Do you guys compensate your macros the next day if you had deficit the day before?

I don't actively compensate it, but my diet has enough variation that it just sort of happens. Over the course of a week my average protein is in my goal range, but there may be one or two days that I didn't quite reach it.

For reference, my goal is 1.6 g/kg of my weight. It's working very well for me. (I'm doing a slow cut.)

A little daily fluctuation really doesn't make much difference. as long as you keep your macros in the ballpark you should be fine.
If you go way over - like eating a pizza or 2 , then cut back for a couple days to even things out.

Protien & total calories are your main concerns , but 10 gms of protien is insignificant - it will probably vary more then that in measuring errors

I don't compensate on a day to day basis if I'm over or short. I tend to be pretty good and stay within 5-10g across all macros. Even if I fast one day I don't then make up those calories over the rest of the week. I do keep an eye on my overall weekly deficit, currently in a fat loss phase, but any daily fluctuations tend to balance out over the course of the week.

I generally look at my intake on a week to week basis rather than day to day...

Macros aren't important enough to go to that kind of effort. Trying to be bang on with your macros is an exercise in frustration...and they're just not that important. Calories are what are important for weight management.

Cals are more important than macros in terms of day to day continuity.

Obviously better to be under than over cals if you are trying to lose weight. There are those who like to think that they can "bank" the cals they "saved" during the week and then use the "extra" cals to binge on the weekend but I'm not one of them. I have no proof but I don't think your body works like that.

I don't think you can "make up" a shortage in your protein (or other macros) either. It's use it or lose it. When you consume your food, it is converted into stuff that your body can use. If you are consuming less in cals than the body needs, whatever is left over will be converted to fat -- doesn't matter if what's left over was originally protein, carbs or fat.

If you eat excess protein the next day because you were "short" the day before AND your body doesn't need that much protein the following day, the excess protein will just be converted into fat, if it is not used by the body in some other way. So, there's no point in trying to "make up" any deficiencies from day to day.

Just treat eat day as a separate event and, if you are doing it "right," it will all balance out in the end.

for one day - nope.
i take a look at trends now and then and if i'm constantly low then may tweak things. For me protein is rarely an issue but i am fairly low fat so i'll "peak" at fat row now and then. i won't adjust for one day but if i see i'm under/low for a few days in a row i'll rejig things. This is less of an issue now as I've tweaked things and kept those tweaks.

kgirlhart wrote: »

Not really. Protein is the only macro I really pay attention to. If for some reason I have a particularly low protein day then I will make a conscious effort to get more the next day, but I don't worry about it too much.

Ditto. Especially after leg day. I have a vague notion that those big muscles really need to be fed and I don't like falling short on protein.