**This is Part 2 of a 3-part series on counting macros to look good naked and break PRs in the gym:
• Part 1 – Counting Macros & Flexible Dieting 101
• Part 2 –YOU ARE HERE – How to Count Macros The Right Way AND How to Royally Screw it Up (like I did)
• Part 3 – Pros and Cons of Counting Macros (PLUS: FAQs)
Welcome to part two in our series on counting macros and flexible dieting!!
I ended the last article asking you a question, and that was:
Counting calories is rather arbitrary. Wouldn’t you agree?
I went on the explain that a 2,000 calorie diet could literally be made up of soda, white bread and pop tarts
However, if you are following a macro-based plan, EVEN if you wanted to have your pop tarts it would count against your allowed allotment of carbohydrate grams for the day. So if you “run out of carbs†you now have to figure out how to get the right amount of protein and fat before the day is over…
Then I challenged you to…
- Get a Macro Plan (click here to use mine)
- Buy a Food Scale (if you don’t have one already)
- Download an app or get a new notebook
Today, I am assuming you…
- Have your Macro Plan
- Have a Food Scale
- Have an Macro Counting App, or you are prepared to track with a notebook
Now, what I am going to do today is tell you the three ways I have screwed up counting macros over the years then tell you the “right” way to do, or my best advice.
Let’s begin!
How I Screwed Up Counting Macros, Way #1:
Eyeballing it…
The Screw Up: Guesstimating Your Macros…
When you first start counting macros, you will be tempted to “eyeball” your serving sizes as opposed to actually weighing and measuring.
That’s what I did wrong, at first. So to show you how easy weighing and measuring food actually is, I made a video which will show you how I weigh and measure making one of my favorite shakes. These basic principles apply to weighing and measuring all food. Bonus: I give you the recipe 🙂 Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/r0UaTzDoLkE
The RIGHT Way: Actually weigh and measure!! It’s easy.
How I Screwed Up Counting Macros, Way #2 & #3:
Bad Plan + Bad Quality
The Screw Up: The Wrong Type of Macro Plan AND Low-Quality Food
Now, what you are about to see is a photo that I like to keep secret…
To me, it looks like I am having trouble smiling due to the pudginess in my face…
The picture may not look that crazy, especially if you don’t know me that well.
But just compare that face to my face in the video above…
Now, I am not trying to say I was once massively obese…I’ve been into fitness a long time, so that would be hard to do, but I have done some things wrong. When you look at this picture of me, just look at my face
Can we agree it looks swollen, pudgy, or even just big??
It’s inflamed, really. And it was THIS exact picture my wife showed me years ago that made me realizeI had no clue what I was doing…
If you have seen any recent videos or pictures of me (like the one above) you will notice the difference. At this point in my life I was working out 2 and even 3 times a day, and tracking everything that went into my mouth…
- And I was about 200 lb and my body fat percentage was well into the teens in that picture…
- Compared to about 185 lb and 8% body fat now (and I’m stronger)…
Keep in mind this is not some transformational story where I talk about how my nutrition sucked, I didn’t workout out, blah, blah, blah and I turned it all around one day
No, this is when I was training for hours every single day AND tracking everything about my nutrition
And honestly, this is the worst shape I have ever been in
I tell you all this because I just want to give a word of caution and prove my OVERALL point for doing this series:
- Knowledge is POWER.
- Knowledge is RESULTS.
So the BIG mistake(s)…
- Following a plan that was REALLY high carb, REALLY high protein and basically NO fat…
- Eating LOW-quality CRAP foods to try and “meet” my macros…
That’s what I was doing.
I was trying to “meet my macros†but I didn’t care at all about the quality or types of foods. I was just making sure “it fit my macros†and my macros were WAYYY off from a healthy diet.
So what should you eat??
None of these lists are all-inclusive, nor paleo, etc. These lists serve only to give you an idea of what kinds of foods you may or may not want to include in your diet. It’s up to you to choose the best quality foods to suit your individual needs and tastes.
The RIGHT Way: Eat Quality Food and Develop a Good Macro Plan for Your Goals!
More About My Results (if you want to know)…
Let me preface this by saying I hate shirtless selfie pics…
I could just never get on board with plastering pictures of me with my shirt off everywhere on my siteIt just doesn’t jive with my overall mission because I want everyone at End of Three Fitness to have a well-balanced approach; i.e. look good naked AND perform AND be healthy AND mentally tough
But since you are reading this series I’ll show you a few pics, because these shirtless pics help me make a point.
Like I said, I’ve been working out my whole life, so these aren’t ridiculous transformation pics.
BUT…
On the left, I am “bulking”, I’m slower and weaker than the picture on the right. I am also about 20 lb heavier in the picture on the left.
Yes, bigger AND weaker…and slower.
All I did to start the leaning process was slightly adjust my macro plan and continued/implemented some EO3 Training.
I focused on eating higher amounts of healthy fat, I lowered my carb intake and moved my protein to a moderate level (~1 gram per lb of bodyweight).
And it’s been about 6-7 months since that picture on the right was taken…I’ll have to take another shot soon and update you on my journey as we go.
But I want to say this…
My nutrition journey has been long with a lot of learning and bumps in the road…and guess what?
I’m still not where I want to be.
But the only way to start seeing results is to start!!
So let me know if you have any questions, and I will add that to Part 3 of this series.
To becoming better!
Jerred