How I Track Macros By: Joie Rizzo

There are so many different diets out there now a days. There is no right or wrong diet. It is just what works for you and your body! So I am going to tell you about my diet and how I track my macros!

I stick to a high protein, high carb and lower fat diet. I do this because my body responds best with carbs. Some people respond better to fats. I usually keep my protein at about 150 grams, my carbs at 300 grams and my fats at 45 grams when I am maintaning my weight. So in perspective thats about a 2000-2500 calories a day. Alot of times people are either under eating, or over eating, BOTH are just as bad. I eat 6 meals a day and every 2-3 hours to keep my metabolism going.

Alot of times I feel that when people use the “if it fits your macros method” they tend to make not healthy choices. While yes, you could say a bag of candy is 50 grams of carbs and techinically that “fits your macros” but, you can’t compare that to the nutrients you get from 50 grams of carbs from a cup of rice. I always tell people when you are looking at the nutrition facts always make sure to look at the sugars and the fats. Also, be mindul of the sodium, i’ve looked at some labels and while it might be low in sugar it has 800 mg of sodium. A good rule of thumb is to make sure something doesnt have more then 3 or 4 grams of sugar when debating on eating it or not. Now yes if you want to be more lenient and say you are on vacation or just trying to have a more relaxing day then you can not stress so much about the sugars and sodium and just look at the carbs, protein, and fat content.

Me personally I really like to stick to foods that are good nutrient content, I feel that when I start adding in things that are higher and sugar and over processed that I just start looking and feeling kind of sloppy. I like to stick to the 80/20 rule, 80% of my macros for the week come from nutritious foods that are low in sugar, high in protein, and just all around good for you (Rice, Chicken, Asapargus, fruit, etc.) and then the other 20% comes from sweets and things to indulge in little amounts. Now when I am getting ready for a show its 100% nutritious foods that consume my diet, but my “off season” I like to stick to the 80/20 rule. I have found what works for me and what foods make me feel and look good now I know how to manipulate my diet to acheive my goals based on this. There is no right or wrong way of dieting, its what works for you and how well your body responds to the diet you are following.

With all this being said, I think the ultimate goal is to really just watch the nutrition facts and make sure that what you are eating is all around good nutritonal content. If something is in a box always question it. Something can say “organic” and “healthy” on the front of the box and then you flip the box over and it can have 20 grams of sugar. You could’ve had a candy bar with all that sugar! I see it happen all the time, be aware of what you are putting in your body and always question things that seem to good to be true!

The 80/20 rule on my off season has worked best for me because it truly makes me feel good, I have energy to do the things I want to do and I like the way I look! When you restrict everything from yourself like alot of people do when they diet, it makes itso easy to fall off and go crazy with food once you are done with the  diet. Make it a lifestyle, and forget the word “diet”!