Macro Talk, Day 15

I’m just over two weeks into my yearly macro counting experiment. Each year I spend 6-8 weeks weighing and measuring my food to get a better idea of how I’m fueling.

Here’s a few things I’ve been thinking about so far.

It’s so hard to be consistent! I tend to under eat for a couple days then overeat for a couple days. I’m trying to balance that out and properly fuel each day for the activities I want to do. This is the number one reason I think people should try counting their macros, if you’re just estimating and making assumptions, it’s probable you’re inaccurate.

I typically put the boys’ dinner plates together. Not grazing off their plates has been a tough. Last night, I cut up a honey dew melon and was popping pieces into my mouth as I was cutting and serving. It’s easy to do this at every meal, or to eat the final bites of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich destined for the trash. I’m not swearing off grazing completely, but I’m trying to be aware of it.

Timing is key. Timing my meals around my workouts really helps me stick with the plan and properly fueling my workouts. I eat my oatmeal a 1-2 hours before training. This fuels me up but doesn’t leave me with a heavy stomach when I start training. It seems that if I do this, everything else falls into place nutrition-wise.

Last year I was relying too much on bars. I was eating two or three bars a day plus a protein shake. It felt like I was missing out on actual food. These days, I eat one bar a day. Typically I eat it post workout as I drive home or to pick up kids. I’d prefer to eat a meal, but the timing doesn’t work to sit down and eat, and besides I don’t want to force something down while I don’t feel like it immediately post workout. A bar is convenient and lets me refuel some calories to hold me off until dinner time.

That’s my day 15 update, I’ll check back in next week.

Justin Miner

@justinminergain