You’ve probably heard the word “macros” or know someone who has “tracked” them when working towards a fat loss or performance goal. The idea of tracking macros is not new in the health and fitness industry, but if it’s new to you, it may seem confusing. We use the term Flexible Nutrition to describe the process of tracking macros, which is the approach we use with our clients who are working towards fat loss, performance, and overall health goals.

This plant-based dish is about as easy as it gets when it comes to throwing together a simple side. Enjoy this Risoni Summer Salad as a side to your bbq dinner, or double the portion and enjoy it with some shrimp or chicken for a full, high-volume meal.

Are smoothie bowls good for you? They seem “healthy”, but are they a good food to add to your day or a fake-healthy fad? It depends! This week, we’re sharing some refreshing smoothie bowl recipes, and, more importantly, explaining why smoothie bowls are neither good nor bad, and may be helpful in supporting you and your goals.

If you’re tracking your macros, you have the flexibility to enjoy a meal out when you want one. Eating out will always be an estimation, but there are a few easy strategies you can utilize to make sure your meal out fits with your nutrition goals. 

I’ve rounded up some tips, tricks, and items that I’ve found to be the most helpful - both when brand new at tracking macros and when you’ve been at it for years.

If you have some goals you want to accomplish but haven’t been feeling particularly motivated lately, here are a few strategies that may help you create some motivation if it’s been lacking

When it comes to addressing challenges we may face with feeling in control of our nutrition - overcoming a cycle of restricting and binging, being able to enjoy foods we love without overdoing it, removing guilt and the idea of “good” and “bad” foods, etc. Developing intentional eating habits is about as close as we can get to a magic solution.

Most of the calories we burn in a given day aren’t during our workouts, and the majority of the differences in most people’s activity levels are unlikely to be just from that hour or so most of us are used to spending in the gym.

Maybe you’re used to eating meals out and have been figuring out how to cook more at home. Or maybe your routine meal prep menu has had to be adjusted based on what’s available at the grocery store. With stay-at-home mandates in effect, you may be frequenting the store less and trying to stock up on more shelf stable foods.

Preparing food for the week doesn’t have to be painful or take up your whole weekend in order to qualify as “meal prep”. Read on for some helpful tips for making the most of your time in the kitchen as a way to streamline your meal prep.

Overnight oats are one of our favorite breakfasts for busy mornings and can also be an easy afternoon snack when you’re on the go or even a yummy dessert at the end of the day. Check out these recipes (one for every day of the week!) and prep your breakfast (or snacks) for the whole week in about 15 minutes!

Most people have some time in their life when they think they performed or looked their absolute best, and then wonder why they weren’t able to hold onto that forever.  But, if you take a moment to reflect on all of the pieces of the puzzle that had to come together for that brief moment, it’s unlikely that everything can stay aligned that way for long.

We already know that a calorie deficit is the most important factor at play when it comes to pursuing fat loss goals. But, for most, staying in a consistent calorie deficit is a lot more challenging than “just eating less and moving more.”

If you’re looking to optimize performance and recovery, it is beneficial to plan your meals around your training sessions. Whether your preferred activity is weightlifting, running, or yoga, your body will perform better and recover faster if you fuel it properly.

If your goals are geared towards changing your body weight, body shape, or body composition, your focus should be on fat loss and eating in a calorie deficit.

If your focus begins on Monday and ends on Thursday, you’re really only working toward your goal 4 out of 7 days per week. Even if you only loosen up on Saturday and Sunday, you can still cause your progress to lag or even stall out, depending on what your weekend intake looks like.

The goal of a plant-based diet is to focus on filling your diet with whole plant-based foods: vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and legumes. Plant-based doesn’t necessarily mean vegan, as a plant-based diet may contain occasional meat or dairy.

Just as there is no one size fits all approach when it comes to nutrition, there’s also no one size fits all approach to meal prep.  Everyone has different macro targets and every individual can choose how much time is spent in the kitchen in order to hit these targets. However you choose to prep your food should suit your lifestyle and be sustainable for long-term success. 

To give you a bit more insight into what meal prep while tracking your macros can look like, we are showing you what a week of meal prep looks like for each of us. While we all follow the same concept of flexible nutrition, our approaches are very different and are dependent on our personal lifestyles.