Macros- What are those?!

Macros?! What are those? In simple terms they are three things that you need a lot of in your diet- carbs, fats, and proteins. The first two words may scare some people….why would I want to have carbs and fat, they make me gain weight?! WRONG. Quality sources of carbs and fats are essential for your diet and for health.

Carbs
For some reason carbs seem to be the enemy to many people but also the thing those same people run to when they haven’t had them in a while. If you just eat right amount and right type of carbs, you probably won’t find yourself binging on them later. Fruits and vegetables have carbs, and so do doughnuts. Make the smart decision of getting plenty of one and limiting the other. Bread and pasta are not terrible for you. Refined grains and massive amounts are bad for you. Make choices like whole wheat and eat half of the restaurant serving. Diets that don’t have adequate carb intake will result in dehydration and will break down muscle/protein for energy.

Fats
Fat burners, blockers, eliminators. What?! There’s always a pill to solve all the problems..right? No. Your body gets vitamins from food and the fat in your body absorbs them. If you take a fat blocker your body will not take in those vitamins which are important for your bones, eyes, teeth, blood, and other body functions. Instead of chowing down on greasy french fries which is a bad fat, have a hand full of nuts and a cheese stick.

Protein 
Protein seems to be the most popular macro with those who workout and also people trying to lose weight. It is correct that you need a good amount of protein in your diet- but even something good is bad when there is TOO much. Any easy tip is to make sure you have a serving in each meal- eggs, chicken, nuts, quinoa, fish, etc.

So don’t be afraid of the all mighty macros!