before changing your protein intake and meals to meet your new goals.
When you're ready to increase your protein to a targeted, optimal level based on your activity type and intensity, use these ranges below as a guide. While a more tailored protein intake is optimal to achieving performance goals, body (re)composition & long term muscle maintenance, focusing on the recommendations shared below will put you in a great starting spot!
Your optimal protein intake will be heavily dependent on your biometrics (height, weight), body composition and performance goals, as well as activity level.
Here are general protein recommendations you can use based on your current activity level & type:
No regular activity = .36g/lb body weight (baseline) to .55g/lb bodyweight
Light to Moderate Cardiovascular training = .55g/lb bodyweight to .73g/lb bodyweight
Light to Moderate Resistance training = .68g/lb bodyweight to .91g/lb bodyweight
Moderate to Vigorous Cardiovascular training = 68g/lb bodyweight to .91g/lb bodyweight
Moderate to Vigorous Resistance training = .77g/lb bodyweight to 1g/lb bodyweight
For example, a 150lb, moderate to vigorous resistance trainer who strength trains 2-4x/week, it would be recommended to consume between 115.5g - 150g of protein per day based on activity level.
Formula= .77g x bodyweight = daily protein target
If you’re interested in a more tailored macronutrient breakdown, click the link below to schedule your 1:1 Custom Macro Profile session with me!
If you know you don’t eat enough protein & need support in curating a targeted daily protein target to support your goals, click the link below to schedule your custom macronutrient profile strategy session!
Fats
Permission granted to live your best fat life! Fats are broken down into a few categories: saturated, unsaturated (mono and poly) & and trans. Fat is the body’s 2nd major energy source and unlike protein, when fat is not used for energy, it is stored in the body. For every one gram of fat, that equals nine calories, which is while you’ll usually see your total target grams of fat per day much lower than that of protein and carbs (which are both 4 calories per 1 gram). Before you put fats on the back burner for their higher caloric ranking, fats are what dissolve essential vitamins such as A, D, E, & K which support several everyday functions that your body relies on. You’ve likely heard of or maybe even tried the ever trending “Keto” diet, which is when you are forcing the body to use fats as the primary energy source vs. the normal carbohydrates, and your body enters a state of “ketosis,” hence the name. I discuss more about Keto & several other fad diets in my online nutrition program, BITES. Where you can start: A rule of thumb you can follow is focusing on primarily unsaturated fats and limiting saturated fats to 10% of your total daily value (%DV). Choosing lean meats & dairies will support your body in dissolving key vitamins and minerals it needs as well as keep cholesterol levels in healthy ranges. Consuming more unprocessed and whole food fats will support you in having more unsaturated fats such as raw nuts, seeds & oils.
Carbohydrates
Before we get into it, carbs are not public enemy #1! You probably have heard before, “eating carbs makes you gain weight.” Myth busted: this is a false claim. Carbohydrates are the body’s primary fuel source and similar to fats, when excess is consumed, it’s stored for energy. Your carbs are your quick burst energy, that is why you likely see athletes eating heavy carb-loaded meals before a big race or game, known as “carb-loading”. That doesn’t mean carbs are only for athletes or the ones who are burning an exponential amount of energy on a daily basis. Everyone needs carbs for not only physical energy, but mental energy as well, since carbohydrates are the brain's desired energy source (glucose). Carbs are broken down into 2 overarching categories: starches and sugars. From there we have additional categories on how these are processed within the body, such as: simple sugars, complex starches and fiber. Carbohydrates are vital in every nutritional regime to support energy levels, healthy brain function & activity, maintain blood sugar levels, support healthy digestion and so much more. Where you can start: Ensure you’re having a variety of carbohydrates from complex starches and fibers such as vegetables, grains and potatoes as well as simple carbs such as whole fruits. Choosing natural sugars over processed syrups and sugars will support you in reducing your overall daily intake of added or processed sugars that are not naturally occurring in the food. Limiting your total daily added sugars to less than 10%DV is a great way to reduce the consumption of processed sugars (carbohydrates).
Where & what to start today
All in all, here a few things you can start doing today to learn more about your current eating habits and develop your nutritional education:
Read your nutrition labels and ingredient facts. Understanding what is really inside the food that you're purchasing will help you not only achieve your nutrition goals, but also enhance your own nutritional education.
Cook meals at home ahead of time. This (almost) goes without saying, however this can oftentimes be the hardest part in achieving your nutritional goals. Our society is so accustomed to having everything quick and easy that food options like drive throughs and delivery service make their way into your normal routine. While these are *essential* in moderation, meals can certainly be cooked & prepped at home with ease and speed, with the right guidance, tools & support! If this is an area you need help with, snag my Meal Planning 101 guide here.
Develop your nutritional education. The more you learn about science backed nutritional practices, the easier it will be to apply in your own life and achieve your goals. If all things nutrition feels like a struggle for you and you’d like to develop a balanced nutrition routine that supports your goals & that you enjoy, check out my online nutrition course, BITES, that you can take totally at your own pace or join the VIP program for 1:1 support.
You can achieve your goals while expanding your nutritional education with the BITES Self Study program or the VIP Cohort! Access the self study, online nutrition course and get started instantly or for a more tailored, 1:1 approach to your goals & learning, add yourself to the waitlist for the next VIP cohort!
Click the link below to learn more about my online nutrition course, BITES, and if it’s a good fit for you!
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