Macros! Anyone that pays attention to the fitness realm has heard of these powerful things. You may know that macros, or macronutrients, consist of 3 main parts: Carbohydrates for energy, Fats to keep you satiated, and Protein to build and repair muscle. Let’s dig in and find out how much of an impact macros make on your fitness goals!
What Are Macros and Why Do They Matter?
Macros, or macronutrients, are nutrients that your body needs a lot of to function properly and give you energy. These are broken down into the 3 key nutrients we mentioned above: Carbohydrates, Fats, and Protein. We all know to look at the nutrition information on the packaging of our food, and if you’re fitness-oriented you definitely look at fats, carbs, and protein. This is good, but it’s important to understand how each of these macros factors into your overall calorie count.
Let’s clear that up by reviewing how to calculate the percentage of your diet that each of those macros takes up, starting with their caloric impact.
- Protein: 1 gram = 4 calories
- Fat: 1 gram = 9 calories
- Carbs: 1 gram = 4 calories
If you’re more mathematically-inclined you can calculate the percentage of each meal on your own by multiplying the grams for each macro by the calories listed above. I’m definitely not in favor of doing the math myself, though, so I use a food tracking app (and recommend that you do as well) like the free version of MyFitnessPal for iOS and Android.
So what’s a good mix, or ratio, of macros? I think a lot of us look at these and assume high protein with low fats and low carbs is a good mix. Whether that’s true, and to what extent, depends on your goals.
What Are Your Fitness Goals?
When it comes to gaining or losing weight, people typically increase or decrease their daily calories and stop there (our daily calorie calculator can help you find the right number to meet your goals). Addressing calories is important, no doubt about it, but is dropping your caloric intake all you need to check off those weight loss boxes? Or on the flip side, does increasing your calories check all the boxes for weight gain?
Example Time!
Let’s look at McDonald’s. If you want to gain indiscriminate weight, McDonald’s is a great choice! They have high-calorie food that goes down easy and tastes delicious. The catch, of course, is that eating a Big Mac for every meal will give you weight you definitely do not want. It’s high in processed ingredients, extremely high in unhealthy fats, and carb-heavy. This is a bullet train ticket to Love Handle City.
What about losing weight? Could you drop from a high calorie diet to a low one by eating McDonald’s? Well technically, yes…but I don’t think you’d be very happy. The typical recommended calorie intake and macro breakdown for a day is 2,000 for women and 2,500 for men, and as you’ll see below, the meals from Mickey D’s take up around half of that in one sitting. Not to mention the macros are all out of whack!
Let’s have a quick look at the calories and macro breakdown for a few of the standard meals (and we’re assuming you aren’t going large on these!), courtesy of their surprisingly helpful tool.
Big Mac Meal
Big Mac Burger: 550 Calories
- 30g Fat / 45g Carbs / 25g Protein
Medium Fries with One Ketchup Packet: 330 Calories
- 15g Fat / 46g Carbs / 5g Protein
Medium Coke: 210 Calories
- 0g Fat / 56g Carbs (literally all added sugar) / 0g Protein
Grand Total with Macros: Approx. 1,080 Calories
- 45g Fat (38%)
- 144g Carbs (53%)
- 30g Protein (11%)
Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese Meal
Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese: 74 Calories
- 42g Fat / 43g Carbs / 48g Protein
Medium Fries with One Ketchup Packet: 330 Calories
- 15g Fat / 46g Carbs / 5g Protein
Medium Coke: 210 Calories
- 0g Fat / 56g Carbs (literally all added sugar) / 0g Protein
Grand Total with Macros: 1,280 Calories
- 57g Fat (40%)
- 142g Carbs (45%)
- 53g Protein (17%)
McChicken Meal: A Healthier Alternative?
McChicken Sandwich: 400 Calories
- 21g Fat / 39g Carbs / 14g Protein
Medium Fries with One Ketchup Packet: 330 Calories
- 15g Fat / 46g Carbs / 5g Protein
Medium Coke: 210 Calories
- 0g Fat / 56g Carbs (literally all added sugar) / 0g Protein
Grand Total with Macros: 940 Calories
- 36g Fat (33%)
- 141g Carbs (60%)
- 19g Protein (7%)
Coming back to the question of whether you could reduce calories with McDonald’s…sure you could. But if you’re taking in the average 2,500 calories a day (which you shouldn’t blindly follow – use our calculator to really nail it down), that one meal’s heavy caloric content only leaves you a little more to eat for the entire day. And we all know that any satiety you have from a meal at McDonald’s doesn’t last long.
You’ll notice that we haven’t even touched the macro percentages of each meal. You’re probably wondering if they’re good, right? Let’s get to the question you’re probably asking in your head right now:
What Macros Should I Use For Fat Loss?
Well first off, I recommend that anyone focusing on fat loss should shoot for a 25% deficit in calories compared to their TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure). Again, feel free to use our calculator to make it easy!
Remember, any adjustments you make to your macros or calories should be in place for at least 2-3 weeks before making additional changes. Let your body respond to the changes and be patient!
Men
The fat loss macros that I recommend (and use myself) when cutting are:
- 20% Fat / 40% Carbs / 40% Protein
Women
Women focusing on fat loss (and doing at least four days a week of moderate-intensity exercise) should start with:
- 15% Fat / 50% Carbs / 35% Protein
What Macros Should I Use For Muscle Gain?
Starting off with calories, I recommend anyone looking to bulk up and add muscle start by adding 5% to their daily calorie intake. Your body can’t build muscle if it doesn’t have more than the minimum it needs to maintain! I also recommend starting off with these macros and adjust for your own body as needed.
Men
The weight gain macros I recommend starting with, and used myself, are:
- 20% Fat / 55% Carbs / 25% Protein
Women
The typical muscle building macros for women are:
- 30% Fat / 30% Carbs / 40% Protein
Conclusion
All right, so we know a bit about macros and where to start when focusing on muscle gain or fat loss. The main points I want to iterate here are:
If you want to gain muscle while minimizing fat gain, you need to be in a caloric surplus while optimizing your macronutrient intake to match your body’s needs.
If you want to lose fat while maintaining your underlying physique and muscular structure, you need to be in a caloric deficit while optimizing your macronutrient intake to match your body’s needs.
Everyone is different, so feel free to shift things up to match your own biological preferences. Just make sure to give those changes time to show progress! Don’t change your macros and calories every week – give it time and the results will come. If you want to see what proper macros and an intense fitness program can do when put together, check out my review of 75 Hard.
Interested in learning more about hitting your fitness and nutrition? Check out my articles on How To Achieve Your Fitness Goals in 3 Easy Steps and The Simple Path To Amazing Strength Gains!
