How to set up Macronutrient Ratios/Targets

“How do I decide on macronutrient ratios, coach?”

A common question that many ask once they decide on a fitness goal. Let us unpack that LOADED question.

First off, do you know your total daily calorie requirements?

For maintenance or body recomposition (especially for new lifters who want to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time), this is what I recommend.

Take your body weight in lbs and multiply it by 15. This is roughly the amount of calories you should consume a day. For example, a 170 lb male would start with

170 lb x 15 kcals/lb = 2550 kcals

This is a rough starting point. If the scale starts moving up over the course of a week, titrate down by a 100 kcals. If the scale moves down over the course of a week, add a 100 kcals. This is the best way to find true maintenance calories.

Now then, that being outta the way, let’s chat macronutrients. Namely protein, fat and carbohydrate.

Protein is the most important to prioritise, for a plethora of reasons, which we’ll discuss in another article. For maintenance and growth of muscle mass and lean body mass, I recommend sticking to the standard 1g/lb of bodyweight. Yes, that’s right: 1 gram per POUND of bodyweight, not KILO of bodyweight. The latter was based on an outdated recommendation based on the minimum amount required by non-resistance trained adults to SURVIVE, We’re trying to thrive out here, so into the bin goes that advice.

So for our 170 lb chap trying to thrive and be in solid shape, 170 g protein a day is what he should consume.

That makes 170 g x 4 kcals/g = 680 kcal. Which means, 2550 kcal – 680 kcal = 1870 kcal left to divide between fats and carbohydrates.

Next up, fats. Again, not going to start listing the vast importance of fats here, but know that it is vital, and yes, an ESSENTIAL nutrient for survival. Google “rabbit starvation” if you’re unsure.

Fats should stay at no less than 0.5 g per lb of bodyweight as a rough starting point. Hair, skin, nails, hormones and gut health will all take a beating if fats are low. Been there, not a fan. Of course, in low carb/ketogenic/ancestral healing gut health diets, fats will be much higher to promote other benefits, but again, to be discussed later.

Back to our 170 lb beast. He’ll need 170 lb x 0.5 g/lb = 85 g fat a day.

85 g x 9 kcal/g = 765 kcal. Subtracting from the leftover caloric allowance of 1870, we get 1870 – 765 = 1105 kcal left for carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates contain 4 kcal per gram, so we divide 1105 by 4 to get the total grams of carbohydrates. 1105/4 = a whopping 276.25 grams.

Rounding down (because I like round numbers), we get 275 g.

To sum it up, our 170 lb lad gets to consume the following :

170 g protein

85 g fat

275 g carbohydrate

2550 kcal a day

Boom. Done. Sorted.

“Bbbb….bbbb…buuut coach…my blood sugar can’t handle that many carbs! My doctor told me to reduce carbs!’

Right, yeah. I can practically SEE the insulin pouring out of your eyes, mate. Not to worry, we’ll adjust it to suit your insulin resistant arse.

Jokes apart, certain cases do require manipulation of carbs/fats.

A lower carb approach would benefit those with blood sugar dysregulation/insulin resistance (type-2 diabetes or pre-diabetes), people eating fewer but larger meals, those who require a ketogenic diet or low carb diet for reversal/keeping in remission of neurological symptoms, or just dietary preference. I myself find that lower carbohydrate diets allow for fewer, but larger meals, and better appetite control. A lot of gut issues such as SIBO, candida/yeast overgrowths, “IBS”, bloating, etc respond well to lowering/eliminating carbohydrate temporarily until healing has taken place. This is because the microbes in the gut can feast on the carbohydrates and overgrow out of a proportions and jeopardize the delicate balance of the gut. Coupled with poor gastric emptying and motility, damaged gut lining, and improper bile/digestive enzyme/stomach acid production, this can be a proper disaster.

Higher carb approaches work for lean, extremely active and otherwise healthy individuals looking to build more muscle and be competitive in almost any variety of event, but especially anaerobic style events. Given that carbohydrates are protein sparing, quicker to digest, boost anabolism through insulin and help in electrolyte retention, they’re crucial in achieving maximal hypertrophy.

So that’s that! Get your macros sorted. Track everything, and adjust accordingly!

Love you to bits,

Tiger