Sorry, But You Don't Eat Macros.

Lots of people think they eat macros, but they don’t.

Macros are important, but we eat food, not macronutrients.

Understanding macros can be helpful. There’s a lot to know. Covering the topic will take more than one email.

Today, I’ll start you off with a 50,000-foot view:

1. The Big Picture 🖼️

2. Explain It To Me Like I’m 5 👦

3. Definitions Are Equal; Foods Are Not. 🍟

4. Don’t Miss The Boat! 🛥

5. Parting Zen 🧘‍♂️

The Big Picture 🖼️

You can Google ‘what are macronutrients,’ so I won’t share much of that information.

I'll focus on what you need to know.

• You have never eaten a macronutrient.

You have eaten food.

• Most people do not need to track their macronutrient intake meticulously.

While helpful for some, this is probably not you.

• You can ‘nail your macro targets’ and miss the boat on what matters most.

Conversely, you will be on course if you establish solid eating habits.

Does this mean you should ignore how much protein, carbohydrate, and fat you eat?

Of course not. I’ll explain.

Explain It To Me Like I’m 5 👦

Today’s topic, as simply as possible:

“We eat food. Many big, scientific words describe food, but we don't eat words. We eat food.”

Definitions Are Equal; Foods Are Not. 🍟

You can define the word ‘carbohydrate’ as a family of certain types of molecules.

You can track your carbohydrate intake and ensure it stays at 25% or less of your total diet (for example).

But if 100% of your carbohydrate intake comes from french fries, is that the same as if it were to come from oats and vegetables?

Of course not.

Don’t Miss The Boat! 🛥,

If you come to me as a client who needs to lose 20 or more pounds and is carrying around a level of body fat that is considered obese, I will almost certainly not start you off with a deep dive into macronutrient tracking.

Even if you’ve had some success with that as a tool in the past.

Especially if you’ve had some success with that in the past … it simply illustrates that you missed the boat somewhere along the way.

Where?

Here are a few of the most common places:

• Not establishing solid meal preparation routines.

• Not addressing hunger and satiety signals.

• Not increasing the quality of your diet.

• Not hydrating and moving your body.

• Not raising awareness of emotional eating.

You would be hard-pressed to find someone who has nailed all five of those things and is obese because they didn’t track their macronutrients.

When do I encourage macronutrient tracking?

It depends - I’ll expand on this in a future newsletter.

For today, when the person is ready, and when it will help them make progress.

Often, I’ll start you off only tracking Protein first because that typically provides the most bang for the buck.

»»» Would you like to lose 15 or more pounds of body fat over the next six months, with results 100% guaranteed, or your money back? If you said ‘yes,’ click here for a free consult with me and get on the list. «««

Parting Zen 🧘‍♂️

A simple word, phrase, or thought to take with you:

Thanks for reading!

Take care,

Coach Matt

PS: If you’re into endurance sports, check this newsletter out: