Flexible dieting or macros dieting is a great way to shed those stubborn pounds. Following a macros diet for beginners can be a bit tricky. If you count macros and follow your macronutrient ratio correctly, you should be able to achieve your fitness goals. This is true whether you are looking to lose weight or achieve a lean mass.
Luckily, there is a macros diet for beginners that you can try. By following these tips, you should be able to hit your ideal body weight with relative ease. This article will dive into how you can use macros to lose weight and build muscle.
What are Macros?
Before anything else, you must keep a close eye on your macronutrients: carbohydrates protein and fat. Aside from watching your calorie intake, you must keep track of your macros to lose weight. This is because your macronutrient consumption plays a role in your weight gain, weight loss, and muscle mass. This is the fundamental principle behind the macros diet for beginners.
Macronutrients Explained: Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates serve as a major source of energy for your body. That said, you can have too much of a good thing. If you eat too many carbs, they can turn into sugar and lead to unwanted weight gain.
This is precisely why you need to count macros. Keep close track of your macros to lose weight. Cutting carbs out of your diet completely should not be done. They are necessary to fuel your body. Just remember to consume them in moderation.
Best Carbohydrate Sources for Macros Diet for Beginners
By now, we have established that carbs an important aspect of your diet. However, you should also know that not all carbs are made the same. Surprisingly, there are good carbs and bad carbs. Knowing the difference between the two will come in handy. It can help in terms of preventing heart disease, diabetes, and other chronic diseases.
Good carbs are characterized as low glycemic foods – meaning they have minimal effects on your sugar and insulin levels. The opposite is true with the bad carbs. Eating them will surely result in a drastic spike in your insulin and blood sugar levels.
Listed below are some of the good carbs you can try:
- Whole Wheat Pasta
- Sourdough Bread
- Multi-grain Bread
- Whole-grain Bread
- Bulgur
- Carrots
- Peas
- Lentils
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Oats
- Brown rice
- Bran Flakes
- Quinoa
- Apple
Macronutrients Explained: Protein
Finally, there is protein. Like with the other macronutrients, you need to monitor your protein intake. Remember, you need to have the right amount of protein in your diet. It is crucial to helping you build muscle mass.
That said, you can also play around with your macros to gain muscle. If you are trying to get toned, then you might want to look for lean sources of protein.
Best Protein Sources for Macros Diet for Beginners
As stated earlier, you need protein to build muscles. However, if you are looking to lose weight, then we recommend sticking to lean proteins. Listed below are some of the proteins you can introduce to your diet.
- Lean Ground Beef
- Low-fat cottage cheese
- Fat-free cottage cheese
- Egg whites
- Salmon
- Tuna
- Tilapia
- Skinless Chicken Breast
- Skinless Turkey Breasts
- Lean Ground turkey
- Bison meat
- Top Round Steak
- Buffalo meat
- Beef Flank
Macronutrients Explained: Fat
For the longest time, fat was virtually labeled as an absolute evil among fitness enthusiasts. To promote weight loss, it even reached a point when dieticians and nutritionists would completely remove it from people’s diets.
However, the body needs fat. This is because consuming fats helps boost your metabolism and the rate at which you burn calories. Moreover, there are also certain kinds of fats and oils that the body needs, but can’t produce.
Best Fat Sources for Macros Diet for Beginners
When it comes to fat intake, women should also know that there are good and bad fats. Needless to say, you want to ensure that you stay away from the bad fats. Bad fats contain trans fats as it drastically increases your risk for developing heart disease later in life.
Instead, you should stick to consuming good fats regularly. These fats promote a healthy heart as they contain monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. Knowing the difference between the two is indispensable. Listed below are some of the good sources of fat that you should try:
- Avocado
- Peanut Butter
- Almond Butter
- Almonds
- Cashews
- Pecans
- Olive oil
- Vegetable oil
- Canola Oil
- Sunflower Oil
- Corn Oil
- Peanut Oil
- Soy-based Oil
- Salmon
What is the Macros Diet (IIFYM)?
