So you’re considering macro counting? Before you dive in it’s best to take a moment to ask yourself why you want to count your macros.
What are Macros?
Marcos is just a shortened way to say macronutrient. These are protein, carbs, and fat, the makeup of basically all foods. Basically, you are counting the macronutrients in the food you are consuming throughout your day.
Why Macro Count
People turn to macro counting when they want their physique to look a certain way. Macro counting is a tool to lose weight, but it goes further than that.
When attempting to obtain a certain body-look you need to consume a certain percentage of the different macros. By counting these, you can see where you stand throughout your day so you are not blindly selecting foods you believe ‘fit’ in your needs.
The Pros of Macro Counting
Learn More About Nutrition in Different Foods
By constantly inputting the nutrition information into an app you will eventually become more aware of what foods consist of. This can be an awesome way of being more aware of what you are actually consuming!
Another aspect to this is you will also grow a better awareness of what a serving size is. I am not saying you can only have a certain amount of food! To know what the nutrition looks like in a certain food is one thing but understanding how that changes with the different amounts you eat of it!
You Know What You Have Eaten and What You Still Need to Eat
If you do have certain goals that are very strict, it may be too difficult to think back throughout your whole day to calculate what you’ve eaten all day!
By the end of the day you may be ready for a snack but don’t have a good idea of where you stand nutrition-wise. This is where macro counting is a positive. You can look at what amount of macros you have left and base your meal off that!
The Cons of Macro Counting
Each Person’s Needs Vary Widely
Knowing exactly how much of each macronutrient can be difficult to calculate. If you do a simple search online you’ll find articles telling you what you need. Those are likely false.
To figure out your necessary macros you will need take into account where you currently stand nutrition-wise, what your goals are, exercise, and other factors. If you are seriously tracking it would be best to talk with a Registered Dietitian. They can figure out all of this for you so you are not wasting your time and efforts!
Macro Counting Can Become Life Consuming
If you don’t eat the same foods often you may spend some extra time inputting your meals into a macro counter such as My Fitness Pal.
It can also be difficult to track foods that you don’t make or have a label! That banana bread your grandma gave you? You definitely won’t be able to accurately input it into the app.
You May Feel Obligated to Eat Certain Foods
Your favorite food may have terrible macros. It’s still okay to eat it, but it may seem disappointing when inputting it into your tracking app.
At the end of the day you can see what amount of macros you have left to eat. If you like to finish your day with a bowl of popcorn but only have a small amount of carbs and a large amount of protein to eat, this would be pretty difficult. When macro counting you can’t always eat exactly what you’re craving.
Another way to look at it is that you are eating nutrition not eating food. This takes away the pleasure and community food brings. It is still possible to enjoy what you are having and to eat with others, but it may take more effort!
Macro Counting Can Lead to Disordered Eating Habits
For some counting macros can become an obsession. They may only allow themselves foods that fit into their app. This can dance the line of becoming orthorexia. Orthorexia is becoming obsession with health. This is a disordered eating habit and if you believe tracking your food is not with good intentions, I would avoid doing so.
Takeaway
Macro counting has both pros and cons. With this information you can make the decision for yourself what to do!
You can of course use it as a tool to help you learn more about nutrition and assist you in reaching any goals. On the other hand, tracking your macros may not be what you need for your personal goals, become life consuming, deter you from eating what you enjoy, or even lead to disordered eating habits.
If you have any questions feel free to leave a comment down below or send me a direct message through Instagram!
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