How To Set The Best Macros For Fat Loss (Step by Step)
HOW TO SET THE BEST MACROS FOR FAT LOSS
A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE FOR MEN & WOMEN
Written by Jonathan Fletcher
You’re here because you want to know how to set your macros for weight loss.
Sidenote: I’ll go back and forth in this article between saying “weight loss” and “fat loss”. I know you want to lose both, and you don’t want to lose muscle.
Whether you’re a 250 man or a 165lb woman, we have you covered.
I’m going to assume you already know how many calories you need to be eating to lose fat.
If you don’t, we have you covered.
Hit the button below to learn the number of calories you should be eating for fat loss.
The first and most important macro goal to set for fat loss is your daily protein goal.
HOW TO SET YOUR PROTEIN GOAL FOR WEIGHT LOSS
Protein is so important when it comes to fat loss for 3 main reasons.
1 - Protein helps you stay full. Go eat 6oz of meat and compare how full you feel vs. eating 6oz of crackers. You’ll be full for hours with that much meat, but you’ll keep eating crackers until your hand hits the bottom of the box.
2 - Protein helps you preserve muscle. When you’re in a calorie deficit for fat loss, you’re in danger of losing muscle. The two best ways to keep that from happening are by eating enough protein, and by lifting weights. If you’re not lifting weights already, it’s time to start.
We’ve got you covered with our free 5-week program called “Arms, Abs, and A… (you know the rest). Grab it for free below while you can.
3 - Protein “costs” more to digest. This isn’t a huge deal, but your body burns more calories digesting protein than it does carbs and fat. Eating more protein can actually increase the size of your deficit slightly, which may mean more fat loss.
Because of these 3 reasons, we have our clients eat a moderately high protein diet when they are in a calorie deficit for fat loss. It helps them get the best physical results and it helps them stick with their diet with the least amount of hunger.
How much protein should men eat per day for fat loss?
Men who lift weights 3-5 times per week and weigh less than 200 lbs.
Take your current body weight and multiply it times 1.1.
This is your daily protein goal in grams.
So if you weigh 185lbs, you’re shooting for about 204g of protein per day.
Don’t get too wrapped around the axle about the exact grams. Nothing different will happen, and your results won’t be impacted if you only get 197g, or you go over at 207g some days.
Men who lift weights 3-5 times per week and weigh more than 200 lbs.
Set your protein goal as a range between 225g and 250g per day.
In your case, using a multiplier would set your protein goal much higher than is necessary, and all of that extra protein would cut too far into your calories for carbs and fat.
Men who do not lift weights and weigh less than 200 lbs.
Take your current body weight, and multiply it by 1. Tough math, I know!
This is your daily protein goal for fat loss.
Men who do not lift weights and weigh more than 200lbs
You get off easy again with no math needed. Lucky you.
Your protein goal is a range between 200g and 225g per day
How much protein should women eat per day for fat loss?
Women who lift weights 3-5 per week and weigh less than 150lbs
Take your current body weight and multiply it times 1.1.
This is your daily protein goal in grams.
So if you weigh 135lbs, you’re shooting for about 150g of protein per day.
Women who lift weights 3-5 per week and weigh more than 150lbs
You get a protein range to work with. Aim to get somewhere between 150g and 175g of protein every day.
Women who do not lift weights and weigh less than 150lbs
Take your current body weight and multiply by .9.
This is your daily protein goal in grams.
Women who do not lift weights and weigh more than 150lbs
You get a protein range to work with also. Aim to get somewhere between 150g and 175g of protein every day. Look at all of that flexibility!
Ok, your protein is set. If your first instinct was “Holy crap that is a lot of protein!” or “I can’t eat that much protein!”... Take a deep breath.
Just like everything else in life, you will get better at it with planning and practice
Speaking of planning…Our Free Grocery & Meal Prep Guide will help you build your high-protein shopping list and show you how to make meals you’ll love. Grab it ——>HERE<——
Here are a few examples of how to eat 150 or 200g of protein in a day.
