After years spent in the fitness industry training clients both in person and online, i've discovered that there are a lot of universal patterns between the two. Yeah, both involve weight training. Yeah, both involve cardio and stretching too but that's not what I'm talking about. The universal patterns I speak of are excuses.
One thing you won't hear me say often is that excuses are valid. I am a firm believer in the cliche saying "If there's a will, there's a way." That's exactly why it's cliche, because it's real. Although I can be a stickler for whining and creating your own problems, there are three words that I commonly hear from people in the health and fitness industry. Most of the excuses I hear begin with these words: "I don't know."
"I am struggling in the kitchen because I don't know what to eat."
"I feel like I keep gaining weight because I don't know how much I should eat."
"I don't know how much protein to eat."
The list goes on and on.
With all of the resources we have today, I would normally say that that excuse isn't valid. It's not real. But I've been wrestling with that thought lately. There is so much information out there. How are you supposed to know what's right and what isn't? What fits your needs most? The more questions I ask, the more I understand the frustration with not knowing.
So you don't know what you need to be eating, and how much. What do you do? Here's my professional advice: figure out your macros. If you don't know what macros are, we've discovered the root of your struggles. Macronutrients are proteins, fats, and carbs. These are the three major things you need to pay attention to in your food. If you're not tracking these, you need to start NOW.
But how much? How many grams of carbs, fats, and protein should you be eating daily? Well it depends on a few things:
1. Is it a training day? Carbs will be higher and fats are lower on these days.
2. Is it a rest day? Fats are higher and carbs are lower on these days.
3. What's your goal? Are you building muscle, burning fat, recomposing, maintaining?
There are TONS of resources for calculating your macronutrient and calorie needs, but all of them use different formulas so how are you supposed to know what's right? Well, I'll strike a deal with you. Send me an email (adam@poehlmannfitness.com), and I'll help you set your macro goals. Now you don't have any excuse to not know what you should be eating and how much.
But, why macros? Can't you just count your calories?
NO. Only counting calories will lead you down a dark path. I don't mean a dark path of poor moral decisions. I mean a path that is literally dark. You won't be able to see two feet in front of you. Imagine your fitness goal is a dart board, and it's pitch black and you're throwing from 60 feet away. Good luck with that. That dart won't come anywhere near the bullseye and neither will you to your goal.
Tracking your macros will help you do the following:
1. Manage your food intake on a daily basis. No more freaking out!
2. Teach you more about food and how it works with you body and your goals. You'll know the WHY behind what you're eating. Why>what. Always. You'll be your own nutritionist before you know it.
3. You'll be able to live and live well more than ever before. When you go out to eat, you'll be able to look at a menu and understand what you need to order. If it's a training day, you'll understand that you need to order something with chicken and rice over carne asada with an avocado.
Knowledge is power, and I'm giving you the opportunity to have this knowledge. Don't be a dummy. Take advantage and let me help.
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Thanks for reading!
