Counting Macros: 5 Things You Need to Lose 17 Pounds // Part 1

I'm sitting cross-legged on the center cushion of my couch in my living room. I’m wearing an oversized T, knock-off Vuori sweats (yes, the ones from Costco), and a thick pair of fuzzy socks with grips. I’m also sitting underneath two white blankets, and there may or may not be a fuzzy brown heating pad Nutella’d in between. I’d prefer to be on a beach, but we can’t always get what we want.

“Unless you’re patient and stay consistent.” She says, with a cock of her head as she flexes her new bicep.

Some of you might be wondering what macros are. Trust me, 5 months ago I had no idea either. I thought it was some sort of PaleoKetoWeightWatchers thing, but we’ll dive into that in a sec.

You know when you get out of the shower and you have that joyous opportunity to look at yourself naked in the mirror? Or maybe you don’t look at all. Maybe you were like me and just grabbed that Turkish cotton towel as quickly as you could and moved on to the next task. Well, I had a moment at the end of last summer when I took a FULL peek. I took a hard look at myself - - and for lack of a better term - - I got kinda pissed.

I thought, “Alright, Sam. What are ya doin’? You haven’t worked out in 2 months. Your energy is going to shit. And you’re starting to act…old.”

(Pauses for reflection/40 is 4 years away)

I knew what I was doing wasn’t working. Eating what I wanted, when I wanted. Hardly moving my body. Constantly eating out. Drinking. Wine. Cereal. Boom Chicka Pop. Chocolate.

It was like being on a road trip with no map or direction. I was just driving around aimlessly floating wherever the wind or a craving would take me. And when the tank fell on E and I finally stopped to pull over, I looked around and realized I wasn’t happy where I was.

In this blog, I am going to share with you 5 things you need if you want to lose weight and get moving towards a better path.

5 THINGS YOU NEED TO SHED THE LBS

1. A COACH

Yep. A lot of people think they can do this on their own, but from what I’ve seen people give up on themselves way too easily. If Karen doesn’t see results in 5 minutes she quits. Am I right? Think of Cinderella without her Fairy Godmother, Aladdin without the Genie; Nemo without Dori. Think of Ferdinand without the calming goat. Clearly, I am a mother to a young child. But a coach will be there to guide and support you through the entire show. They’ll be there to help you, cheer you on, and answer your questions. Especially in the beginning.

I signed up for personal training twice a week, and that included macros coaching. “Macro” is just short for macronutrients. They're the three categories of nutrients you eat the most and provide you with most of your energy: protein, carbohydrates, and fats. So when you're counting your macros, you're counting the grams of proteins, carbs, or fat that you're consuming.

A good coach should be putting a heavy emphasis on nutrition.

“According to the commonly cited "80/20 rule," when it comes to overall health and weight management, eating correctly (diet) is considered significantly more important than working out, with a ratio of roughly 80% emphasis on diet and 20% on exercise; meaning that your dietary choices have a greater impact on your health than your exercise routine.” She says as she slides her glasses up the brim of her nose.

If you’re killing yourself with cardio and not seeing it on the scale, maybe revisit what you’re eating and how much of it. I had countless misconceptions about dieting, working out, and what I thought it took to “get fit”. But I became teachable with a coach. She taught me the importance of ‘calories in vs. calories out’. I became her student and she blew all of my preconceived ideas, and everything I heard on TikTok, out of the water.

So if you want to swim across this ocean solo, that’s totally fine. But a coach will help you reach your goals faster. A coach will open your eyes, take you wonder by wonder, over sideways and under on a magic carpet ride.

(High five if you sopranoed the next verse)

2. THE WORD ‘NO’

In the past 5 months, I have said ‘NO’ more times than I did when Sophia was a toddler.

I have said no to fast food, eating out, dates with girlfriends, Bloody Marys at J’s, and wine nights at Evelyn’s. I even canceled a girl’s trip I was supposed to attend because I was in a calorie deficit…and I couldn’t be around it. The alcohol, the appetizers, the late-night pizza, the snacks, the sweets, and the occasional puff of a cigarette one endures when one has a light buzz.

Honestly, if you choose to do this for yourself you will have to say no and learn your limits. Not that this chick has much of a social life (I really do enjoy quiet nights in) but I had to redirect the course I was on or nothing would have changed. Let me repeat. You have to redirect the course you are on or nothing will change.

And hey, maybe you have more self-control than I do. Maybe you’d still choose to go out with the girls. That’s awesome! But I know myself, and if I’m limited to 1500 calories a day, and I’m sitting around a table while everyone else is enjoying heavy apps, charcuterie, and blood orange margaritas with a smoked salt rimmer — I would be an absolute mess.

(Deep breath in/deep breath out)

When you start tracking macros, you become aware of EVERYTHING you are putting in your mouth. You will quickly realize how fast those drinks, bites, and slices add up. But remember, you’re redirecting your course. Being in a calorie deficit won’t last forever. You can check back with the girls later. Just say no for now. They will be patient and understand.

