What do you know about macronutrients? What effect will paying attention to the amount of macronutrients have on your weight loss and increase? Usually when you look at the nutritional value chart at first glance, the first thing you notice is the amount of calories. But to have a better understanding of a product or a meal, you should also pay attention to macronutrients. Foods in the form of calories provide energy (also called kilocalories). All foods provide calories, whether they have nutritional value or not. In this article, we will review macronutrients from Dr. Salam’s nutrition section.
What is a macronutrient?
Macronutrients, or macronutrients, are foods that you need in your diet. (Unlike micronutrients, they are substances that the body needs in smaller amounts, these include vitamins, minerals and electrolytes). The three macronutrients that the human body needs to survive are carbohydrates, proteins and fats. The body needs all of these enough.
carbohydrates:
Carbohydrates provide us with instant energy, especially between sports and when we feel hungry between two main meals. When you eat carbohydrates, your body converts glucose or sugar. This glucose is either consumed immediately or stored as glycogen for later consumption. Carbohydrates help the digestive system function better because carbohydrate-rich foods are usually high in fiber. Some foods that are high in carbohydrates include: wheat, potatoes, fruit, milk and yogurt. Other foods such as vegetables, legumes and nuts also contain carbohydrates, but their carbohydrate content is lower than the high group.
Protein:
Proteins are essential for the body. The protein we eat in the diet helps with growth and muscle building, repairs injuries, produces hormones and enzymes, and fights disease. Protein-rich foods include poultry, beef, fish, cheese, soy and some vegetables.
Fat:
Finally, fats are essential for all the processes that take place in the body. Fat is needed by the body to help our body absorb the soluble vitamins we take in (including vitamins A, D, E, K). Fat also helps the body in cold weather. In addition, it helps us to survive for a long time without eating. In addition, enough fat helps the body maintain endurance during exercise.
Calories in macronutrients
Each macronutrient provides a specific amount of calories per gram
- Carbohydrates provide 4 calories per gram
- Protein provides 4 calories per gram
- Fats provide 9 calories per gram
The best rate for macronutrients
The Food and Drug Administration says it is best to get 45 to 60 percent of your calories from carbohydrates a day. In addition, provide 20 to 35 percent of your daily calories from healthy fats. Finally provide the rest of the proteins. This recommendation is based on the fact that carbohydrates are the body’s main fuel and the easiest way for the body to convert food into energy (compared to protein and fat).
Be sure to follow the fat level recommendation because the body only needs a certain amount of fat. Of course, people are different. Many people prefer a low carb diet while others feel they need more carbohydrates. In addition, many people need a high-protein diet.
However, others may develop bloating by consuming large amounts of protein. Determining the amount of macronutrient that is right for you depends on your health and the purpose of your diet. In addition, it depends on how much your body needs each. Keep in mind that all the ratios stated here are general. Everyone should get a certain amount of each of the macronutrients according to the specific diet they follow.
Macronutrients for weight loss:
The right amount of macronutrients for people who want to lose weight is as follows, this amount is for daily consumption:
- Carbohydrates: 40 to 50%
- Protein: 25 to 30%
- Fat: 25 to 35%
Macronutrients for muscle building:
Here is a good amount of macronutrients for people who want to build muscle or gain weight, this is the amount for daily consumption:
- Carbohydrates: 50 to 60%
- Protein: 25 to 35%
- Fat: 10 to 15%
Macronutrients for weight maintenance:
Here is a good amount of macronutrients to maintain your current weight, this is the amount for daily consumption:
- Carbohydrates: 45 to 60%
- Protein: 25 to 30%
- Fat: 20 to 30%
These ratios are really beneficial, but many of them also depend on your energy level. First of all, you need to measure your calorie intake against the calories you burn. Whenever you see a reduction in calories by doing these calculations, it means that you are losing weight. Each time you consume more calories than you consume, you are gaining weight.
Calculations
The above information provided us with the amount of macronutrients as a percentage. But since we have hot food information, you need to know how many grams of each macronutrient to consume daily. There are two ways to measure the ratio of macronutrients to heat. One way that is usually difficult is through equation.
- 1- First of all, determine how many calories you need per day according to your goal. For example, let’s say you need 2,000 calories.
- 2- Then determine the calorie ratio according to the goal. For example, if you want to maintain your current weight, you need 50% carbohydrates, 25% protein and 25% fat.
- 3- Multiply the total calories in each percentage. (Percentages must be written in decimal) For example, you multiply 2000 by 0.50 and the answer is 1000. So you should get 1000 calories full of carbohydrates every day. For protein, we multiply 2000 by 0.25 and the answer is 500. Fat is just like protein 500.
