There are hundreds of types of diets and almost all of them have proponents who claim they provide good results. However, people struggling to lose weight still don’t find anything that fits their requirements well and provides the results they need. They sacrifice their favorite foods, learn to ignore hunger pangs, and have to adjust to low energy levels. Despite all changes to their lifestyle, they still struggle to shed the pounds.
But what if there was a more effective way to go about it? Flexible dieting has risen to prominence in recent years and thousands of people have seen a vast improvement in their lifestyle because of it.
What is Flexible Dieting?
Flexible dieting, also known as macro diet, is the process of eating items that fit your macronutrient consumption targets. Macronutrients form a big part of your diet and they are protein, carbohydrates, and fat. Every meal contains a substantial portion of these nutrients.
If you balance these nutrients carefully to reach a target ratio, you will see much better results without having to skip your favorite food items.
How To Get Started?
Fortunately, it’s not difficult to get started on a macro diet. In fact, there are several tools and apps available online that can help you with the process. Here’s a look at how to get started on such a program:
- Calculate Your Energy Expenditure – The goal of any diet program is to consume fewer calories than you need. If you don’t consume sufficient calories, your body will target stored fat and burn it to supply the energy. You can only determine how much calories you need to consume to lose weight if you understand your total daily energy expenditure.
- Calculate the Macros Needed – Once you have determined the calorie consumption requirements, you can calculate the number of macros needed to reach the fitness goal. For example, if the goal is to add muscle mass and reduce weight, you might need to consume more protein and fewer carbs.
- Count The Macros of Meals – Every macronutrient provides a set amount of calories. 1 gram of fat provides 9 calories, 1 gram of protein provides 4 calories, and 1 gram of carbohydrate provides 4 calories as well. If you want to limit your consumption of calories to 2000, you can consume 170 grams of protein, 150 grams of carbohydrates, and 80 grams of fat to meet that target. This allows you many options to choose from.
- Track Fiber Intake – It is also important to keep an eye on your fiber intake. According to the American Heart Institute, you need to take around 14 grams of fiber for every 1,000 calories. Following the previous example, you will need 28 grams of fiber every day if your intake is 2,000 calories.
If all of this sounds too confusing, you can always use a macro diet app or service to help you along. There are several apps available online that do the legwork for you. All you need to do is enter the numbers and they’ll calculate everything.
