Balancing Macronutrients: A Guide to Protein, Carbs, and Fats

Balancing our food intake is so important. Balance ensures we are getting enough of each of the macronutrients (protein, fat, and carbs), helps promote satiety, helps decrease overindulgence, and helps make sure we’re getting all the micronutrients and vitamins we need. Achieving a well-balanced diet is also key to optimal health and successful weight management. As a nutrition coach, I often emphasize the importance of understanding and balancing macronutrients – proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.

But what does “balance” actually mean and how can you achieve it??

In this post, we'll explore the roles of each macronutrient and provide practical tips for achieving this balance in your food plan.

I also just gave a presentation involving this information the other day, so not only is it top of mind, but people present also found it useful. So, I wanted to translate it into a post here!

Let’s start with PROTEIN

Proteins are the amino acid building blocks of our body, essential for the growth, repair, and maintenance of tissues. Including an adequate amount of protein in your diet supports muscle development, boosts metabolism because it impacts our Thermic Effect of Food (how hard our body works to digest different macros), and helps you feel satiated because it’s slower digesting. Sources of lean protein include poultry, fish, tofu, legumes, and dairy products.

We do not store protein the same way we do carbs and fats, so it is critical to eat “enough” protein. As a general guideline, aim for 1-2 palm-sized portions of protein with each meal. If you want to get really detailed, you can take your current weight or goal body weight and multiply by 0.7. That number is now your goal in grams of protein per day! So, if I weigh 150 pounds, my protein goal is at least 105g per day!

Understanding CARBOHYDRATES

Carbohydrates are the body's primary energy source. They are classified into complex (whole grains, vegetables) and simple (sugars, refined grains). While carbohydrates have been vilified in some diet trends, they are crucial for providing the energy needed for daily activities and exercise. Opting for mostly whole, minimally-processed carbs to ensure a steady release of energy and include a variety of colorful vegetables, fruits, and whole grains in your meals for the sake of vitamins and minerals.

The amount of carbs that each of us need depends on a variety of factors like body size, activity level and workout intensity, genetics, intake of other macros, and our goals. If you’re an athlete or someone who is very active, you may need a higher amount of carbs. To this point, carbs also make great additions to post-workout meals or snacks. By eating carbs blood sugar levels are topped off, so the body will not burn muscle cells for energy. That’s as important as it sounds!

The Importance of Healthy FATS

Fats sometimes also carry a negative connotation… I think we get the wrong idea about them simply because they share a name with fat, like body fat. Contrary to that belief, eating fats do not necessarily make you fat (more on body composition below), and they actually serve many vital bodily functions. Healthy fats, such as those found in avocados, nuts, seeds, and olive oil, support brain health, cushion our cells and joints, help with hormone production, and support absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. Aim to include a moderate amount of healthy fats in your diet to promote overall well-being.

Fun fact about fats… fats can be slower digesting so can be included in your food plan when you may not have access to a next meal or snack for a while, or when you’re less active. It’s not recommended to have a bunch of fatty foods right before you go for a run or something like that as they will likely not sit well in your stomach, for example.

Finding the Right Balance

Great, now we know what macros are… now we can think about achieving a balanced macronutrient intake. This involves understanding your individual needs based on factors like age, history with eating different macros and overall amounts of food, activity level, and health goals. Here are some practical tips to help you find the right balance:

1. Portion Control: Be mindful of portion sizes for each macronutrient. Use visual cues, such as the size of your palm or a deck of cards, to estimate appropriate portions.

   Here are two ways you can help estimates portions… one uses your hand as a reference point, the other breaks down your plate:

   

   This is from Precision Nutrition. To be honest, I don’t love the fact that it includes recommendations for men and women because that is too generalized and makes some assumptions. Instead, let’s translate that into smaller/less active/less muscular and larger/more active/more muscular individuals. It’s also fine if you find yourself in between, just find that happy medium with your food!

   

   Obviously this will depend a bit on literally how large your plate is… so use your judgement with how much of your literal plate you fill, but you can use these breakdowns to guide quantities!

2. Include Variety: Aim for a diverse range of food sources for each macronutrient to provide a spectrum of essential nutrients IF you can. Think: different color fruits and veggies, different types of proteins, plant- or animal-based, etc. Not only will this give us diverse vitamins and minerals, but also helps to keep your meals interesting and nutritionally rich.

