How To Calculate Your Macronutrients

Hey there, SIS!

With the Drop 10 program cart open this week I asked some veterans what they love about the program.

Most women DO meet the 10 lb/10 inches lost milestone, but they talk about what they gain:

• Energy!

• Confidence!

• Muscle tone!

• Knowledge!

• Community!

Hell YES to the community!

But… I’m noticing a downside to the community. After we are together awhile we tend to get our own little language going. And that can make some ladies feel out of place!

Definitely NOT my intention. So before we get our Drop 10 into full swing, I’m offering a 6-week beginner program on macros.

WHAT ARE MACROS?

“Macros” is short for “Macronutrients.” Does anyone still have nightmares from their college MACROeconomics class? You remember then that MACRO means “Big.” Macros are the “big” three categories that give us calories.

Calories don’t actually give you any nutrients. WHAT?!

No, calories just measure the ENERGY in your food. And different kinds of macronutrients give different amounts of energy.

Macronutrients are divided into three big categories:

• Carbohydrates, which are your body’s favorite source of energy (although all macronutrients can be used for energy)

• Proteins, which are your body’s favorite building blocks 

• Fats, which are how your body stores energy

Have you ever heard the riddle: Which weighs more? A pound of bricks or a pound of feathers?

Obviously they both weigh the same. But think about the HUGE pile of feathers it takes to weigh one pound, versus the brick that probably weighs, like, three pounds.

I like that riddle to show the different energy levels that macronutrients provide.

Which takes gives more volume: 100 calories of baby carrots or 100 calories of peanut butter?

You can eat a 1-pound bag of carrots or 2-Tablespoons of peanut butter for the same amount of calories. That is because carrots are made of carbohydrates, which provide four calories for every gram, but peanut butter is mostly fat, which provides nine calories per gram.

And what the heck is a gram? America still follows the whole teaspoon/tablespoon/pound system when pretty much everyone else in the world is on the metric system. That means our nutrition labels are going to be in metrics.

So how big is a gram? Let’s put this in terms everyone can understand: One gram is about the size of an M & M.

If I ate a one- M & M sized scoop of olive oil, I would consume nine calories. A one- M & M sized scoop of table sugar would give four calories.

You follow?

Here’s the big point.

Let’s say you are supposed to consume 1600 calories in a day. Drink 10 cans of Mountain Dew and you made your calorie limit. Healthy, right?

Ha. Not.

That’s why in the SIS, we count macronutrients. This helps be sure that you are getting a good variety of calories from healthy sources. We’re about quality here, not just quantity!

Just a heads up… It’s going to take some mathin’ to figure out your own personal macronutrient needs. But once you got them figured, you’re golden, girl!

And, I’m not going to leave you out in the dark. I made a worksheet to guide you step-by-step through the process of not just understanding what the heck macronutrients are, but how to calculate yours! Click the link below to download your worksheet.