How much fat should you eat when you’re trying to lose weight?
Fat isn’t all that useful when it comes to fueling exercise like lifting weights, or anything intense like CrossFit or HIIT.
Fat is an essential nutrient though. You have to get a certain amount of fat from your diet to maintain healthy hormone production, vitamin absorption, and a few other important things.
The reason we’re setting your fat goal second is two-fold.
1 - To make sure you are getting “enough” fat for your health.
2 - To leave as many calories as possible available for carbohydrates. (more on that later)
How much fat should men eat to lose weight?
Take your current body weight and multiply by .27.
This is your daily fat goal in grams.
So, a 200 lb man would be aiming for about 54 grams of fat per day.
How much fat should women eat to lose weight?
Typically women need to eat more fat for overall health than men, even if they are trying to lose weight.
Ladies, take your current body weight and multiply by .35.
This is your daily fat goal in grams.
So a 175lb woman would be shooting for about 61 grams of fat per day.
How much saturated fat should you eat? (Men and Women)
Recent research has shown that getting more than about 10% of your daily calories from saturated fat has a negative impact on your risk for elevated cholesterol and heart disease.
To make sure you stay underneath that threshold, look at how many grams of saturated fat you’re eating, and multiply that number by 9.
There are 9 calories in a gram of fat, so the number you just came up with is how many calories you are eating of saturated fat.
Do your best to keep that number to less than 10% of your total daily calories.
When someone does 1:1 Nutrition Coaching with us, it’s common for us to find out that they are eating quite a bit more fat than is optimal for their goals.
It’s not really surprising though. Most “standard” foods in the typical American diet are really stinkin’ high in calories and fat. I mean have you noticed that every single food on a fast food menu is beige in color? It’s all of that high-fat grease that the food is drowned in.
We help our clients get their calories and fat in check by helping them find easy to implement substitutions for the foods that are holding them back.
Let’s move on to the ever-controversial carbohydrates.
How many carbs per day should you eat for weight loss?
First things first… Yes, you can eat carbs and lose fat.
Carbs are your friend
This client ate between 150 and 200 grams of carbs per day during this 6 month transformation.
As a matter of fact, research has shown that the combination of carbs and protein together is beneficial for preserving muscle when you’re losing fat.
Research has also proven without question that when you compare low-carb vs. high-carb diets… High-carb diets are just as effective as low-carb diets when you keep the calories and protein equated.
This is good news, because not only is it easier to stick with a diet that includes carbs…
If you want to actually look like you work out while you lose weight, you need to be lifting weights. And guess what? Lifting weights is powered by carbs.
More on “Looking Like You Lift” in >THIS< article.
Ok, let’s get on to setting your individual carb goal for fat loss.
How many carbs should men and women eat for weight loss? (Men and Women)
Take your protein goal and multiply it by 4, since there are 4 calories per gram of protein.
Now take your fat goal and multiply it by 9, since there are 9 calories per gram of fat.
Add those two numbers together and write the total down.
Next, take your calorie goal and subtract the number you just wrote down.
Take that number you just came up with and divide it by 4 (since there are 4 calories per gram of carbohydrate).
This is your daily carbohydrate goal in grams.
What you just did is fill up all of your remaining calories after you hit your protein and fat goal with delicious carbs.
Do carbs stop you from losing weight?
If eating carbs scares you, you’re not alone. Current diet culture is primed to make you think that carbs are evil, they make you fat, they spike your insulin… All of the things!
We educate our clients to ignore these scare tactics and enjoy carbs as part of their diet. It’s not uncommon for our male clients to eat 200+ grams of carbs per day, and we have plenty of female clients eating over 150 grams of carbs per day.
Again, carbs do not prevent weight loss. The only thing that can stop you from losing weight and fat is eating too many calories, regardless of if those calories come from bread, chocolate, or beef jerky.
It’s the calories, not the carbs!
