Thread by @Rob_NBF

What is IIFYM? (If It Fits Your Macros)

You're going to want to read this if you want to know how people stay in shape while eating whatever they want (while it seems you only have to LOOK at cake to gain 5 pounds)

A massive thread with all you need to know👇

IIFYM is a way of eating that allows you, in theory, to eat anything while still chasing a body composition goal of losing fat or building muscle.

Does this mean you can eat cake while trying to lose fat, without it affecting your progress?

Yes. But there are some caveats.

You need to understand the fact that energy balance dictates weight loss and gain.

Calories are just a unit of measurement for energy.

We all have different energy requirements to maintain our weight. It's mostly driven by your weight, amount of lean mass and your activity.

To get a rough idea of the number of calories it may take to maintain your weight, go here:

freedieting.com/calorie-calcul…

To get closer to the real number, you'll have to start tracking your energy intake & paying attention to your weight. Be consistent and do it over several weeks.

Eat food with more energy than the amount needed to maintain your weight (maintenance calories) = gain weight.

Eat food with less energy than the amount needed to maintain your weight = lose weight

The amount over or under your maintenance dictates the speed of weight gain/loss

It requires a deficit of about 3500 calories to burn a pound of fat.

You reach this by stringing together several days of a deficit - like 500 calories per day, x 7

The amount you average above/ below maintenance over time, dictates results.

But how do macros come into it?

Macros are short for "macronutrients" - not to be confused with MICROnutrients.

There are 4 macronutrients, and they all have calories.

Protein = 4 calories per gram
Carbs = 4 calories per gram
Fat = 9 calories per gram
Alcohol = 7 calories per gram

Every food is made up of these macronutrients (usually only protein, fat and carbs) in different ratios. The amount of calories in a food depends on its macronutrient profile.

E.g. 300g of raw chicken breast:

72g protein
4g fat
0 carbs

= (72x4)+(4x9)+(4x0)

= 324 calories.

Another example:

A 68g slice of this cake (probably less than you'd give yourself)

=

2.4g protein
17g fat
37g carbs

= 311 calories

For weight gain or loss ONLY, THIS would have a similar effect to the 300g of chicken breast.

HOWEVER, they should not be seen as the same.

You need high protein to retain muscle in a calorie deficit, or build it in a surplus.

Chicken breast is high protein & low calorie (for the amount of food)

Cake is low protein & high calorie.

If you eat cake, you're using lots of your fat & carb calories without getting full.

You'll be hungrier a lot more if you eat cake & you're likely to want to keep eating it and forget the macros.

Chicken is also high in MICROnutrients. These don't contain calories but they are ESSENTIAL for your overall health

They are things like iron, B vitamins, calcium etc.

More important micronutrients:.

Calcium
Magnesium
Phosphorous
Iodine
Manganese
Potassium
Vitamin C
Vitamin D
Zinc
Selenium
Vitamin A
Vitamin E

And many more.

You won't find much of these in cake.

It is possible to hit your macros by eating cake, ice cream & chocolate all the time & just making sure you hit your protein from diet Whey protein shakes.

You'll be hungry & deficient in lots of key micronutrients.

This won't impact your body composition DIRECTLY. However 👇

Indirectly, it will. You'll be sick. You won't have energy to train. You won't be able to recover properly or sleep well. You'll have digestive issues.

All of these things will drastically impact the quality of your training and ability to build or retain muscle.

What to do instead then?

Focus first on trying to hit your protein from food.

Its OK to use protein shakes to help you get there.

Hit the remaining fat & carb target mostly from nutritious food sources.

If 80-90% of your calories are coming from proper food, you're fine.

You don't have to hit the numbers EXACTLY.

Carbs and fat calories are pretty interchangeable based on personal preference, as long as the total calories are still the same.

You can pass and borrow macros from one day to the next.

Don't stress too much. Be within a 10% range.

It's important to note that the nutrition labels aren't completely accurate either. They're an average. Does every piece of chicken have the same amount of fat on it? No.

This may seem too inaccurate, but people who follow this closely are consistently achieving amazing results.

So how do you figure out what macronutrients you should be eating?

I've written a couple of blog posts about it that will guide you through the process.

Go here to work out your macro split for losing fat 👇

nothingbarredfitness.com/how-to-calcula…

Go here to work out your macro split for gaining muscle (with minimal fat) 👇

nothingbarredfitness.com/calculate-your…

So how do you actually track macros?

It's simple. You use a digital scale and myfitnesspal. These scales will do the trick 👇

amzn.to/30531Cz

Accuracy is key. Weigh things out in grams as much as possible instead of using "cups" or eyeballing.

In summary:

Work out how many calories you need for your goal.

Get the macronutrient ratio.

Track intake accurately & watch the scale average weekly change.

Hit protein & at least 80% of calories from proper food.

When you want to fit in some "fun" foods you can.

You can also eat nutritious all the time, and then "bank" your flexibility for days like BBQs and other social events - giving you more freedom.

When you do this, cheat days stop existing. You can satisfy any craving without sacrificing progress or feeling like you've fucked up.

If this has been useful, I've got an email list where you can find more content like this. Get on it here 👇

mailchi.mp/332adc3ff7ba/m…

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