How to Think About Your Macros

There is a lot of overthinking when it comes to dieting. Should I eat more of this? Should I eat less of that? I want to simplify it.

When you strip it back, dieting comes down to how much protein, carbohydrate and fat you are eating. Micronutrients such as vitamins and minerals matter too, but for weight loss specifically, the macros are what move the needle.

Protein first

Protein is the most important of the three. Having protein with every meal helps you most with burning fat, holding onto muscle and recovering from your sessions.

As a rough guide: if you are eating chicken, salmon or beef, a portion about the size of your palm at each meal will get you close to enough protein across the day. No weighing required.

Then fat

Aim for roughly thirty percent of your calories from fat. It varies with your goals and what you actually like eating, but thirty is a sensible general number.

Fat matters for your hormone levels, your sex drive, and for your body being able to absorb certain nutrients at all. If you are eating keto, your fat will be considerably higher, and that is a separate conversation.

I am not telling you to avoid fat. I am telling you to know that it is the most calorie-dense of the three, so it adds up faster than you expect.

Carbohydrates last

Carbs are the least important part of your diet in the sense that they are the only macronutrient your body does not need to survive. So when you are planning a day, carbs are roughly whatever calories you have left.

That said, they are your main source of energy, and you generally need energy to get through a day. My recommendation is to eat fewer carbs than the other two and then add more depending on how active you actually are. The last thing you want is to be lethargic all day because you have no fuel.

• Fruit is good for recovering energy.
• If you love pasta, eat pasta. Just make sure there is more protein on the plate than pasta.

That is genuinely most of it. Protein at every meal, fat at about thirty percent, carbs to fill the gap and scaled to how much you move.

If you want this set up properly around your body and your week, book a free discovery call. I am a certified nutrition coach as well as a trainer, so it comes as part of the same conversation.