Macros 101: How To Calculate & Track
The ultimate guide to macronutrients
While you’ve probably heard of “macros” when it comes to nutrition, understanding what they are and how to track them can be intimidating. In this article, we’ll dive into what macros are, why they’re important and how to calculate and track them based on your goals.
What are macros?
Macro is short for macronutrient, the three key nutrients that every human body needs to function properly. Macros are carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.
Carbohydrates provide the energy and sugars needed by your brain, nervous system, and organs. Carbohydrates are broken down by your body into glucose so that your brain and other organs can use them for energy.
Fats are needed to help your body absorb certain vitamins (fat soluble vitamins), and also provide your body with energy.
Proteins are essential building blocks that your body needs to repair and build tissues like muscle.
Why track macros?
Tracking macros can help you achieve body and fitness goals more precisely. If you’re only tracking calories, you won’t know if you’re getting the right balance of fats, proteins, and carbohydrates.
Remember, all calories aren’t equal in terms of what they will do for your body. A 100 calorie bag of candy won’t provide you with much nutritional value, while a 100 calorie serving of vegetables and lean proteins can give you vitamins, minerals, fiber, and protein.
Macro tracking will give you a more accurate and targeted way to plan your meals based on your unique goals and lifestyle.
How to calculate your Macros:
1. The first step in figuring out your macro needs is to find your BMR or basal metabolic rate (the amount of calories your body needs to maintain essential function when at complete rest). Your BMR can be influenced by age, gender, body comp and genetics. Here’s how to calculate it based on the Mifflin-St Jeor Equation
Men: BMR = 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) – 5 × age (years) + 5
Women: BMR = 10 × weight (kg) + 6.25 × height (cm) – 5 × age (years) – 161
Or, you can also try this handy BMR calculator.
2. Next, you’ll want to calculate your estimated daily energy expenditure (how much you use or burn in an average day with your activity and exercise included): TDEE Calculator
By knowing your BMR and TDEE, you can create macro plans based on these two base calorie counts for days that you exercise or not. We’ll dive deeper into what this looks like in practice in the next few sections.
Macro ratios based on your goals
Now that you know the number of calories you burn, you can adjust your calorie intake up or down according to your goals. Then, depending on your goals, you can divide those calories into percentages of fat, protein and carbohydrates to create a diet plan that works for you. For example, a nutritionist at Cedars-Sinai recommends 20-30% fat, 30% protein, and 40-50% carbohydrates for the average person in a balanced diet.
For weight loss: some nutritionists recommend upping the protein percentage and lowering the carbohydrate intake. This could be around 30-40% carbohydrates, 20-30% fats, and 25-35% protein.
For muscle gain: you can try upping the protein and carbohydrate percentages. This could be around 55-60% carbohydrates, 25-30% protein, and 15-20% fat.
For maintenance: stick to the balanced ratios recommended by nutritionists, around 20-30% fat, 30% protein, and 40-50% carbohydrates.
With these percentages, you can figure out how many calories you will get from each macro.
Step-by-step guide to calculating macros
Ok, so now we need to calculate your macros using your predetermined BMR and TDEE.
Here’s an example. A person with a TDEE of 1800 calories is wanting to lose weight. Since the goal is to lose weight, we’ll use the macro percentages identified in the previous section.
This individual could start by adjusting their daily calorie goal down to 1700 calories for weight loss. From this 1700, 680 calories would be carbohydrates (40%), 425 calories would be fats (25%), and 595 calories would be proteins (35%).
You can use this calorie calculator to figure out how many calories are in each of your meal components. For example, a single 6 oz chicken breast would be 267 calories, of which 82% is protein, 18% is fat, and 0% are carbohydrates.
Tools and apps to help you track macros
Now, all this calculating can be a lot to track, and in the age of smartphones, there’s a plethora of apps that make keeping track a bit easier.
Some focus primarily on macro tracking while others offer meal plans, recipe suggestions or entire programs. They also range from free to a monthly subscription.
While these tools can be helpful to manage diet, be sure to consult your doctor and a certified nutritionist if accessible. They can provide a customized plan for you based on your health history as well as be a clinical resource for any questions you may have.
Adjusting macros and goals over time
Understanding and tracking macros allow you to have a much more personalized plan for your weight and wellness goals. Taking the time to do a step-by-step calculation and adjusting your daily calorie and macro needs will give you a deeper understanding of what you are putting into your body.
Be sure to re-evaluate your macros and adjust them over time based on changes in your activity levels, weight changes, adapting to any health conditions, and evolving weight loss goals. By fine-tuning your nutrition plan based on macros, you’ll find it much easier to stay on track and see longer-lasting results.
At Agile, we encourage our medical weight loss patients to adopt lifestyle changes like a healthier diet and exercise regime to see long-term results. Our patients have the option to opt-in to our Care Coaching program and meet with one of our Care Coaches every two weeks (or at your desired frequency). They’re there to help answer any questions, discuss side effects and offer lifestyle recommendations to pair with your medication treatment.
Interested in learning more? We offer a no-cost initial consultation with a licensed Agile provider to answer any questions and discuss program goals. See if you qualify and schedule your free visit today!
