I am no expert when it comes to Macros. If anything i’m a complete macro noob. I do believe in challenging yourself though. So, after 29 weeks of meal prepping I’m hopping on the macro train.
I started by doing some reading and then finally found one website that broke things down really clearly and helped me establish what exactly I should be eating (protein, fat, carbs)
How to Calculate Macros for Cutting
Based on my weight I calculated I should be consuming 1885 Calories. This breaks down into:
58 grams of fat (520 calories)
145 grams of protein (580 calories)
196 grams of carbs (785 calories)
I then went to the My Fitness Pal app and after filling in my information got similar results
I then began adding my own chili recipe, protein pancake recipe and a recipe for honey mustard pulled chicken from @fitmencook
It was super easy to copy and paste the ingredients into the app and have your macros calculated for you. This left me with 400 calories for snacks. The hardest thing was definitely figuring out my my fat macros. Adding in half an avocado and some hummus helped me to meet that though =).
I definitely recommend trying to calculate your macros, even if it’s just for a couple of day. Similar to calorie counting it helps you get an idea of what you’re consuming.
Also, you should check out Flexible dieting lifestyle. He is amazing. SUBSCRIBE to his emails. He sends out the most useful things for people trying to start tracking macros!!!
Comments 7
That link to the site on how to figure out your personal macros was super helpful!! I’m excited to learn more and see what results thus new method might bring me- thanks so much for sharing!!
Author
I do pay for the premium My fitness pal because I calculate my macros to a certain percentage ex. 22% and on the free version you can only calculate by 5’s 25%, 30%, 40%. =)
Author
That’s amazing! I’m glad it helped! xo
Hi Nikki!
I’m pretty new to bbg but I saw this and started to read all of your posts. They have been so helpful so thank you! I want to start counting macros and I read your post about it but I have a question. I do the bbg workouts and that’s it so I’m worried that I’ll be eating too much. I started bbg 5 weeks ago. Do you do more than just the bbg workouts? I’m also having a little trouble making sure my calculations are correct ? I followed the instructions above but should I be following those or eating less calories! Sorry for so many questions I just want to make sure I’m doing it right! I love all of your posts and they are so helpful!
Author
Hi Emma!
Way to start BBG! I’m pretty sure the calculation I have on my site..and the ones built into My Fitness Pal take into consideration your activity level…if you’re worried set your activity level lower..the result will be recommending less calories for you to eat. Less calories consumed than expended equals weight loss. But don’t focus on the scale too much. My weight hasn’t changed that much because although I lost fat, I gained muscle. I currently have a pretty busy training schedule. I do BBG 3x a week, HITT 1x, liss 2 times and weight training 5x a week. So most days I double down. I do it because I love it, I can’t imagine going a day now without doing something physical. However, it wasn’t like that when I started BBG. When I stared I was just trying to survive haha! You’re the only one who knows how you’re feeling. Play with your macros…use them for a couple weeks, if you aren’t happy change them around. Everyone’s body is different. Some people respond really well to high fat high protein, some people need high carbs. Eventually you’ll figure out what works best for you and is sustainable but eitherway, tracking your macros helps with mindful eating =).
Hey Nikki! Do you ever feel that you aren’t getting enough food to eat? I just started meal planning last week so I’m trying to figure this all out but I found that I’m still hungry a lot. Did calculating your calorie total force you to eat less or do I need to start paying more attention to my macro breakdown to keep myself full? I’m not eating unhealthy by any means but I do feel sort of bloated at times strangely enough. I do BBG 3x a week, LISS 2x a week and spin 1x a week. Thanks!
Author
Hi Kirby,
Eating a specific amount of calories or macros can be a big change for your body. I usually give myself one week to adjust and just try to keep busy and if I’m really hungry, eat some more veggies. But I find that usually within one week my body adjusts to my new eating routine. I actually eat more now that I count my macros. The biggest thing about being full though is to add volume to your meals. I add a lot of vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, spinach, etc to my meals to increase the volume and keep me full. With regards to the bloating, try to keep track of what you eat so you can figure out what triggers it. You might be sensitive to certain foods and while you aren’t allergic, they can still irritate your tummy.