If you've heard people talk about tracking macros but never been totally sure what it means or how to actually do it, this guide is for you. It's simpler than it sounds, and once you understand it, it changes how you think about food completely.
What Are Macros?
Macros is short for macronutrients. It's the three main categories of nutrients your body uses for energy: protein, carbs, and fat.
Protein builds and repairs muscle tissue and keeps you full longer than the other two. Your body also burns more calories digesting it than it does carbs or fat. If you're trying to lose weight or build muscle, this is the one to get right first.
Carbohydrates are your body's preferred fuel source. They power your workouts, support brain function, and give you the energy to get through the day. The goal isn't to cut them out, it's to eat the right amount for what you're doing.
Fats matter for hormone production, brain health, and absorbing certain vitamins. Eating fat doesn't automatically turn into body fat. Same as the other two, it's about getting the amount right.
When people talk about "tracking macros" or eating a "macro-balanced diet," this is what they mean: eating specific amounts of each of these three nutrients to support a specific goal.
Why Macros Matter More Than Calories Alone
Calorie counting is a fine starting point, but it doesn't tell the whole story. Two people can eat the same number of calories and end up with completely different results depending on where those calories actually come from.
Someone eating 2,000 calories mostly from protein and complex carbs will build or maintain muscle, feel full, and recover well from exercise. Someone eating 2,000 calories mostly from refined carbs and fat will feel sluggish, lose muscle, and struggle to see results, even with the exact same calorie count.
Tracking macros gives you the fuller picture and a lot more control over your results.
How to Calculate Your Macros
Here's a straightforward method that works for most people.
Step 1: Find Your Maintenance Calories
This is the number of calories your body needs each day to stay at your current weight. A rough formula:
Body weight in lbs × 15 = approximate maintenance calories for a moderately active person.
For example, if you weigh 170 lbs: 170 × 15 = 2,550 calories per day to maintain weight.
Step 2: Adjust for Your Goal
For weight loss: subtract 300–500 calories from your maintenance number. This creates a deficit that promotes fat loss without sacrificing too much muscle or energy. So for our 170 lb example: 2,550 − 400 = 2,150 calories per day.
For muscle building: add 200–300 calories above maintenance. Muscle growth requires a slight calorie surplus.
For maintenance: stay at your maintenance number and focus on hitting protein targets.
Step 3: Set Your Protein Target First
Protein is the most important macro to get right, especially if you're training or trying to lose weight. A good target for most people:
0.7–1g of protein per pound of body weight per day.
For a 170 lb person: 120–170g of protein daily. Each gram of protein = 4 calories.
Step 4: Set Your Fat Target
A reasonable target for most people is 25–35% of total calories from fat. Each gram of fat = 9 calories.
For 2,150 calories, 30% from fat = 645 calories from fat = about 72g of fat per day.
Step 5: Fill the Rest with Carbohydrates
Whatever calories are left after protein and fat are accounted for go toward carbohydrates. Each gram of carbs = 4 calories.
For our example:
Protein: 150g × 4 = 600 calories
Fat: 72g × 9 = 648 calories
Remaining: 2,150 − 600 − 648 = 902 calories from carbs = about 225g of carbs per day
So the final targets for a 170 lb person trying to lose fat: roughly 150g protein / 225g carbs / 72g fat at around 2,150 calories.
Doing the math is one thing. Cooking three macro-balanced meals a day, every day, is another.
The Hard Part: Staying Consistent
Calculating your macros takes about ten minutes. Actually hitting them every day for weeks and months is where most people struggle. Cooking three macro-balanced meals from scratch daily while managing work, family, and everything else is genuinely hard.
This is where meal prep removes most of the friction. When you know every meal you're eating was already built around a protein target and balanced macros, you stop having to think about it. You just eat.
At The Whole Bowl, every bowl is macro-balanced with a standard 4oz protein portion, and we can bump that up if you need more. Want us to build your order around your specific macro targets? Email our in-house nutritionist at gurj@thewholebowl.ca and we'll take it from there.
Browse the meal prep menu at thewholebowlmp.ca or stop by our Surrey storefront at 15345 56 Ave #102.