All foods (whether it be burgers, pizzas, salads, soda, candy, chicken, beef, you get the point...) can be broken down into 6 macro nutrients:
1. Carbohydrates
2. Fats (Lipids)
3. Proteins
4. Vitamins
5. Minerals
6. Water
We will only be focusing on the first 3.
Carbohydrates are the best source of fuel for our muscles! Who says they’re bad? Not me! Carbohydrates contain 4 calories for every 1 gram. So, if a banana has 20 grams of carbohydrates, it contains a total of 80 calories. (4 calories x 20 grams = 80 calories). The reason why carbohydrates are so important is because our muscles use them as fuel—not our fat! Carbs breakdown into glucose, which are stored in our muscles for high intensity resistance training, blah blah blah. Basically, when you’re in the gym putting in WORK, and your muscles are on fire, you are using carbohydrates as fuel. This is not to say that you’re not burning fat, you’re actually burning a combination of both, but if you’re in the gym doing 4 sets of 8 reps of the heaviest squats you can possibly do, and your muscles are on FIRE and you’re out of breath, you are mostly relying on carbohydrates. So you need them! If overeaten, just as with anything else (fats and protein) it can be broken down and stored as body fat. But let’s wait on that part... carbohydrates can be: pasta, bread, potatoes, vegetables, fruits, drinks and sugars, cereal, grains, rice, etc.
Fats can come from many different sources: oils, butters, nuts, avocados, fish oil, etc. In more complex terms, fats are actually triglycerides, phospholipids, cholesterol, etc. But let’s keep it simple. Your body burns fat while you are doing EVERYTHING. When you’re resting, sitting, walking, exercising, and even MORE when you’re sleeping (most effective form of recovery, duh). “So HoW dO i BuRn FaT, eDgaR? HoW cAn i GeT aBs?” Well, your abdominals/obliques begin to show when your body fat is low—it varies for men and women—so training your abs 6 days a week isn’t necessarily going to give you the cuts and definition that you want.. So how do you “get” them? Well, combined with proper diet in terms of plenty of protein and a slight caloric deficit per day, the way you train in the gym (with me), and the way you eat will decrease your body fat get you the body you want! More on this soon... Fats contain 9 whole calories per 1 gram, which is why they are so frowned upon in terms of eating fast/processed foods. A simple 10 almonds contains 80 calories because they are high in fat, but also contain protein and carbohydrates (most of which are fiber). So if 1 ounce of almonds has 14.2g of fat, it would have around 140-160 calories because it also contains some protein and carbs. [14.2g x 9 calories = 127 (plus some extra cals) totaling around 160 calories). So be careful not to over eat them! An excess of fat (just like carbs and protein) can be broken down and store as body fat. One pound of fat stored in the body is 3,500 calories, this is why it's so hard to lose weight.
Last but not least, protein! Protein has 4 calories per gram, just like carbohydrates. It can be anything from eggs and nuts, to chicken, fish, shrimp, beef, steaks, turkey, ham, pork, sausage, etc. Why is it important? Why do you need it? Well, when you’re in the gym pushing weight that makes your muscles burn, and you’re out of breath, you’re causing damage to your muscle fibers. These damaged muscle fibers need to be repaired with amino acids and protein. If you don’t eat enough protein, your muscles never properly recover and your muscles will not grow. Why do you need your muscles to grow? In order to increase your lean mass, and also increase your metabolism. This is where you’ll see the most effective results. Increased metabolism just means that your body needs more calories (energy) a day just to keep yourself alive. So if your metabolism increases your body burns more fat on a daily basis during every activity of the day. YOU WANT THIS.
Your body needs a certain amount of calories every day in order to keep yourself alive. In order to MAINTAIN your
weight, you should be eating 35 calories for every kg of body weight you have. (What’s a kg? How do I find my
kg in weight? Easy: lbs / 2.2 = weight in kg, for example— 160 lbs / 2.2 = 72.72 kg). So if you weigh 160,
that’s 72.72 in kg. Now, to maintain weight you should eat your weight in kg times 35 calories per kilogram,
for example: 72.72 kg x 35 calories = 2,545 calories a day to maintain.
So, where do these calories come
from? Well, in order to efficiently recover, and to increase lean mass you should eat anywhere from 0.7-1 gram
of protein per pound of body weight. So if you weight 100 lbs, anywhere from 70-100 grams of protein will vastly
improve your body composition, promote efficient recovery, and help you get stronger. Whether you are weight
lifting, or doing cardio, this protein recommendation is the same for everyone. A body builder needs just as
much protein as a track star, per pound of body weight. Getting down to a low body fat percentage is what will
result in your abs showing. For men its anywhere from 10-15%, for women its anywhere from 15-20%.
I am passionate in the pursuit to help everyone learn to love themselves as I did for myself.