What are Macros and How Do I Calculate My Needs?
Before we go any further, I’d like to set the record straight. What I’m about to teach you is extremely valuable. People pay up to $200 or more for this information, but I am giving it to you for FREE! Why? Because it is free information on the internet. Anyone can look up the equations, give you your macros, design a meal plan, and charge you a few hundred bucks. I find that a bit disingenuous, so I teach all our clients how to do this on their own. Following the numbers…..well, that’s a different article for a different time.
So, what is a macronutrient, or macro, as you’ll see it on social media? They are a class of chemicals contributing to the bulk of energy humans need for life. They are carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids (fats.) Each of these has a specific amount of energy (i.e. calories) per gram. Let’s define a few things so it’s easier to read this article.
Calorie: the energy needed to raise the temperature of one gram of water, one degree Celsius. Basically, a unit of energy.
IIFYM: If it fits your macros. This is how you’ll see it written on social media.
Carbohydrates: a biomolecule consisting of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, usually with a hydrogen: oxygen ratio 2:1. C6H12O6 is glucose. One gram of carbohydrate has four calories.
Proteins: a macromolecule, consisting of one or more long chains of amino acid residues. All protein molecules have a carboxyl group and an amine group (which carries the nitrogen). One gram of protein has four calories.
Lipids (fats): a macro-biomolecule that is soluble in nonpolar solvents. One gram of fat has nine calories per gram.
Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)*: the rate of energy required at rest, in a physically and psychologically undisturbed state, in a thermoneutral environment (think room temperature), while in a post-absorptive state (not currently digesting). This is based on sex, height, weight, and age.
*Note: sometimes BMR and RMR are used interchangeably. RMR is energy expenditure at rest under the same conditions. Regardless, both of these are estimates using calculations. For more accurate measures, you would need an EGAIC: expired gas analysis indirect calorimetry.
Non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT): the energy we expend in our activity of daily living (ADL). This includes everything except formal exercise.
Exercise: according to ACSM, is a type of physical activity consisting of planned, structured, and repetitive bodily movement done to improve or maintain one or more components of physical fitness.
Number of calories in one pound of fat: 3500
When you define these words in terms of science, things like carbohydrates don’t seem as scary. Of all our core values, adhering to evidence based practices, allows us to guide our clients based on science. This information is free to anyone who wishes to explore the internet and research these topics. Which is why it is crazy that people pay beaucoup bucks for a meal plan based on their macros.
Here is how you figure out your calorie needs:
Step One: Use a macro calculator to give yourself a rough estimate of your BMR.
· For clinical patients, I use the Harris Benedict Equation: https://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/harris-benedict-equation/
· For overweight clients, I use the Mifflin St. Jeor Equation:
o Men: (10 x weight in kg) + (6.25 x height in cm) – (5 x age in years) + 5
o Women: (10 x weight in kg) + (6.25 x height in cm) – (5 x age in years) – 161.
· For clients who are looking for physique transformations, and have their levels of lean muscle mass, I use the Cunningham Equation: http://users.telenet.be/WBtE/cunning.html
Example: Using the Mifflin St. Jeor equation
Client Name: Sally Sue
Height: 5’6” or 167.64 cm
Weight: 165 pounds or 75 kilograms
Age: 47
Exercise: strength training 3 times a week for 45 minutes
ADL: Sits all day at her desk and rarely gets 10,000 steps.
(10 x 75) + (6.25 x 167.64) – (5 x 47) – 161
BMR: 1401.75 round up to 1402 calories. This is the bare minimum number of calories she needs at rest.
Step Two: Add an Activity Factor. Use this number x BMR
1.2: sedentary (little to no exercise)
1.375: light activity (light exercise 1-3 days a week)
1.55: moderate activity (moderate exercise 3-5 days a week)
1.725: very active (strenuous exercise 6-7 days a week)
1.9: extra active (very hard exercise and physically demanding job)
Since Sally Sue sits most days, I am using 1.4 as my activity factor.
1402 x 1.4 = 1962.8 or round up to 1963
Step Three: Create a calorie deficit
There is widespread belief cutting 500 calories a day will result in weight loss. While this is mostly true, I find clients are more successful when I give them a range of calories to consume.
Recommendation: range between 1563 -1713 calories per day. This is where I would start Sally Sue.
Step Four: Calculating your Macros
I generally advise fat loss clients to follow this breakdown:
40% calories from carbohydrates
30% calories from fat
30% calories from protein
Sally Sue’s Macro Ranges:
Carbohydrates: take 40% of 1563 calories and divide that number by 4 (4 calories per gram). Do the same for 1713.
· 156-171 grams of carbohydrates a day
Fat: take 30% of 1563 calories and divide that number by 9 (9calories per gram). Do the same for 1713.
· 52-57 grams of fat a day
Protein: take 30% of 1563 and divide that number by 4 (4 calories per gram). Do the same for 1713.
· 117-128 grams of protein a day
BIG PICTURE:
Sally Sue’s Recommendations:
Calories: 1563-1713
Carbohydrates: 156-171 grams a day
Fat: 52-57 grams a day
Protein: 117-128 grams a day
Step Five: Create a meal plan
Download a FREE calorie tracker app and adjust your goals based on YOUR specific numbers. You won’t add your exercise calories because we already did that in the above calculations. Start logging your meals and VOILA! You just saved yourself $200 by doing this yourself.
If all of this still seems overwhelming, we are here to help! All you have to do is make the call.