So now, based on the example above, you know how many calories you should get each day according to your goal. We have already talked about converting them to grams and said that each of the macronutrients has a certain amount of calories per gram. There are 4 calories per gram of carbohydrates and protein. There are 9 calories per gram of fat. Since you now have the amount of calories, all you have to do is split the calories per gram of macronutrients. Based on the example above, this means that 250 grams of carbohydrates are needed (divide 1000 by 4). You need 125 grams of protein (divide 500 by 4). Finally, you need 56 grams of fat (divide 500 by 9). Fortunately, you do not have to do this yourself, and some websites are designed for this purpose.
The best macronutrient calculators
Healthy Eater’s Website:
This website performs accurate calculations. This website measures your macronutrient ratio based on your age, gender, height, weight and daily activity. It asks you if you want to lose weight, maintain weight, or gain weight, and then calculates based on your answer. With this website you can see the macronutrient ratio for the whole day (in three servings, four servings and five servings). Plus this website is free.
Muscle for life website:
This website is more accurate than the website above. This website asks about your weight, your body fat percentage and your daily activity. It then uses the same criteria to determine lean body mass (LBM), basal metabolic rate (BMR), and total energy expenditure (TDEE). This website will also ask you if you want to lose weight, stay lean or gain weight, and will guide you accordingly. Use of this website is free.
Katy Hearn Website:
Working with this website is simple. This website asks about age, gender, height, weight and daily activity. And it helps you reach your goal in the diet. Use of this website is free.
Free dieting website:
This website is also a useful website. This website does not ask for the factors that other websites ask for and does not calculate the amount of calories and macronutrients. Of course, knowing how many calories you need is sometimes necessary. Use of this website is free.
IIFYM Website:
This website has the same functionality as the above websites. This website will help you understand the ratios related to you. For example, if you want to lose weight, this website will ask you how fast you want to lose weight. If you choose to lose weight fast, this website will tell you that this method of weight loss has many risks.
This site is a bit more advanced than the above websites and asks you how much you work out in the workplace and how much you exercise. The more accurate information you enter on this website, the more accurate the calculated ratios will be. This website also asks about your current diet and whether you are taking certain medications. In addition, it is free to use, but to use it, you must enter your email address.
Add all macronutrients
Well, now that the macronutrients have been calculated, you need to learn how to add them to your diet to make sure you are following the stated ratios. Fortunately, many websites help you collect macronutrients, and you do not need to do it yourself and collect every gram of carbohydrate, protein and fat you consume. Technology has made this process easier.
The best collectors of macronutrients
This is exactly the same as calculating macronutrients for which various websites have been designed. The following are some of the best websites to do this:
MyFitnessPal Website:
All you have to do on this website is enter your calorie intake and macronutrient ratio. It will help you when you provide a daily report to the site. One of the good things about this site is that it contains a lot of drinks and food and you do not have to enter the food you eat manually. You can scan the barcode on the food to get more accurate food information. This website has two versions and one version is free and you have to pay a monthly fee for the other version which has more benefits.
Cronometer website:
This website goes a step further and also measures the amount of vitamins and minerals consumed. In addition, on this website, you can record blood pressure, cholesterol, pulse, sleep rate, etc. Of course, if you do not go to the doctor regularly for check-ups, entering this information is not very useful because you may enter it incorrectly. This website also has its own advantages. Membership in this website is free, but gold membership is free.
My Macros Plus website:
This website is another website that allows you to scan the barcode to understand the nutritional value of different foods. More than five million foods are registered on this website. Working with this website is such that you must first enter your weight. In addition, you can include homemade food on this website. And you can include as many meals as you want and do not limit yourself to breakfast, lunch and dinner. This website is not free.
Fitocracy Macros app:
This application offers fitness exercises online. This application is free and is suitable for collecting macronutrients. This app does not have any database yet and you have to enter your information manually. This app provides you with a weekly report on your calorie intake and macronutrient intake. Use of this app is free.
Should the amount of macronutrients consumed be collected?
In short, no. But some people like to do it and find it useful. The total amount of macronutrients consumed is used for purposes such as losing weight, preparing for bodybuilding, participating in sports and building muscle. But in short, there is no specific reason to learn it. The principles of living a healthy life are simple: Eat more canned foods and eat as little canned food as possible. Drink enough water. Get enough sleep. Spend as many minutes as possible exercising every day. In general, collecting macronutrient intake is suitable for people who want to participate in important competitions. It’s a little hard for ordinary people to do that. Because it takes a lot of time.
Last point
Being aware of macronutrients helps you stay healthy and fit. But to have a healthy life, you do not need to know how to calculate it.
