I primarily get my clients started tracking their macros (macronutrients are carbs, protein, and fat) on MyFitnessPal (MFP). If nothing else, this creates AWARENESS, provides flexibility, and lets you be in control of your nutrition (not the other way around)!!
It can be really eye opening to measure and see what 2 Tbsp Almond Butter actually looks like, and oh, by the way … you actually had 4 servings! It can also be very surprising for many to see that they are under-eating. It’s not uncommon for my ladies when they start to only consume 60g Protein on targets over 100g.
Macro tracking creates awareness and provides flexibility
Wherever you fall on the spectrum, tracking foods can create awareness and CHANGE and provide flexibility. Flexibility means that ALL FOODS FIT. Read that again: ALL FOODS FIT. That’s right. I won’t ever tell you that you can’t eat certain foods because restriction and deprivation make us crave that food even more. And, they often lead to over-eating or binging.
But, in order to be successful and make change, you do have to try to plan your choices ahead of time and fit those indulgences in. Want some cookies or glass of wine? Log into MFP and assess how it impacts your intake. You may have to adjust so that you are consuming only 1 cookie (not 1 sleeve), or 5 oz of wine (not half a bottle). But, you can make it work. Portions will be king. This is why I ask every client that I work with what their non-negotiable foods are: What food can you not live without? I would never give up chocolate for a lifetime, so I don’t expect you to.
What you need to get started with tracking:
- Please refer to my previous article on how to determine how many calories you need: Why to Stop Eating 1500 Calories a Day. Remember that if you work with a Nutrition Coach like myself, I customize your goals and program your numbers based on your extensive history- not just your age, gender, height, weight.
- Enter your calorie goal into MFP and customize the macronutrient breakdown. I customize my clients’ macros, but if you’re not working with me, please use the start up % I recommend: 40% Carbs, 30% Protein, 30% Fat.
- The % will now provide you with grams of carbs, protein, fat to use as your guideline.
- Let’s look at an example: 2000 calorie diet
40% Carbs= 200g Carbs
30% Protein= 150g Protein
30% Fat= 67g Fat - Your #1 focus from the start is to create awareness. You can achieve some insightful information after just one week’s worth of macro tracking. From there, you can start to make adjustments. Ex: After logging food for one week, I can see that I am very deficient in protein. I can now start to implement strategies to increase my protein at my meals or plan a higher protein snack at 3pm or post-workout.
I encourage you to focus more on the macros than the calories. In addition, remember that macro tracking is also called flexible dieting because it emphasizes flexibility and an all-foods-fit approach. Tracking is not about perfection; rather, it is about consistency and awareness. Stay tuned for more info on Macro Tracking in upcoming articles.
Here is my challenge to you: set up MFP and begin tracking today!
Coach Abby
Registered Dietitian Nutrition Coach & Personal Trainer
Here is an example of a meal a client input into MFP. It quickly gives you feedback on your macros.
