Struggle with Macros

Shari_Lynn_Wallace

I track both calories, and Macros (carb, protein, fats). However, try as I might, I cannot get a day of perfect match on all four! Does anyone else have the same problem, or better yet! Overcome the problem? I pre-plan three of my meals a week, and even on those days: no dice.

nsk1951

Yep ... it never comes out that both macros and calories are in sync. It might be a good idea to set a small range, say 10% either way of the target and call it a day.

AnnPT77

There's no need to be perfect.

For weight management, the calories are the only thing that matters directly. (Truly poor nutrition can have negative effects indirectly, through fatigue (move less, burn fewer calories), or through spiked cravings/appetite (can't stick to calorie goal) . . . but their effect is through their calorie impact.)

Sometimes, people seem to think that macro exactitude is like a magic spell for weight loss, that getting it exactly right is some kind of magic key to success. It's not.

For nutrition, close on macros is plenty good enough, especially if you're a little under on one thing one day, a little under on another another day, and you end up averaging out close to reasonable numbers over a small number of days to a week. Even then, only fats and protein are "essential nutrients" in the sense that our bodies can't manufacture some essential amino acids and fatty acids out of any other nutrient, so that we have to eat some for optimum health results. Carbs are not essential in that sense.

But even for fats and protein, our bodies are flexible/adaptable: They don't reset at midnight, full digestive transit can take up to 50+ hours, and bodies have mechanisms for temporarily hanging onto certain essential nutrients to match them up to our needs over reasonable time periods.

Think about it: Over the long sweep of human history, humans didn't even mostly know about macros, didn't have the plentiful foods we have now (if we're economically lucky, in global terms). Still they lived, had offspring, even had long lives in a lot of cases. Humans are adaptable omnivores. Being 5 grams under or over on one day is not worth fussing over.

Relax, look at your weekly averages, try not to be persistently under on either protein or fats, and eat a bunch of nice, varied, colorful veggies and fruits for micros and fiber. You'll do fine.

sijomial

“Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good.” ― Voltaire

It's really not a problem that needs to be overcome.

SuzanneC1l9zz

Remember that rounding is allowed on food labels. In North America I believe it can be up to 20%. That's enough to skew the numbers.

cmriverside

I don't even try to do that. I get close on some days, but it's purely accidental.

It's not really necessary for weight loss. Calories are the ones on which to really focus.

I also track iron, calcium and fiber. Try making all those match. Yeah, no. I just make sure I'm in the ballpark for the week by looking at weekly reports.

cwolfman13

It's really not an issue that needs to be overcome. Nothing magical happens with hitting your macros perfectly. There also isn't any kind of universally optimal macro ratio...they are very individual. They're meant to be a guideline. You're doing a lot of hand wringing for absolutely zero benefit.

gpanda103

If you enjoy being annoyed, yes, try to get all 4 RDA amounts. Best way to do that would just be with oil, sugar, and egg whites.

Seriously though, just worry about calories and protein. I almost always go over in carbs and… now I’m walking around with a tail. Macro split doesn’t really matter for 95% of the population

azuki84

An easy practice for me (may not work for you) is just meet my daily protein intake (120-130g, I'm 125lb 5'4'' at 9.5% body fat), then I just fill rest with carbs and fats. I don't focus on macros as heavily as I do for calories (2100-2500) Digestion is great, I have amazing energy, sleep is perfect.

kshama2001

I just try to meet or exceed protein and fiber, and stay a tad under calories and fat. (Under fat for a personal medical condition - this is not a universal recommendation.)

Hitting protein and fiber helps ME stay full - people doing keto are (presumably) satiated with fat.