How Much Do Macros Matter?
Short answer: Not too much for the average woman.
For most women it’s not worth focusing on macros other than protein. I know that runs counter to most other programs and coaches but bear with me – I’ll explain my rationale and give you proof from my current clients so you don’t have to just take my word for it.
The first thing you need to know is that I was trained in the traditional formulas for calculating calories and macros and I used them when I started nutrition coaching many, many years ago. However, my goal is to always keep nutrition simple and lifestyle friendly and so over the years I’ve come up with an easier method for calculating calories.
If you want to learn more about how I set calories you can read this blog post: How Many Calories Do You Need?
Calories And Macros For The Average Female
Most of my ladies eat around 1600 calories when they are trying to lose weight. I usually set protein around 100g and that’s the macro I get them to focus on. Protein helps you manage your appetite as well as preserve lean muscle mass while losing weight.
Then I say to them let carbs and fats fall as per your preference because if you are only eating 1600 calories and you eat 100g of protein then you aren’t going to overdo carbs and fats due to the fact there’s not a lot of calories left! It’s really important that you understand this point so read it again if you need to and then I’m going to break it down below.
Macros For Women In Detail
Let’s talk you through macros if you eat 1600 calories and about 100g of protein per day.
PROTEIN
1 g of protein is 4 calories which means you are going to be eating at least 400 calories from protein (100g x 4).
However, usually that protein will have additional calories. For example, a piece of steak is going to have some fat so it’s going to mean your protein calories are even higher.
So in this example, let’s allocate 600 calories to protein, leaving 1000 calories left in your daily caloric intake for carbs and fat.
FAT
Every diet is going to have some fat and let’s say it makes up 30% of your calories. 30% of 1600 is 480 calories for fat.
CARBOHYDRATES
If you take 600 calories for protein and 480 for fat, that leaves you with 520 calories for carbs.
1 g of carbs is 4 calories so that means you would only get about 130g g of carbs based on this breakdown and that’s just enough to make sure we are meeting our requirements for fiber, energy and also for our brain, which contrary to what the “high fat experts” might claim, needs glucose from carbs to work well. In fact, in my experience women eating this amount of carbs can actually have a hard time meeting their fiber requirements.
IN SUMMARY:
Once you hit your protein requirements and allocate some calories to fat – there’s not going to be a ton of calories left for carbs and you won’t be overeating them if you stick to your daily caloric intake.
Macros In Real, Everyday Life
You need a lifestyle friendly plan that you can stick with long term.
Even though I can show you all of this you are still exposed to low carb hype on social media everyday and you will feel influenced by it. People blame carbs for weight gain, blood sugar problems, aging and more, and high fat diets have a loud voice. Everyone wants a fast fix without thinking about the long term.
There’s also an influence from the fitness world as well where athletes – and by that I mean the fitness competitors, fitness models, bodybuilders – do focus on macros because that’s when it’s necessary – when they need to be super lean so absolutely everything needs to be on point. Please understand that most of us will never compete at that level and never achieve that level of leanness so we don’t have to do what they are doing. And a lot of those competitors end up with weight, health and metabolism issues down the road.
You, on the other hand, should be looking for something that’s sustainable in the long run. Some of these extreme approaches will get you results but will you be able to stick with them in the long run? Mostly likely not.. And it’s absolutely not necessary to be extreme to get results.
In fact, that’s one of the most common things my clients say to me – that they are surprised at how simple it is to get results if they are just consistent with a few basic things.
So on that note I asked a couple clients to give you advice about how they’ve achieved their results.
The first is Meredith. I actually just recently posted a testimonial from her on Instagram where she notes that she lost 15lbs over about a 3 month period and she says she has never stuck to a regime this long so that’s great feedback.
I asked her whether she focuses more on calories or macros and this is what she had to say:
Most days, I simply focus on my calorie intake while making sure to add some healthy proteins to most meals. I occasionally check the macro dashboard on my calorie counting app, but for the most part, I don’t stress over those numbers. Meredith
The other client I asked was Magen. You may know Magen from my Youtube channel because she shared her weight loss story with you all and if you haven’t watched it you should definitely check it out. You can also read more about Magen’s journey here. Over the course of about a year Magen has lost 46lbs which is just amazing. When I asked her to share what she focuses on this is what she had to say:
EEK! MACROS! Macros are a scary, intimidating word for me! Early on, I spent some time trying to figure that out and make a plan, but yuck! Too much thinking! I knew that first and foremost, for Melanie’s program to work for me, it had to be easy to follow and low stress! So my whole main focus has been calories with as much protein as I can throw in. I feel like protein gives me more bang for my calorie buck, so when I need to hit my calorie goal (sometimes hitting it is actually harder then you think) I throw in a protein bar or Greek yogurt as a sweet snack before bed.
Evenings are my hardest time to juggle between meals and working out and family time, so for me – consistency is key. I keep my breakfast and lunch pretty much the same every day, knowing it’s on the lower side of calories, and that helps me stay on track for whatever may come up on the evenings. If I meet my goals great, if I’m under, I add protein. And if I’m over sometimes, I give myself some grace and know that I’m still a rockstar!!! The overall calories of the week are more important than one day when things went haywire! Let me say it again… consistency is key! Magen
These are just a couple examples of what works in the long run. Both these women find what they are doing is sustainable and they know that it’s more about consistency than anything. The only way you’ll be consistent in the long run, for most people, is if you have a balanced diet that let’s you eat a wide variety of food.
It’s common to look for other reasons that weight loss may not be happening, but reality is that it really does come down to creating a calorie deficit, having some protein to help with appetite and preserving muscle loss as you age – and of course a good weight training program to help you build the right shape and keep you strong as you age.
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