Macros
If you are unfamiliar with macro tracking, we wanted to give you a quick rundown here! There are 3 macronutrients (aka macros) that your body needs in large quantities to survive. These are protein, carbs, and fat.
1 gram of protein = 4 calories
1 gram of carbohydrates = 4 calories
1 gram of fat = 9 calories
Depending on our goals, we need to eat a certain amount of macronutrients a day in order to lose weight, gain weight, or maintain our weight. I have calculated the amount of macros that you personally need to eat each day in order to reach your goal. That being said, macros make up calories. For example if my macro goal for the day was 130C 50F 120P I would be eating 1,450 calories a day (130 grams of carbs=520cals, 50 grams of fat=450 cals, 120 grams of protein= 480 cals). However, instead of focusing on the calorie number and just making sure we eat a certain amount of calories a day, it is better to focus on the specific macro amounts you need to eat a day. This is because our bodies need a specific amount of each macronutrient for different bodily functions (ex. Fat is important for hormone stability,
carbs are important for energy, and protein is important for maintaining lean muscle mass and a fast metabolism). Therefore if we only focused on eating a certain amount of calories and disregarded the macronutrient breakdown in our foods, we may be deficient in a certain macronutrient and our bodies won’t be able to function 100%.
When it comes to “dieting” people make the mistake of thinking that there are “good” foods and “bad” foods. There is no such thing. To keep this short, 10 grams of carbs from something healthy like fruit will have the same effect on your body (weight wise) that 10 grams of carbs from something “unhealthy” like pizza would. Just because you ate your 10 grams of carbs from pizza doesn’t mean you’ll gain weight. Similarly, if you ate your carbs from fruit, that doesn’t mean you’ll lose weight just because it’s “healthy”. HOWEVER, fruit has more vitamins and minerals and will benefit your body in other ways so of course I would still recommend the more macronutrient-dense food option.
That being said, you can always feel free to swap out any of your meals with different foods that will still fit your macros. We like to use the free app, My Fitness Pal, to track our meals and see how many macros are in a certain food. For example, if you don’t like chicken, you can swap that out for another food that has the same amount of carbs, protein, and fat (We give you a specific example in the FAQ section at the end). As long as you eat foods that stay in the macro range that we calculated for you, you will continue to progress!
If you have any additional questions on macros, please feel free to email us! We didn’t want to make this section too long in order to minimize any confusion. However, we did want to put it in here so that you understand the basis of how we created your meal guides and why we have also provided you with a set of macros for you to follow.
BENEFITS OF THE FOOD YOU'RE EATING
high in vitamins A, C, E, and K[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15855|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/avocado.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^avocado|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Avocado” pos=”left”]Contains potassium, and fiber, and is great for heart health due to its
monounsaturated fatty acid[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15944|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/banana.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^banana|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Bananas” pos=”left”]High fiber, eases digestion, high source of potassium.[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15859|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/bell-peppers.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^bell-peppers|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Bell peppers” pos=”left”]Contains vitamin C, B6, folate, antioxidants, and helps support night vision[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15860|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/berries.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^berries|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Berries” pos=”left”]Loaded with antioxidants, fiber, and anti-cancer properties[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15861|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/black-beans.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^black-beans|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Black beans” pos=”left”]High protein and fiber content as well as other vitamins and minerals[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15869|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/chicken.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^chicken|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Chicken” pos=”left”]Lean meat loaded with protein, selenium, and free radical-fighting antioxidants[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15875|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/coconut-oil.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^coconut-oil|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Coconut oil” pos=”left”]High in healthy saturated fats that can help burn fat. May also reduce risk of heart
disease thanks to it raising your good HDL cholesterol[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15928|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/eggs.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^eggs|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Eggs” pos=”left”]Great source of protein, full of vitamin B2, D, B6, B12, zinc, iron, and copper[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15897|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/mixed-nuts.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^mixed-nuts|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Nuts” pos=”left”]Rich in iron, magnesium, omega 3 fatty acids (great for brain health), calcium,
and antioxidants[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15906|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/powder.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^powder|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Protein powder” pos=”left”]Helps support lean muscle mass, a fast metabolism, important for healthy hair,
skin, and nails[/bsf-info-box][bsf-info-box icon_type=”custom” icon_img=”id^15923|url^https://media.fitzport.com/meal/whole-wheat-bread.jpg|caption^null|alt^null|title^whole-wheat-bread|description^null” img_width=”48″ title=”Whole wheat/Ezekiel/Gluten Free bread” pos=”left”]High in nutrients and fiber. Helps lower risk of heart disease, stroke, and obesity,
supports a healthy digestion[/bsf-info-box]
GROCERY LIST
Produce
Protein
Complex Carbs
Healthy Fats
Other
CONDIMENT OPTIONS
Savory
Sweet
Feel free to top your salads, veggies, etc. with any of these savory condiments! We really love using Bolthouse Farms salad dressing (you will usually find it in the produce section of almost any grocery store). They have a large variety of flavors! Another great dressing option is mixing together 2 Tbs mustard with Braggs liquid aminos or coconut aminos and a few drops of liquid stevia. You can put this on almost anything (ex. salad, veggies, meat, eggs, etc.) to really make your dish more flavorful with almost no added calories!
I love using the sweet condiments on my breakfast or dessert meals such as protein pancakes, protein brownies, oatmeal, or really any sweet meal I have that day! Don’t go overboard of course, but definitely feel free to use them to add a little flare to your desserts! And DON’T forget sprinkles! I love adding rainbow sprinkles on almost everything! I put some in my breakfast shake, on my yogurt, on my pancakes –
really anything sweet! They are low in calories and just make everything so much more fun.
DRINKING OPTIONS
Please try to drink AT LEAST half your body weight in ounces of water per day (but we definitely would recommend more since you will be working out and sweating out some of your water). Other than water, the drinks listed above are a few other options
we would recommend.
Arctic Ice and La Croix sparkling waters are great soda subsitutes or something to drink when you’re craving something sweet or need something to hold you over before your next meal. Tea is also a great option as not only will it fill you up but also it has
MANY health benefits due to its probiotics and metabolismboosting properties. I personally drink tea at least twice a day (I love chai tea, green tea, chamomile, cinnamon, and Yogi Vanilla
spice). If you are going to get iced tea, look out for sweet tea and
try to stick to the unsweetened variety (I love Steaz tea from
Sprouts or Bristol Farms).