It seems that more and more people are talking about “Macros” these days. Why the transition from calories to macros? Which is easier? Are they related? Is one more important than the other? Which one is the right one for you?
It’s understandable why for so long people have tried to lose weight by simply counting calories. The idea is that if you burn more calories than you consume then you will lose weight. While that is true, by merely counting calories it is possible to lose muscle, which actually causes your body to store more fat. Sounds counterproductive, right? It is! Many people have tried to simply eat as little as possible and end up disappointed when they step on a scale and see that they haven’t lost as much as they had hoped. Think of it like a bag of coins. The bag contains a mix of pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters. If you don’t take the coins out and count them how can you be sure how much money you have in that bag? Does the bag have $4? Does it have $7? While everything in that bag is a coin, the value of each differ. And this is where Macros come into play.
Macro nutrients are simply protein, carbohydrates and fats. The reality is that we all need each of these macro nutrients in amounts that vary person to person to function at a high level. It should be understood that nutrition is not about deprivation. It exists to enable us to get the most out of our bodies and in turn, our lives. Age, gender, height, current weight, exercise levels, physique and health goals and more all factor into determining the right amounts of Macros for you. Whether you go to the gym once a week or six times a week, knowing how many grams of protein, carbohydrates and fats to eat on a daily basis will enable you to enjoy your nutrition and feel like you are in control!
At Max Muscle the first thing we do is determine your body type. Are you an endomorph, mesomorph or ectomorph and how can you tell? What does it matter? Most of us have someone who we would like to look like. We often compare ourselves to them. While that is fundamentally not wrong, simply eating what someone else eats will not equate to looking like they look. To use another monetary example, think of it like bills. We all pay them but amounts paid vary person to person. Your personal payments need to match your personal bill statement.
Over the last decade, phone aps and various nutrition specialists have finally approached weight/fat loss focusing on both calories and macros. We applaud this move and even use these aps ourselves to aid us in guiding our own nutrition. While we use these aps for their convenience, we don't use their suggestions. They generally still approach weight loss by creating a caloric deficit and loosely apply percentages of Proteins, Carbohydrates and Fats based on a "cookie cutter" approach and apply the same percentages to everyone. There are others which subscribe to Macro percentages which follow a Keto plan or other diet philosophies and while this is a step in the right direction, they may fall short. We feel a more individual approach may be better and over the last 15 years, be have helped thousands of people lose weight and getting in better shape.
At Max Muscle, we use a system we call the Macro Blue Print. The Macro Blue Print was designed by a Certified Nutrition Specialist and we use it to help anyone looking to make positive changes to their weight and their general health.
So if you have made it this far the question is, are you ready to make a customized, specific change to your nutrition to help you get in better shape? Stop by Max Muscle in Layton and schedule a FREE nutrition evaluation. In this evaluation, we will explain how macros work and how everyone is different when it comes to losing weight and getting in shape. We will also help you determine your body type.
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