We've all heard the phrase - a calorie is a calore. But is it really?
There are three types of macronutrients that will change the composition of your body - fats, carbohydrates and protein. These are the main components that your body is comprised of. Many recent studies have shown that calories aren't all the same. A fat calorie in comparison to a carbohydrate calorie versus a protein calorie, all have a different effect on the body. Fats/carbs provide energy and proteins build muscle (each macro has more purpose but these are just one). One gram of fat is equal to 9 calories while protein and carbohydrates are equal to 4 calories individually. But, this doesn't mean we should drop fats just so we can eat more. We need to balance our diet with all diffents types of food that include all three macronutrient groups.
When you track your macros, you can ensure you are receiving the right amount of each macronutrient to obtain the body composition you desire. Although other factors like BMR and how your body utilizes fats versus carbs plays into your macronutrient intake, a baseline of protein is fairly standard. If you are looking to gain muscle, you need to be consuming 1g of protein per pound of goal weight and often, more. This means that if you currently weight 120 lbs, and want to build muscle and reach 150 lbs, not only should you be engaging in exercise that helps build muscle, you should be consuming at least 150g of protein per day while making sure your total caloric intake is at surplus. However, this does not mean you will gain 30 lbs of muscle. You can minimize your fat gain by adjusting your fats and carbohydrate balance but on a gain, you are more than likely going to gain fat as well.
Eating a balance of carbs and fats is important because each provide energy. The caveaut being - if you don't eat enough fat, your body will think it's starving and store it rather than burn it because you are eating too many carbs which are easier to process and burn for energy than fats so your body uses them first. If you don't eat enough carbs, you will not have enough readily available energy and can feel sluggish and tired.
Once you reach your desired weight, you will want to slowly adjust your macros to go into a calorie deficit while continuing to maintain your protein intake at 150g and adjusting the fats and carbohydrate composition. Keeping your protein at your desired goal weight, will help maintain the muscle gain. By adjusting fats and carbs in a calorie deficit, this will cause you to lose weight, but not lose muscle mass.
Eating 20g of protein and the rest in carbs and fats, even in a calorie deficit, your body will convert muscle to fat and you will not acheive the desired results (if your goal is to maintain or gain muscle mass). You will look heavier, your jeans will fit tighter and you will not feel your best.
This is just one of many examples of why tracking macros is important when you're looking to acheive a certain look and functionality with your body.
So the bottom line is this. No, a calorie is not just a calorie when it comes to your body composition.
**We do not give any guidance on where your macros should be set or how much you should be eating. This is just a basic rundown of the differences between each macronutrient and what they do for the composition of your body.
