Macronutrients, or “macros,” are the building blocks of nutrition. You probably know them better as carbohydrate, protein, and fat. Macros are the nutrients you need in large amounts, as they provide your body with the calories it needs to function.
Micronutrients include vitamins and minerals, and although they’re essential for good health, they don’t provide any calories and only trace amounts are needed.
Here is how you can count your MACROS:
Carbohydrate + Protein + Fat = Total Calories
Macros= Calories
1g Protein= 4 Calories
1g Carbohydrates= 4 Calories
1g Fat= 9 Calories
Carbohydrate:Provides fuel, the energy for your body and brain. It’s found in all plant foods, like grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes, and also milk and yogurt.
Protein: Helps to build and repair your muscles, organs, skin, blood, and different chemicals, like hormones, in your body. It’s found in large amounts in meat, poultry, fish, legumes, dairy, tofu, and eggs, and in smaller amounts in nuts, seeds, and whole grains.
Fat: Insulates and protects your bones and organs, acts as backup fuel for energy, and helps in brain development. Healthy, unsaturated fats are found in olive oil, avocados, nuts, seeds, and fatty fish, like salmon, sardines, and mackerel. Unhealthy saturated fats are found in high-fat beef, pork, butter, full-fat dairy, and processed foods, like cookies and donuts.
It can get a little confusing, because people often refer to foods as macros: saying bread and pasta are “carbs,” and talking about meat as “protein.” Those foods contain more of that specific macronutrient than the others. But macros are just the individual elements, and most foods are made up of a blend of all three—pasta actually contains a little protein, and meat definitely has fat!
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