How to Count Macros for Beginners

Counting macros can be a game-changer for anyone looking to take control of their nutrition — whether your goal is weight loss, improved energy, or simply a healthier lifestyle. But if you're new to the concept, it might seem confusing or even daunting.

Don't worry—you're definitely not alone! Many beginners find the idea of tracking protein, carbohydrates, and fats overwhelming at first. This guide will walk you through the basics of counting macros, breaking down everything you need to know to get started. From understanding what macros are to learning how to track them, we'll help you build a foundation for better nutrition. Keep reading to discover how simple and effective macro counting can be!

What Are Macros?

I'm sure you've heard people mention "macros" or "tracking macros" before, especially if you've spent any time in the fitness community. But what exactly is a macro?

The term "macro" is short for macronutrient, and it refers to the three key nutrients that make up the food we eat: protein, carbohydrates, and fat. These macronutrients are essential because they provide the energy (calories) your body needs to function properly.

Each macronutrient contains a specific number of calories per gram, and understanding how they contribute to your daily intake is crucial for managing your nutrition effectively. Unlike micronutrients, which we need in smaller amounts (like vitamins and minerals), macronutrients are required in larger quantities, making them the foundation of your diet.

Keep reading to learn more about how these macronutrients work together to fuel your body!

Macronutrient Breakdown:

Carbs

Carbohydrates are one of the primary sources of energy for your body. There are two forms of carbohydrates: simple, high-glycemic carbs and complex, low-glycemic carbs. Simple carbs are faster to digest and broken down more rapidly compared to complex carbs that take longer to digest. Each gram of carbs will give you 4 calories. So, if a food item has 20 grams of carbs, 80 calories of it will be from carbohydrates.

Sometimes carbs get a bad rep and many people think they need to stay away from them to stay lean. However, when you're lifting heavy weights, you'll want to increase your carbs to your muscles grow and recover.

Complex carbs like oatmeal, brown rice, and bread are lower glycemic and take longer to digest. These carbohydrates are good for pre-workout meals that are 2-3 hours prior to exercise. Having a bowl of oatmeal prior to your workout can provide the body a great amount of sustained energy before and during your workout!

Protein

Protein is not only essential for building muscle, but also for boosting your metabolism and increasing fat burn. Increasing your protein intake will benefit your weight lifting ability and help you put on muscle much faster.

For every gram of protein, there are four calories that make up that gram. For example, a 4oz chicken breast contains 35 grams of protein, which essentially means 140 calories of the chicken breast are made up by protein.

Increasing your protein is important to muscle building as they are chains of amino acids that are bound together to make up the muscle tissue. Additionally, protein is essential for making up organ tissues, many hormones, and connective tissue.

In order to build muscle, it is important to have complete protein sources in your diet. These proteins are essentially proteins that contain all 9 essential amino acids. You can find the best quality proteins for building muscle in sources like:

• Chicken breast

• Lean ground beef

• Ground turkey

• Fish

• Eggs

• Dairy

• Whey protein powder

Fat

Although carbohydrates and protein are key macronutrients for providing quick energy and building lean muscle mass, increasing your fat intake will also be effective in muscle growth.

Fats are essential to your diet as they are useful for protecting and improving the nervous system, proper hormone production, and aid in nutrient absorption.

Foods like eggs, fatty fish, nut butter, and olive oil are all great sources of healthy fats. For individuals who train longer durations and lower-intensity exercise, fat is the main fuel source as it will keep you fuller and fueled for longer.  

Also, fat is also different from carbs and protein as it contains 9 calories per every gram of fat. So, if something has 8 grams of fat, 72 calories will be made up by fat and the rest will come from carbs and protein.

Calorie Counting vs. Macro Counting

So what's the difference between counting macros and counting calories? While both approaches can help you manage your nutrition, they serve different purposes. Counting calories is a more general method, focusing on your total daily energy intake without paying much attention to where those calories come from. On the other hand, counting macros is more precise and customizable, allowing you to set specific targets for each macronutrient—protein, carbohydrates, and fat—based on your individual goals.

Calories are simply a unit of energy, and almost everything you eat or drink contains them. When you track calories, you're monitoring how much energy you're consuming and ensuring you don't exceed your daily target. However, not all calories are created equal. The source of those calories, whether they come from carbs, protein, or fat, can have a significant impact on your body composition and overall health.

For example, if you consume more calories than your body needs (a caloric surplus), the excess energy can be stored as fat or used for muscle growth, depending on your activity level and diet. Conversely, if you burn more calories than you consume (a calorie deficit), you'll lose weight over time.

When counting macros, it's essential to understand that each macronutrient contributes differently to your total calorie intake:

• 1 gram of carbohydrates equals 4 calories

• 1 gram of protein equals 4 calories

• 1 gram of fat equals 9 calories

By focusing on where your calories come from and balancing your macronutrient intake, you can fine-tune your diet to better align with your fitness and health goals.

How to Calculate Macros:

1. Establish Your Daily Calories

When aiming to build muscle, being in a caloric surplus is essential. This means consuming more calories than your body needs to maintain its current weight. To determine your maintenance calories, you'll need to calculate the number of calories your body requires for daily functioning, then add extra calories to create a surplus.

So, how do you calculate your maintenance calories?

A straightforward method is to multiply your body weight by a factor of 14 to 16, depending on your activity level. For example, if you're highly active—consistently reaching 20,000 steps per day—you'll want to multiply your body weight by 16. Conversely, if your daily activity level is more moderate, around 10,000 steps or less, use a factor of 14.

