We have been hearing a lot about macros and the benefit to counting and tracking these versus standard calorie tracking. And it looks like this trend might have some staying power. Many of the most popular eating paradigms right now rely on macronutrient tracking. Macro tracking also results in a ton of confusion. So let’s chat today about the differences and benefits to each method.
Calories
As always, I like to start with the science, because I am a nerd like that. Every single food and drink (save water) that we consume contains calories. Calories, or what are actually kilocalories, are a measure of the energy content of food. Should make sense; food is our fuel after all. A calorie is the amount of heat necessary to raise the temperature of a liter of water by one degree Celsius. Oops, there is the nerd in me using metric… A calorie is the heat necessary to raise about a quart of water by 1.8 degrees Farenheit.
Since food is our fuel, it is important that we are getting the appropriate amount. We require a certain number of calories every single day just to stay alive and functioning. Ever wonder why someone in a coma or vegetative state is given IV nutrition? They are still medically alive, so they need calories too. The number of calories each of us requires is different person to person based on a number of different factors. Age, gender, and body composition just to name a few. This number of calories is called the basal metabolic rate, or BMR.
After our BMR, assuming we aren’t the ones in the vegetative state, there are also calories we need for activity. Every single muscle contraction and nerve impulse requires calorie fuel. So even if our daily activity is just walking to the fridge to grab snacks, we still moved so we have to account for that. Obviously, if you have a physically demanding job or a rigorous exercise routine, you’ll require more calorie fuel. This is called the thermic effect of activity (TEA). This number is added to BMR to estimate your calorie (fuel) needs for a day.
Part of the first law of thermodynamics states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, it can only change forms. And the laws of thermodynamics govern, well, everything. Seriously they are, like, the physical laws of the universe.
Counting Calories
And that law is the basis for counting calories as part of weight management. If you take in too many calories, they have to go somewhere thanks to said law. And so your body converts and stores them as body fat. If you are in caloric balance, meaning that you are consuming the number of calories needed for BMR + TEA, each calorie you consume is being transformed into the energy your body needs to keep itself alive and moving. You will neither gain nor lose weight. If you are in a caloric deficit, meaning you are consuming too few calories to fuel your activities, your body must pull from its reserves (i.e. fat). Stored body fat is broken down and converted into the energy needed to meet the full demand and you lose weight.
Simply counting calories is an easy way to track for basic weight loss or gain. The thing is, all calories aren’t created equal in every sense. Each calorie still results in the same net energy for our bodies, but our bodies likes to use calories from different sources in different ways.
Macros
Which brings me to the macros portion of our program. The things that we eat are made up of many different parts. Some we are pretty familiar with, like vitamins and minerals. Some we are just starting to scratch the surface of, like antioxidants and phytochemicals. We need all of the things contained in whole foods to keep us healthy. Macros, or macronutrients are the constituents of our food that contain the calories.
The three macronutrients are carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Carbohydrates and proteins each provide four calories per gram. Fat provides nine calories per gram. We aren’t different than any other animal, fat is a storage form of energy and it always provides more calories. Hence the myth that eating fat makes you fat. Spoiler alert, it doesn’t, thanks again thermodynamics! Overconsumption of calories of any kind will result in weight gain.
As I said before, our bodies don’t treat the sources the same. Our brain and nervous system demand glucose. They can’t run on anything else. Glucose is the simplest form of carbohydrates (any carbohydrate is immediately converted to glucose by our digestive systems). And we require a certain percentage from our diet to keep our brain and nervous system functioning optimally.
When our bodies don’t have easy access to carbohydrates for this purpose, either through circumstance (simple carbohydrates are hard to find in nature) or choice (dieting parameters), they turn to fat. Carbohydrates and fat are both comprised of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, just in differing ratios. So our bodies can use either fat from our food or stored body fat to create glucose. It takes a bit more effort, but don’t forget, we are also getting more than twice the fuel payoff.
Protein is the tricky one. It is pretty common knowledge at this point that we need protein. And that’s true. We need it for a lot of stuff. Our bodies are in a constant state of repairing sections that are worn out and protein is king for that. Protein molecules are also huge and much more complex than either carbohydrates or fats. They take forever to break down and it costs much more energy to do it than they may provide. Protein also contains nitrogen which is tricky for our bodies in its free form. All that being said, we much prefer to use protein for tissue growth and repair than for fuel.
Counting Macros
Counting macros refers to tracking the number of grams of each of the three macronutrients you are consuming daily. Usually there is a range you want to hit for carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. This range depends upon many factors: age, gender, and body composition are important just as before, but your specific goals are also important.
Simply put, counting macros is in fact, just another way of counting calories. But since our bodies do not treat the macronutrients in the same way, you are able to account for a wider variety of goals using a macro tracking method.
If your goal is simple weight loss, counting calories will work just fine. Thermodynamics says it will. If, however, you want to make sure that the weight you are losing is coming from stored body fat or if you want to lean out while adding muscle tone or mass, counting macros is a much better way to go. You’ll be able to track the caloric deficit, but to make sure you are maintaining your lean tissues, you’ll want to track protein too. Tracking macros allows you to do that.
There are tons of online macronutrient calculators that can give you an idea of your ranges. Be prepared to answer more questions than just, “where are you starting and what is your goal weight?” But, again, the answers will be more complete. Apps can help you actually track your macros. There are apps specifically designed for just that and many people have good luck with the MyFitness App. Play around to see which one fit your style best.
Are you a simple calorie counter or are you on the macros bandwagon?
