Calories & macros explained in 20 seconds...
Straight up, if you’re big and don’t make it to the end of what I've written here, it’s literally the reason why you’ll have 6 Yorkshire puds on your dinner, compared to everyone else’s 2.
Are calories and macros the same?
A calorie is simply a measurement of energy and the food we eat contains calories.
Our brain, muscles, every cell in our body, requires energy to operate.
So your body burns a certain amount of calories a day. Everyone is different.
- If you consume MORE calories from FOOD, than calories your body BURNS, you will literally transform into a Yorkshire pudding.
- If you consume LESS calories from FOOD, than calories your body BURNS, you will lose F@T. This is called a calorie deficit, which is what we stand by at Team RH.
If you’ve made it this far, well done.
How do macros work?
The calories you consume are made up of different food groups.
- Protein: fish, chicken, dairy, tofu, eggs
- Carbs: bread, pasta, potatoes, cookies
- Fats: avocado, chocolate, butter, ice cream
Those 3 right there are your macros (protein, carbs, fat = Macros). That word ain’t so scary now is it ya stress head.
Okay, I know this is longer than 20 seconds, but so what, this is free content that could change your life.
So we know the 'calories in vs calories out' rule dictates your body fat percentage, and we know the calories you consume are made up of macros (food groups). Did you know though, different macros have different calorie values?
That’s right guys, fat is more dense in calories.
That doesn’t mean eating fat makes you fat.
Stop asking 'What makes you fat, carbs, fat or calories?' Its a load of rubbish.
Remember eating more CALORIES is what makes you fat - this is what we teach on the Life Plan. We want you to eat foods you enjoy, whilst operating in a sustainable caloric deficit.
Food like pizza, ice cream, and chocolate are high in grams of fat, so, if you eat lots of high fat foods, it will likely put you into a caloric surplus .
Lets take a look at this image below:
Right so as you can see, the yellow is fats, blue is carbs, and orange is protein.. Go and look at the foods first.
Those foods are HIGH in that macro, so...
- Chicken is high in protein but low in fat and carbs.
- Fruit is high in carbs but low in fats and protein.
- Avocado is high in fats but low in carbs and protein.
How many calories and macros should I eat in a day - for weight loss?
On the Life Plan, we set you X amount of calories, these calories are made up of specific macros. It may look something like:
- 120g protein
- 50G fat
- 250g carbs
If we add these up above, by their multipliers that I mentioned earlier:
- 120g protein x 4 = 480 calories
- 50G fat x 9 - 450 calories
- 250g carbs x 4 = 1,000 calories
Total = 1,930 calories
Ah you know what I'm gonna do a video, this is doing my head in.
Key points
I hope all this makes sense to you all. Don't ever give up okay, because I promise this is the KEY to your future happiness.
Looking for some high protein food examples to help smash your daily goal on the Life Plan? Checkout this blog here.
Would you rather look for fibre examples instead? Have a read of this blog here.
Team RH