3. Timing Matters, but only to an extent: Distribute your macronutrients throughout the day to maintain steady energy levels. Eating throughout the day helps to keep our blood sugar stable! Consider having a balanced mix of protein, carbs, and fats in each meal or snack. Timing does not matter, however, with the exact amounts of each macro you eat at any given time. There was once a belief that if you didn’t eat significant protein following your workout, you basically wasted your workout… FALSE. Instead, what matters most is our overall intake of macros and calories over the course of the day!

4. See what happens. If you’re losing, gaining, or maintaining between 0.5-1.5 pounds per week, in accordance with your goals, then your intake is likely in a good spot, as long as you’re not starving or stuffing yourself… we don’t want that! If not, include slightly more or less food as needed until you hit that spot!

Adapting for Individual Goals

The balance of macronutrients can be tailored to individual goals, whether it's weight loss, muscle gain, maintenance, or overall well-being. If you’re wanting to gain mass or strength, you’re going to stick to increased portions of those meal models above. If you’re looking to lose weight, stick to slightly smaller portions of the meal models, with the exception of protein… keep that where it is!

If you want to dive a little deeper into this intake equation, you could figure out an appropriate calorie total to go with your protein goal, and then aim to hit them both with your daily intake.

Note: This approach is NOT for everyone. Know yourself. If you’ve had a history with obsessive eating, disordered eating, or you simply know that looking at your food this closely would not be constructive, skip this part, or read it for information purposes only!

If you want to check this out, read on:

Step 1. Determine your Maintenance Calories

Current Weight X Calorie Multiplier*  = Maintenance Calories

__________________ X __________ = ________________
Current weight           Multiplier   Maintenance Cals

*Calorie multiplier is based on current activity level, age, lifestyle.  
-12 is relatively active with 3-5 hours of workouts a week.  
-13 is more active with between 5-8 hours of workouts a week.  

Step 2. What are your goals?  

*If you want to reduce body fat, subtract between 100-500 calories from your Maintenance Calorie number. 
*Subtract calories based on how much body fat you have to lose/how much of a deficit you want to be in.

*If you want to bulk or gain muscle, add between 100-500 calories to your Maintenance Calorie number.  

*This will now be your “goal” calorie total.  

________________ + / - _________ = ____________
Maint. Cals.             cut/bulk       “Goal” calories

Step 3:  Determine your Macro(s)

*Protein:  Use your weight, or goal weight, in pounds multiplied by the most appropriate Protein Goal Factor.  Check out the chart below to choose appropriately. 

_____________________ x ________________ = _______
Your weight in pounds Your Goal Factor grams of Protein/day  

*Protein Goal Factors

0.7 or 0.8: Use one of these if you are new to eating this much protein (I recommend starting at 0.7 if you’re new to tracking protein or have a significant amount of weight to lose)

0.9: Use this if you are looking to maintain or lose body fat and are used to eating protein

1.0: Use this if you are looking to maintain or lose body fat and increase athletic performance

1.1: Use this if you are looking to maintain or lose body fat, increase your athletic performance, and increase your muscle mass

**Note:  You can adjust your Protein Goal Factor over time as your goals, weight, or interactions with proteins change!

Step 4: Put It Into Action

You’ll aim for your protein grams and to stay at/right under your goal calories.

Based on math and science, this covers your protein needs and ensures that your caloric intake is appropriate.  By default, carbs and fats are split among the rest of the calories. (However, if you want to learn how to also calculate your carbs and fats, reach out to me and I’d be happy to tell you! Just don’t want to make this post too much info!)

As an example, if I weigh 150 pounds, my targets MIGHT be:
1800 calories
120g protein 

If you work on any of this…

Start slow, depending on how close or how far you are from balance right now. If you’re close to your meal looking like the examples above, this might not feel like much “work.” If you’re not, it could feel like a lot! Make small changes over time, nail them down, and then increase as you see fit from there. This is a big picture approach, no need to rush and overwhelm yourself. Make it last.

Overall, balancing macronutrients is a fundamental aspect of fostering a healthy relationship with food and achieving sustainable weight management. By understanding the unique roles of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, and making informed choices, you empower yourself to create a nutrition plan that supports your overall well-being. Of course, you should include all foods you like and enjoy, in reasonable portions, as part of or in addition to this balance. That’s part of balance in itself. Remember, it's not about restriction, but about finding a healthy medium that aligns with your lifestyle and goals.

Incorporate these principles into your daily life, and you'll be on your way to enjoying the benefits of a well-balanced and nourishing diet. I hope this was helpful!

If you need support with this, please reach out int he comments or send me an email at sara@nutritionforlifeproject.com!

As always, thank you for reading,
Sara