How much fiber is good for weight loss?
Fiber isn’t a macronutrient, but eating enough of it is great for your overall health, and for helping you lose fat. Fiber can help lower your cholesterol and reduce your risk for heart disease.
Fiber comes from carbohydrates like beans, grains, berries, and other fruits and vegetables. Basically a lot of low-calorie, nutrient-rich foods are high in fiber.
Fiber moves through your digestive system slowly, which can help you stay full when you’re trying to lose fat.
We’ve had clients go from eating ~5 grams of fiber per day to ~25 grams per day and report better digestion and improved fat loss. It’s a double win.
How much fiber should men eat per day for weight loss?
Fellas, make it your goal to eat 35-45 grams of fiber per day.
If you notice that you’re only eating around 10 grams per day, don’t go straight to eating 40. Your stomach won’t appreciate that.
Instead, creep your daily intake up slowly over time, and be sure to drink plenty of water to keep everything copacetic.
How much fiber should women eat per day for weight loss?
Ladies, since you typically eat fewer calories per day compared to men, you should be trying to eat between 25 and 35 grams of fiber per day.
Again, increase slowly, and drink plenty of water along the way.
FIBER CHEAT SHEET
Does it really matter how much carbs and fat you eat for weight loss?
I have some great news for you if the idea of trying to hit specific carb and fat goals stresses you out.
You don’t have to!
What I mean is that the 3 most important things you need to focus on are:
1 - Hitting your total calories
2 - Hitting your protein goal
3 - Hitting your fiber goal
Those 3 things will have the biggest impact on your fat loss results.
So if you prefer to eat more fat and fewer carbs, have at it!
This isn’t just our opinion either. Research consistently shows that so long as you eat the right number of calories and protein, dividing the rest of your calories between carbs and fat as you see fit will not impact your results.
I do want to remind you that carbs are your body's preferred energy source (especially for intense training), so going ultra-low-carb could leave you feeling pretty blah, and it certainly will impact your workout performance.
How close do you have to hit your macro goals to lose fat?
This is a great question. We know that a lot of you out there have perfectionist tendencies.
You feel like if you don’t do it perfectly you’ve completely messed up, and what’s the use in even trying?
We covered this topic in depth in episode 178 of our podcast below. Check it out:
The good news with calorie and macro tracking is that you don’t have to be perfect.
In fact, you can’t be perfect.
Food labels are allowed to be wrong by as much as 20%, and how do you even know that each egg contains 6 grams of protein anyway? Did anyone tell the hens about the food labels? Doubt it!
Don’t get all bent out of shape about being perfect, or give up when you fall short one day.
How closely should you hit your calorie goal every day to lose weight?
Try to get within 50 calories of your daily calorie goal. That gives you a 100-calorie range to work with, and that’s accurate enough to make amazing fat loss progress.
How closely should you hit your protein goal every day to lose weight?
Try to get within 10 grams of your protein goal every day to continue getting the fat-loss benefits of protein.
How closely should you hit your carbohydrate goal every day to lose weight?
Try to get within 10 grams of your carbohydrate goal every day. That’s plenty close for seeing amazing progress.
How closely should you hit your fat goal every day to lose fat?
You have a little less wiggle room with fat since it has over twice as many calories per gram than protein and carbs.
Try to get within 3-5 grams of your daily fat goal per day to avoid going over your calories.
Ok friend, we’re all done here. I hope you found this helpful.
If the idea of figuring this out on your own intimidates you…
If you’ve tried this on your own before and failed…
If you want the guidance of an expert to give you more confidence…
That’s what we do.
Here’s what Jen said:
“I tried all of the diets, but nothing was sustainable. The idea of tracking macros was way too intimidating to do on my own. Over the last few months working with Digital Barbell I’ve learned so much and I don’t fear nutrition, or losing my results anymore. Thank you!” - Jen S.
If you’re ready to take your nutrition to the next level, apply for coaching below.
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