- Eating less than your target macros in hopes you’d make more progress – undereating causes metabolic issues. Even in a deficit, you want to make sure your eating sufficient amounts. If you’re constantly undereating your macros then your set point is lower and its harder to make accurate adjustments later on.
- Trying to hit a perfect ratio of macros – if you’re like me, your OCD kicks in and you want everything to look perfect. Understand that hitting a perfect ratio 30/30/40 is not as important as hitting your macros in grams. Sure it looks pretty but if 32/34/29 works too.
- Inconsistent water intake – If there were a 4thmacro I think it should be water. Have a target fl oz amount. The average individual only needs .6 but as a highly active female looking to lose weight I reccoment .8-1 fl oz per lb of bodyweight. Keep it consistent! Read this blog post for ways to measure your water.
- Inconsistent exercise – exercising 5x one week and then 2x the next week means that your energy expenditure is inconsistent. If your expenditure is inconsistent and your macros are consistent, there are still going to be discrerepencies in your progress. When gauging progress from macros we must make sure that all other variables are constant. (water, sleep, exercise, etc)
- Not taking photos and measurements– You see yourself everyday. It’s hard to gauge progress when you’re looking at yourself on a day to day basis. But if you take photos weekly you’ll be able to see the changes. Take circumference measurements monthly.
- Giving up too soon – It takes more than 2 weeks of tracking in order to start seeing the patterns and being able to manipulate your progress. Tracking macros is a period of self-discovery. It took me several months to understand what patterns were happening. I’ve been doing this for years and there are STILL things I’m learning about myself.
- Not being willing to make mistakes – Understand that tracking macros is a process. You are going to make mistakes and actually that is the BEST way to learn. I can tell you all my mistakes until you’re blue in the face but they just won’t make sense or be that important to you until you make them yourself.
