How to calculate the macro? This is the most frequently typed question in Google search when we enter a diet to reduce weight or increase it. We suggest how to go about this counting.
The process of losing weight, i.e. both reducing weight and increasing it, is not such a simple matter as it may seem. Proper exercise is not even a half of success. It is said that 70% of success comes from our diet. To win the battle with excess weight, you need to have at least a basic knowledge of the energy requirements of your body and macronutrients conducive to reducing or gaining weight
Five meals a day, including three small and two full meals (but of course there is no question of overeating) – such a diet plan is usually adopted by people who want to lose a few kilos. It is perfectly fine, but you can not eat everything or go to extremes and eat only vegetables and fruits. The diet has to be balanced. When trying to reduce weight, optimal energy intake is important. We should first of all gather information about ourselves into a whole. Our attention should be paid to our lifestyle (which will help in the selection of macronutrients in the diet), whether more active or sedentary, our habits, maybe we need to eliminate the so-called “empty calories”, which are abundant in sweets and fast food. It turns out that it is not so easy, because who of us does not like to eat a piece of chocolate or a candy bar during the day?
On the other hand, when we plan to gain weight by increasing our muscle mass, we have a dilemma as to how much protein, carbohydrates and fats we should consume. When planning a diet, a good macronutrient breakdown is essential. Regardless of the set goal, in order to achieve it, the basic principles of a proper diet plan must be followed.
For our body and the whole organism to function as it should, it must get “fuel” in the form of food and drink. Nutritionists and people associated with the fitness industry repeat like a mantra that only a balanced energy balance, that is a balance between energy intake and energy consumption guarantees success
To calculate the optimal energy intake, we need to calculate our basal metabolism, or PPM (Basic Metabolic Rate). The formula is slightly different for men and women. 10 x weight in kilograms + 6.25 x height in centimeters – 5 x age in years + 5 – is the template for men. And this formula can be used by ladies – 10 x weight in kilograms + 6.25 x height in centimeters – 5 x age – 161. On the web you can find many online calculators calculating this indicator. The result will give us the number of kilocalories that is optimal for us. Depending on your goal, you can decrease it (weight reduction) or increase it to gain muscle mass.
The next important step is to correctly adjust the macronutrients needed to maintain an adequate body weight. For example, protein intake is in a fairly wide range of 0.8-2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day. 1g of protein has 4 kcal. The next important macronutrients are fats – their requirement is between 20 and 35%. The rest of our energy is supplemented with carbohydrates. If we are not yet familiar with calculating the need for macronutrients and energy intake, we can use the applications that will help us in the separation of macronutrients, their quantities and will tell us what foods they are in.
