Macros vs. Clean Eating

   Diet fads will unfortunately, never fade, but they have made A LOT of progress. Who remembers the Atkins Diet, the Paleo Diet, the only drink lemon water diet?! I do. Ridiculous. Don't ever do those. You should NEVER remove an entire macronutrient category from your diet. Period. Now the big contenders are the clean eaters and the macro eaters. Which side to chose?! Neither. Both. Find a middle ground. Don't know what I'm talking about to begin with; let me explain. First, what is a macronutrient you ask? Carbs, Protein, Fat.

   Clean Eating: this trend says NO to processed foods. You eat often, you try to eat organic. And it already lost a ton of peoples interest. Who has time for that? No one. Would it be ideal? Absolutely. Is it realistic though? Not so much. Things I like about Clean Eating: bulk up your healthy foods; produce, fresh fish and meat, fresh dairy.

All the colors should be in your meal plan! 

   Macro Counting: then along came IIFYM, (if it fits your macros) which does a lot of math to find your body's perfect balance of fat, carbs, and proteins for your specific goals. Math I'm not fond of, but having proven scientific parameters, I like. The problem is, the macro plan lets you eat ANYTHING as long as it fits your macros. It claims the body doesn't know the difference between a cheeseburger and fresh salmon filet with rice and broccoli. That is where they are wrong. There are so many other things going on besides just your macronutrients, including healthy fats, chemicals, hormones, the list goes on. So while some people are on the macro diet, they are taking serious advantage of it. What I like about this plan the most? It's more flexible and realistic. There are going to be times you go out to eat or you really, truly need that cookie and this eating plan allows you to have that without guilt.

They're not- don't take advantage! 

   Find the balance. Don't take advantage of one or you'll make no progress. Weight loss should never be your goal; Performance should be the goal and weight loss the outcome. Whether you are an athlete who has to be at peak performance or not, don't you want to wake up every day feeling like you can take on the world?? If you fill your day with junk, you will be junk. If you fill your day with healthy, filling foods you will be happy and healthy.

The Ultimate Eating Plan (this better make me famous):
1. Be aware of what you eat. Are most of your meals coming from a drive through, delivery man, or box? Learn to cook! It'll be the best thing you ever do for your health.
2. Know your body's needs for what you want to achieve. Trying to lose or gain weight? The meal plan your neighbor is on might not fit you. Get help (from me!) to get your macros personalized to you.
3. Eat as many whole and fresh foods as you can. This is a DUH statement. Your body needs energy, vitamins, minerals, and your macros to perform at it's peak. Real food is going to give you everything you need.
4. Variety and activity are key. Don't be a couch potato and don't eat the same thing every single day.
5. Know your portion sizes. Buy a food scale. Just do it. Use it. Read labels, measure things, log them. It may seem like a pain but after a few weeks you won't need to hold the scale's hand to figure out what you can and can't eat. Retrain your brain and body.
6. Drink tea. See past blog. It's good for you and calorie free but has flavor. Go stock up.

Oh you speak right to my soul! 

Questions? Email me! ltip.fit@gmail.com