For instance, a highly active man weighing 220 pounds would calculate his maintenance calories as follows: 220 lbs x 16 = 3,520 calories.

Once you've established your maintenance calorie intake, the next step is to tailor your macronutrient distribution to ensure you're in the right caloric surplus to support muscle growth.

2. Set Your Protein Intake  

Protein is a great macro to start with. This macronutrient is the powerhouse of building muscle and without it, well... You probably wouldn't gain any muscle.

So, how much protein do you need? You have probably read up somewhere that the proper amount of protein should be anywhere from .8 g-1 g of protein per kg of your body weight. If you're really trying to put on size and strength, that range is almost too low.

According to a study done on protein intake for bodybuilders, "Dietary protein intake is recommended to be 1.6–2.2 g/kg/day with a focus on sufficient protein at each meal (0.40–0.55 g/kg/meal) and an even distribution throughout the day (3–6 meals)." (Iraki, 2019).

A good rule of thumb to start at would be to take 1 gram of protein per pound of your GOAL bodyweight. So, if my goal was to be 135lbs, a good protein goal to start would be no less than 135 grams per day.

So 1 g of protein per goal bodyweight might still not be enough to see muscle growth, so you can simply just keep increasing this number as you feel comfortable!

Once you have established your protein goal, carbs and fats will amount after that to make up the rest of your daily calories.

3. Set Your Carbs & Fat

To establish your daily carbohydrates and fat intake, it's pretty simple and definitely personalized to each individual.

For instance, if you find yourself performing better off of a high-carb diet, simply keep your carbohydrates high and lower your fats a bit.

Marathon runners and athletes who partake in long duration exercises may perform better off of a higher fat diet. When configuring your macros, this is where you would increase your fat and keep carbs a tad bit lower. However, it's important to note that carbohydrates are your body's preferred source of fuel during exercise.

To put this into perspective, let's take our 3,520 calories diet from earlier. The man was 220 pounds, so let's say his protein intake is at 240 grams -- essentially making up 960 calories of his daily calories. That said, 2,560 calories are remaining for carbohydrates and fats.

If you want to take a more balanced approach, we will limit this man's fat intake to 100 grams of fat. 100 x 9 = 900 calories. So now we have 960 calories from protein and 900 calories from fat (960 + 900 = 1, 860 calories).

Now taking our total of 3,520 calories, subtract 1, 860, to get 1,660 calories remaining for carbohydrates. You would then divide this number by 4 (1,660/4 = 415) 415 grams of carbs.

So the macros for this scenario would be:

3,520 Calories

240g Protein

100g Fat

415g Carbs

This might seem a bit complicated, but trust me, it get's easier the more you do it!

How to Calculate Calories for Muscle Building:

So, after reading through this entire article, you may either want to start tracking macros religiously or don't want anything to do with it. That's okay! If you're still looking to put on muscle mass, but want to stay on track and dial down on your nutrition, counting calories is another way to go about!

To establish your calories you will first need to calculate your BMR (basal metabolic rate). This is the number of calories that you need to eat in one day to maintain your current weight.

To calculate your BMR, use one of the following formulas:

• Female = 655.1 + (4.35 × weight in pounds) + (4.7 × height in inches) - (4.7 × age in years)

• Male = 66 + (6.2 × weight in pounds) + (12.7 × height in inches) – (6.76 × age in years)

Next, calculate your total daily energy expenditure. How active would you say you are? Are you working in construction or working a desk job?

You can search a TDEE calculator on the internet or use one of the following to establish your TDEE:

• Little or no exercise = 1.2 x BMR

• Light exercise = 1.375m x BMR

• Moderate exercise = 1.55 x BMR

• Heavy exercise = 1.725 x BMR

• Intense exercise = 1.9 x BMR

So if someone's BMR is 1,896 for example, you would multiple this number by your activity level based on the numbers above. For moderate exercise your TDEE would be (1,896 x 1.55) = 2,938 calories.

Easy part is up next, don't worry! If you are looking to sustain a caloric surplus, it's advised and recommended to increase slowly by adding anywhere from 250-450 calories to your maintenance calories.

Using the example above, this person's calories for muscle mass would be anywhere from 3,188 to 3,388. From there you can adjust and slowly add in more as weeks go by.

Should You Start Tracking Your Macros?

Summary

Tracking macros is a powerful tool for those who seek structure and precision in their nutrition, whether your goal is to build muscle, lose weight, or simply understand your diet better. By focusing on the three key macronutrients—protein, carbohydrates, and fats—you can tailor your intake to align with your specific goals.

While macro tracking offers benefits like improved nutritional awareness and control, it's not a one-size-fits-all approach. For some, it provides the discipline needed for competitive bodybuilding or reaching health goals. However, it can also be overwhelming or even trigger unhealthy eating behaviors in others.

Ultimately, whether tracking macros is right for you depends on your personal needs, lifestyle, and relationship with food. If you decide to give it a try, start by calculating your maintenance calories, then adjust your macronutrient intake to fit your objectives.

RESOURCES

1. Iraki, J., Fitschen, P., Espinar, S., & Helms, E. (2019). Nutrition Recommendations for Bodybuilders in the Off-Season: A Narrative Review. Sports (Basel, Switzerland), 7(7), 154. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports7070154