ALL ABOUT TRACKING YOUR MACROS: PART 2
Today’s post is the second in a two-part series all about tracking your macros. If you missed the first post, go back and read it here - we talked about what macros are and why you track them. In today’s post we’re going a little bit deeper into how you track your macros and how to know if hiring a coach is right for you.
HOW TO TRACK YOUR MACROS
REMIND ME, WHY DO PEOPLE TRACK MACROS?
We expanded more on this idea in Part 1 of this post, but remember that tracking your macros is a way to manage energy balance (calories in vs. calories out). Deciding whether you should be in a caloric deficit, a calorie surplus, or maintaining your current calorie intake all depends on your goals.
GETTING STARTED
To get started, you will need a digital food scale for weighing your food. (My favorite scale is on Amazon here!). Weighing your food may seem like a pain at first, but it is an important part of the process. General portion guidelines are merely estimations, and you’d be surprised at how inaccurate they can be at times! As you get started, you will quickly figure out what foods help you hit your specific target macros best and weighing will become a habit. It will also help you identify appropriate portion sizes, which is an important skill to have for long-term success.
Your primary goal when tracking your food is to weigh and track everything that has a caloric value. That can mean even seemingly insignificant things like cooking spray, sauces and condiments, and what we like to call BLTs (bites, licks and tastes of your kids’ food or treats at work or ingredients as you prepare a meal). We often think we are eating much less than we actually are. When we start tracking, those extra calories we are eating across the day can become more apparent and that can help us make better food choices.
PRO-TIP | Make sure to weigh foods even when serving size is listed by volume as the volume may be inaccurate at times. These differences don’t seem like much, but those extra macros add up over time!
Be as specific as you can when choosing foods from the MFP database. If you are weighing raw chicken breast, search and track “raw boneless, skinless chicken breast.” If you are weighing cooked rice, search and track it as “cooked white rice” as there can be significant discrepancies between the macros in raw and cooked foods.
Tracking can be tough at first, just like any major habit change can be, but it also gets easier with practice! And if you’re wondering if you have to be super specific and track every single thing at first, the answer is absolutely not. You can start with just tracking foods by volume (cups, TBS, etc.) and building awareness of the macronutrient makeup of your foods. Just keep in mind that more precision in tracking will shorten the timeline of getting you to your goals.
CONSISTENCY IS KEY
When tracking, your goal is to come as close as possible to your target numbers each day. Your specific macro numbers are not magic numbers. It is the consistency in hitting your numbers daily that determines your success. Tracking as accurately as possible each day will get you closer to your goals. Along the way you will learn how to enjoy meals out and navigate social situations while still sticking to your goals.
OUR NUMBER 1 TIP: PRE-TRACKING
Pre-tracking refers to taking 5-10 minutes to sit down and pre-log your day of food. It can be done the night before or morning of and is a complete game changer that can save you loads of time across your day.
Pre-tracking a rough draft of your day of food allows you to spread your macros out evenly across the day so you’re not ending your night with 15g of fat but nothing else to spare, or capped out on carbs and fat with only protein left.
Pre-tracking doesn’t limit your flexibility; you can still change up your day if something comes up and rearrange numbers to add in an unexpected treat or snack. It will just serve to give you an idea of what the day could look like so you can save time and make choices that align with your macro goals. This tip is not only recommended for those new to tracking, but is a key habit in those who have experience tracking.
HIRING A COACH
Having communication with a coach can provide direction on navigating different situations so that you can achieve the consistency needed to produce results. Your coach will provide resources and support to help you navigate travel, work schedules, meals out, and any other scenarios you face so that your hard work doesn’t come to a stop once you’re out of your routine. Accountability is vital in making long-term lifestyle changes.
As coaches, we calculate your macro numbers and create your Macro Plan based on your personal lifestyle, activity level, food preferences, dieting history, and goals. Our process is more involved than just punching your height and weight into an online calculator as it takes into account all aspects of your lifestyle. There’s no one size fits all approach for a diet, and there’s also no one coaching option that’s right for everyone. A diet will only be successful if you can stick to it consistently, so we consider many factors when coming up with a macro plan that works for you and your lifestyle.
THERE IS NOTHING MAGICAL ABOUT ANYONE’S MACRO NUMBERS, AND IT IS THE CONSISTENCY OF HITTING THOSE NUMBERS THAT PRODUCES THE RESULTS YOU ARE LOOKING FOR.
Your coach is there to help you along the way and you will quickly figure out what foods help you hit your specific macro goals best and tracking will become a habit. Each week when you submit your weekly update, your coach will answer your questions and concerns, provide resources that may help you with your tracking, adjust your macro targets as needed, & provide additional guidance to make the process as easy as possible for you.
As coaches, our purpose is not to tell you what to eat and then leave you to struggle on your own. This process is about so much more than just the foods that you eat! Our mission is to provide the support that you need in order to help you reach your current goals and to empower you in developing positive new habits that will serve you in your future. We have been through the struggles and successes that are part of this journey and have the knowledge, experience, and empathy to help you through those same experiences.
If the idea of navigating your nutrition on your own seems daunting, having a little support along the way may help. Learn more about our DIY Macro Month, - an opportunity to learn how to calculate and track your macros alongside a coach and community.