Let’s talk about how to adjust your macros! There can be a number of reasons for adjusting your macros including but not limited to
- Increases in hunger/
- Decreases in consistency
- change in activity level or training
- pregnant/postpartum/nursing
- A plateau, the list goes on and on.
Both when we set and adjust macros, we start with calories. Calories matter most when you’re looking to lose body fat. Why? Because you must be in a calorie deficit in order to lose weight! We use what’s called the body weight multiplier formula to determine calories. Your body weight times BWM (Body weight multiplier) equals overall calories. Very generally speaking the higher your activity level, the more you weigh, the faster your metabolism, the higher your Body weight multiplier will be. And on the other hand, the lower your activity level, the less you weigh, the slower your metabolism, the lower your BWM will be.
As I mentioned before, in order to lose weight you must be in a calorie deficit, but most dieters fail because they set their calories unrealistically low. When we coach women one on one, we’re always trying to find that line of how much food can we give this woman so that she sees crazy success with consistency and sustainability while also putting her in enough of a calorie deficit so she has success with fat loss. That’s the magical spot for your macros and sometimes that takes a little bit of trial and error, with moving your BWM around, over a few weeks to figure out.
Ask yourself these questions when you’re determining where to set or adjust your body weight multiplier..
- Can I be consistent hitting my macros for 13/14 days without feeling deprived?
- Is hunger turning to HANGER even when I eat high volume foods?
- Do I have enough energy to make it through the day?
- Am I seeing progress (even if that progress seems slower than I’d like)?
Taking your calories up or down 100 to 150 calories can do your body loads of good without drastic change to your diet that might take you off the deep end or leave you feeling starving.
Want to learn more about where to set and adjust your protein for optimal results? Click HERE.
And finally, don’t underestimate the value of a coach. There is so much value in having someone that’s both experienced and unbiased take all the guesswork out of it for you. It’s the difference between showing up to the gym and programming all your workouts yourself or having a coach tell you exactly what to do.
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