When I first stumbled onto SFM back in 2018, I was just looking for something, anything to help me lose those last twenty pounds after having my fourth baby. I did the six week intro to macros session and it blew my mind the difference getting my nutrition in line made in my body composition. Honestly, the scale changes were great but I had NO IDEA up to that point about body composition, muscle mass, fat loss or any of that stuff. I was always just focused on the scale and thought before/after pics were only for people who gave up living normal lives and lived in the gym doing endless crunches and pushups.
My journey hasn’t been perfect, for instance, never have I ever hit triple zeros when tracking my macros. The ability to focus on consistency over perfection is what has made macros sustainable for me over the past six years. If this were something you had to do perfectly every day, there is no way I would still be here! I thrive in the “almost perfect” world and lifestyle! Having the freedom to take days off here and there for special events, a week or two off around the holidays, or be in a season where I can’t embrace macros 100% is where the beauty of macros lies for me.
It is good to remember that there are layers to the journey! We don’t have to come barreling out of the chute doing all the things at once. When I began, I was just looking for a diet that would help me shed weight. Then once I had found a comfortable place with my weight, it grew into wanting to fuel my body for performance on my runs and recoveries and really leaned into the consistency aspect of macros. As I grew in my understanding of nutrition, body composition and the importance of muscle, I added on the next layer of getting serious with strength training. I haven’t done any of it perfectly, but I have done it consistently and that is where the change happens.
I have mantras I repeat to myself (and my clients!) that keep me moving forward with my goals, and help me stay focused on the priorities. You’ll often hear me say to, “Just do the next good thing for your body.” Depending on your season, that can look like nailing your macros, moving your body, drinking your water, getting enough sleep– all of the above or just one or two of those things! It’s just about staying in that mindset of doing SOMETHING, because it beats doing nothing every time.
So many programs out there want us to focus on 30, 60, or 90 days to the finish line. I don’t even want you to focus on a one year goal (even though it’s great to have those!). Macros is something we need to take the long view on, and it just gets better and better the longer we do it. What if instead we look five, ten or even fifteen years down the road? Think about where you will be if you just keep balancing your nutrition and doing the hard stuff in fifteen years! I guarantee you that you will be ahead of most of your peers and taking better care of yourself than most of the people your age! I can promise you that if you commit to the long-haul mindset and continue to put in the work, month after month, you will continue to see progress and new changes as time goes by. It isn’t going to be overnight changes, but time + consistency will gradually build into progress and change. The time is going to pass, so what are you going to do with it?
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