Podcast Notes: How To Calculate Your Personal Macro Needs

When it comes to achieving health and fitness goals, nutrition is undeniably one of the most important factors. And while there are plenty of diet plans and trendy eating habits out there, one concept stands tall in terms of providing a personalized approach to nutrition: macronutrients, or macros.

In this post, we’ll dive deep into what macros are, why they’re essential, and how to calculate your personal macro needs. Understanding macros can transform the way you eat, ensuring that your body gets the fuel it needs to perform, recover, and thrive.

What Are Macros?

Before you can figure out your personal macro needs, it’s important to understand what macros actually are.

Macronutrients are the three main components of food that provide energy (calories) and support bodily functions:

1. Carbohydrates
   Carbs are the body’s primary energy source, particularly for high-intensity activities like exercise. They break down into glucose, which is either used immediately for energy or stored in muscles and the liver as glycogen for later use.
   Sources: Whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, starchy foods like potatoes, and sugar.

2. Proteins
   Proteins are the building blocks of your muscles, tissues, and cells. They’re crucial for muscle repair, immune function, and hormone production. Unlike carbohydrates, protein doesn't provide quick energy but is necessary for recovery and maintaining muscle mass.
   Sources: Meat, fish, eggs, dairy, legumes, tofu, and plant-based protein powders.

3. Fats
   Fats are often misunderstood, but they’re incredibly important for your overall health. They help absorb fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K), regulate hormones, and provide long-lasting energy. Healthy fats are also critical for brain health and inflammation control.
   Sources: Nuts, seeds, avocados, olive oil, coconut oil, and fatty fish like salmon.

Why Do Macros Matter?

Each macro plays a distinct role in your body’s function, but understanding their importance goes beyond just fueling your daily activities. Macros also support your goals, whether you’re aiming for fat loss, muscle gain, or improved athletic performance.

1. Fat Loss
   In a calorie deficit, the ratio of carbs, protein, and fat in your diet matters because it influences how your body burns fat and preserves muscle mass. For example, higher protein intake can help prevent muscle loss while losing fat.

2. Muscle Gain
   If you’re looking to build muscle, protein is key to muscle repair and growth. Eating the right amount of carbs ensures you have the energy to lift heavy weights and push through workouts, while healthy fats help hormone production that aids in muscle growth.

3. Energy and Performance
   Carbs are your body’s preferred fuel for physical activity, especially high-intensity workouts. If you’re an athlete or workout enthusiast, ensuring that your carb intake is sufficient will help optimize performance.

Now that we understand the role of macros, it’s time to figure out how to calculate your personal macro needs.

Step 1: Calculate Your Daily Caloric Needs

To determine your macronutrient breakdown, you first need to figure out your total daily caloric needs. Calories are a unit of energy, and knowing how many you need daily depends on several factors like your age, sex, weight, height, and activity level.

The most common method (to my knowledge) to calculate your daily calorie needs is the Mifflin-St Jeor Equation, which provides a good estimate of your basal metabolic rate (BMR)—the number of calories your body burns at rest—and then factors in your activity level:

For men:
BMR = 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) - 5 x age (y) + 5

For women:
BMR = 10 x weight (kg) + 6.25 x height (cm) - 5 x age (y) - 161

Once you have your BMR, multiply it by an activity factor to account for how active you are:

• Sedentary (little or no exercise): BMR x 1.2

• Lightly active (light exercise/sports 1-3 days/week): BMR x 1.375

• Moderately active (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/week): BMR x 1.55

• Very active (hard exercise/sports 6-7 days a week): BMR x 1.725

• Super active (very hard exercise, physical job, or training twice a day): BMR x 1.9

This gives you your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE)—the total number of calories you need each day to maintain your current weight. If you don’t want to calculate your TDEE manually, there are lots of calculators available online that can do this for you.

Step 2: Set Your Goal

Once you know your TDEE, decide on your goal:

• Fat loss: Create a calorie deficit by consuming fewer calories than your TDEE (usually 10-20% less).

• Muscle gain: Create a calorie surplus by consuming more calories than your TDEE (usually 5-10% more).

• Maintenance: Stay at your TDEE, maintaining your current weight.

Step 3: Determine Your Macro Ratios

Now that you have your daily calorie goal, it’s time to decide how to break those calories into macros. The following is a common macronutrient ratio used by many:

• 50% Carbohydrates

• 25% Protein

• 25% Fats

These percentages are adjustable based on your personal preferences, fitness goals, and activity level. For example, if you’re focusing on muscle gain, you might increase protein intake, and if you're aiming for fat loss, you might want to keep protein high and carbs moderate.

Step 4: Calculate Your Macros

Let’s walk through an example. Suppose you have a daily calorie goal of 2,500 calories, and you choose a 50/25/25 macro split. To find out how many grams of each macronutrient you should consume:

• Carbs:
  50% of 2,500 calories = 1,250 calories from carbs
  Since each gram of carbohydrate has 4 calories, divide 1,250 by 4 = 312.5 grams of carbs per day.

• Protein:
  25% of 2,500 calories = 625 calories from protein
  Since each gram of protein has 4 calories, divide 625 by 4 = 156.25 grams of protein per day.

• Fats:
  25% of 2,500 calories = 625 calories from fat
  Since each gram of fat has 9 calories, divide 625 by 9 = 69.4 grams of fat per day.

Step 5: Track Your Progress and Adjust

After calculating your macros and beginning your personalized nutrition plan, it’s important to track your progress regularly. This will help you adjust your macros if needed based on your goals. Are you gaining muscle? Losing fat? Not seeing results? You may need to tweak your calories or macro ratios.

When tracking, I would recommend rounding each macro target to the closest whole number that ends in 0 or 5. For example, with the macros calculated above, you can set your targets to the folliwng:

• Carbs: 310 or 315 grams per day

• Protein: 155 grams per day

• Fats: 70 grams per day

This will make tracking simpler while also ensuring that we’re not trying to be too perfect.

Final Thoughts

Understanding and calculating your personal macro needs is a key step in optimizing your nutrition and reaching your fitness goals. Whether you're aiming for fat loss, muscle gain, or simply better health, knowing how to manage your macros ensures that you’re eating with purpose, not just following trends.

Remember, the process is about finding what works best for your body. Start with a basic macro calculation, track your results, and fine-tune as you go. With patience and consistency, you'll unlock the power of macros, fueling your body to perform at its best.

Click any of the links below to watch the full podcast!

Spotify

YouTube

Apple