Now that we have gone over the different macronutrients and the role they play in your diet, it is time that we delve into the macros diet for beginners. Commonly known as If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM), this macros diet is a flexible dieting option that lets you count macros to lose weight.
It is considered as the macros diet for beginners because it gives you a significant level of freedom in your dietary choices. This is welcome news for most women as most of them are probably sick and tired of all those fad diets and overly restrictive regimens that require you to starve yourself.
Surprisingly, IIFYM is incredibly simple. All you need to do is to count macros. To be more specific, you will need to take note of the number of grams per macronutrient that you consume per meal. So, at the end of the day, you will have a specific figure of how much protein, fat, and carbohydrates are in your diet.
Then, once you have everything written down, you will need to compare it with the suggested macro intake levels and ensure that they match. Needless to say, this is macros diet for beginners is a simple way towards fat loss.
Benefits of a Macros Diet
Now, you may be wondering why you should bother with macros for weight loss. After all, crash dieting, juicing, or even going on a no-carb diet is known to create faster results, right? Well, the answer to that is simple: the macros diet for beginners is a safer and more sustainable way of reaching your fitness goals.
Listed below are some of the benefits of optimizing macros to lose weight:
- Precise – Counting macros lets you keep track of the amount of food you are eating
- Versatile – It may come as a surprise to some, but counting macros can be used in conjunction with other diets and exercise routines. You can also make adjustments based on your specific fitness goals.
- Balanced – By following the macros diet for beginners, you get to do lose weight without compromising your nutrition. After all, using macros to lose weight enables you to enjoy a healthy and well-balanced diet. Again, we must reiterate that every one of the macronutrients is essential to your diet as it ensures your body’s optimal performance. Each of the macronutrients has a role to play in your bodily functions. So, cutting any of them out of your diet is ill-advised.
- Indulgent – Compared to other diets, counting macros doesn’t deprive you of certain foods. Using macros to lose weight means no longer having to endure self-imposed starvation nor making do with bland and tasteless food.
- Simple – Simplicity is key to success. Using macros to lose weight can be done with relative ease since all you need to do is count macros and start making the necessary adjustments.
How to Calculate Macros
We have already covered IIFYM and the benefits of counting macros. One of the most impressive benefits of the macros diet is its sheer versatility. For instance, if you are underweight, then you can adjust macro ratios and increase your carb intake to help you put on a few pounds.
On the other hand, if you are trying to put on shape up, then you can also do just that by making the necessary adjustments to your macro levels. To give you a better idea of how this can be done, we have listed down the suggested macros for beginners:
- 40% protein
- 35% carbohydrates
- 25% fat
To help you on your way, use macros calculator below. Be sure to make the most of it and come up with your sustainable fitness plan.
Click here to access our Macros Calculator.
Top 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Counting Macros to Lose Weight
- Not preparing your own food – The secret to success is preparation. By not preparing your food and choosing to eat out, you are leaving things to chance. Remember, you need absolute control over your portions and ratios. You can’t count macros effectively if you didn’t oversee the preparation.
- Inadequate water intake – Drinking water is essential – even more so while eating increased amounts of protein. Remember, you need adequate amounts of water to help you process this adjustment to your diet. Failure to do so will inevitably leave you constipated.
- Not Tracking Your Daily Intake – This is the cardinal mistake that you should avoid. To successfully count macros, you need constant monitoring of your daily intake. Otherwise, you risk losing track of your progress.
- Thinking all Calories are Created Equal – Again, you must count macros. While your caloric intake is important, planning and monitoring the kind of food you consume is also important. Remember the difference between good carbs and bad carbs.
- Weighing and Measuring Liquids and Solids with Inappropriate Tools – You need to be precise to effectively count macros. Get exact measurements, weigh your food. Use the correct tools for measuring liquids and the correct tools for measuring solids.
Conclusion
Crafting a plan for macros diet for beginners can be challenging but is certainly worth it. If you would like to get started with a macros diet, creating and obtaining nutrients from a combination of foods guaranteed to lead to major weight loss, fill out the form below and we will shoot one right over to you. As always, there’s no time like the present. Get started creating a healthier you today!