3. PATIENCE

How many of you do a 30-minute workout, eat a cucumber, and expect to look like Simone Biles? Okay, you’re still with me. We’re used to getting things now — fast food, one-day shipping, on-demand entertainment, you name it. The internet has rewired our brains for quick information. TikTok, Reels, and Shorts have conditioned us to expect everything in bite-sized, fast-paced formats.

Diets, fitness, and skill-building all take time, but quick fixes and hacks dominate the conversation. Would you agree? I told myself I would give this process 90 days before I formed an opinion. 90 days, folks. Not 2 weeks. Not 30 days. Not 60. NINETY.

Doing this helped take some of the pressure off, especially when I stepped on the scale. Weighing myself every morning, do you know how many times my weight went UP? A LOT! Did it bother me that I ate correctly for a whole week, rocked 4 workouts, and didn’t lose a single pound? Does Raggedy Ann have a cotton crotch? Yes, it bothered me.

So what if I quit? What if I lost patience and just gave up and went back to my couch with the bag of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos?

It took me like 49 minutes to create the photo below, so please take a moment and look at MONTH 1 to MONTH 3. You don’t see a big, drastic difference, do you? No. But that’s why you keep at it.

Good things take time. They can also take advanced preparation and organization. Which brings us to our next need.

4. PLANNING

If you want to be successful at counting macros, it makes it ten times easier to plan ahead. We plan ahead when we book a vacation. We plan ahead when we’re hosting a party or celebration. We even plan for the following weekend when it’s still the weekend. So why can’t we think just one day in advance when it comes to what we’ll eat?

(Long pause for dramatic effect)

What I found works best is to enter in what you’ll eat the night before.

Example of two full days and a clean slate on the Carbon app.

Every night, turn off Netflix early. Put the social media away. Stop wasting time comparing your kitchen cabinets to the random strangers in Norway and think ahead. Focus on YOU and plan out what you’re going to eat. Then when you wake up, you already have your roadmap on the dashboard. The GPS is ready. Just set the cruise and go. If you ask me, it’s quite lovely and takes oodles of stress out of the daily to-dos. Yes, it takes a while to get used to the flow, but hey, we’ve got a coach to help us, right?

“And we also have patience.” She says, in her 1950s housewife tone.

5. MUSIC

Every time I had cravings and wanted to eat more than my daily budget, music was a HUGE help to keep my self-control in check. When you’re in a calorie deficit, cravings are no joke. Those were harder for me than showing up at the gym. When you have a craving for more calories - and you will have those - you have to do something to rewire your brain. You’re in a deficit. Of course your body wants more, but swimsuit season and those skinny bitches at book club say otherwise.

You have to rewire what your body WANTS to do (eat the bar of chocolate) and wire it to what it NEEDS to do (put the chocolate down). I used music, and sometimes grape-flavored gum, to get me through those moments.

One night, I had already reached my calorie intake for the day, and I needed to make my 8-year-old dinner.

As I lay the butter down on top of the hot and naked Annie’s Mac, I slipped in my earbuds and turned up one of my craving favs. My 5-year-old-nephew calls it, Lighting Strike, but we all know it as, Thunderstruck. Watching the butter melt deep into the curves of the shells, I playfully splashed in the 1%. (THUNDER) Staying the course, I slowly tore the packet of questionable cheese powder open and showered it over the butter and milk mixture. (THUNDER) Making sure not to overcook, I turned down the heat to a simmer and watched the liquid cheese powder adhere to the macaroni. (THUNDER)

This is when I would usually take 1-7 bites to test it to make sure it was good. But, come on guys, we all know it’s good. Instead, I put the spoon down without even a lick, walked the steaming bowl of aged cheddar shells to the table, and went back to start the dishes. I felt like I had just climbed Mount Kilimanjaro.

CONCLUSION

Counting Macros = AWARENESS. When I started tracking, I was shocked at how unbalanced my diet was, and you will be too. You’ll notice the mindless snacking and how often you reach for food out of boredom. I thought the Organic Aussie Bites at Costco were healthy, but not if you’re eating 5 in one sitting. #themoreyouknow

If you want to get your nutrition on the right path, check out Studio Alive and contact Tanya today. She does in-person and online macros coaching, and she will be your number-one fan.

I understand this isn’t for everyone, but if you choose to hire a coach, learn to say no, be patient, plan, and put in a piece of gum and pump up the jams, who knows where you’ll be in 5 months.

“One last question for you.” She says curiously, as she slowly closes her notebook. Is it harder to love and accept your naked self in the mirror, or harder to do the work that will create a different reflection?

(Offers a moment of silence)

Choose your hard.

Remember, good things take time.

Stay tuned for Part 2 where we’ll do a deep dive into the day-to-day, grocery shopping lists, and all things food. “This is the fun part.” She says, with a smile and a tip of her hat.

More soon.

Sam

If you liked the blog, drop a comment below. My name is Sam. I'm a charismatic blogger with hints of boldness and sass. And I'm your no-BS guide to finding (and feeling) the good.