IF IT FITS YOUR MACROS with
DAVID BERRI
IF IT FITS YOUR MACROS
T
he fitness industry is becoming increasingly obsessed with upcoming ‘revolutionary’ diets, pills, workouts and supplements to target vulnerable people looking for an easy way out. Whilst you do see results with some diets due to their calorie restrictive nature, the longevity of these results are short lived and you often find yourself stacking on the weight again. What is worse is that you have increased your potential to gain even more weight. What shocks me is that most end up stacking on more weight than before they started. The aim of this book is to purely promote a healthy, sustainable lifestyle where both men and woman can read and learn about the different ways of achieving better body composition. Simply by applying very basic principles to their nutrition.
First rulesimple.
Keep
it
My job as a coach is not only to be able to transform your body, but to empower you as my readers, with the tools and knowledge to continue and progress on your fitness journey without buying into fitness and marketing scams. One of the most important things in life is food – it is used in our daily life as a way to connect, socialize and bond with each other. Avoidance of foods can have negative effects
on your mind, create eating disorders and ultimately decrease quality time with your loved ones. There is no need to alienate yourself from the world to achieve the body you want, however, if you are looking to change your body composition, some correct discipline and education is needed first What I’m going to share with you in the next few pages of this book are the fundamental keys to manipulating body composition. In the next chapter you will learn the secrets to what you need to do to get into better shape and how you can simultaneously still enjoy delicious foods!! That part should have you just a little excited ;)
Why I wrote this book…..
I
wrote this book to share with others the knowledge I wish I had right from the very first time I entered the gym! Learning how to train is 1 thing and this was my main focus for years which produced some impressive results on my body over the years of hard work, but being shredded and having those cut abs, dry and hard look that I desired always seemed to be just a dream that remained out of reach. As you receive the information this book contains, you will learn how to become the master of your body and come to understand the importance of just how to use nutrition to transform your own body. The best part is that you can do all this eating the foods you love and enjoy, once you learn the skill using food to fuel your body. What if I were to tell you that you don’t need to stick to a diet consisting of plain, bland food. That eating only meat and broccoli or something along those lines was not the only way to fat loss. Once you know what you are doing, you can start to use the foods you enjoy most to help you reach your goals, through coming to know and understand flexible dieting or the term that is being used in the fitness community “IIFM” (If it fits your macros). This is the
..SECRET TO FAT LOSS AND MUSCLE GROWTH.. that you have been searching for. Once you have and understand this information, you too will become the master of your own body, you will learn the science of calorie intake and the macronutrients needed to achieve optimal
results from your training and lifestyle choices. I, like many others would see guys with that “cover model” body, wanting that strong and cut look for myself seemed to always be out of my reach. I believed for some time that my genetics would forever hold me back and that it was just my body type that would store fat. I was increasing in size and strength as I had learnt quite a bit about food and it’s effect on the body, so putting on muscle mass seemed simple enough. Eat plenty of protein and increase the amount you eat as you wish to grow more.. That was always the easy part in my own experience. So like so many gym goers, I would look to bulk by eating more calories than my body required to maintain muscle mass & after reaching a certain weight, I would then reduce what I would eat to strip off some of the fat, but getting to the point of having
visible abs always seemed to be out of my reach. This book was written to pass on my knowledge of just how to achieve the body of your dreams & it all comes down to understanding how to use food in the most efficient way to fuel your body and it’s needs, based on your own personal goals. If you’re anything like me and most people wanting to change their body, you’ve probably tried many fad diets and different lifestyles such as paleo, Meat and broccoli only (not a sustainable way to live for me personality) & all the low carb, high fat diets. Through my own experience I have come to learn what works best for my body, but my real transformation took place the day I started to track my calorie and macro intake & stick to what I had learnt on a consistent basis. I came to the realization that if body builders and the guys with the dream bodies knew what they were doing with their food that maybe it was time that I learnt this for myself. It is through learning the knowledge that you are about to read in this book and applying it to your daily eating plan that you will be able to completely transform your own body!! Once I had and started to use this information, I was able to cut down from just over 100kgs with a body fat percentage of around 20% to 80kgs with single figure body fat
within a 12 week period, which made me able to compete in my first bodybuilding show, where I took 2nd place. But… BEFORE YOU READ ANY FURTHER!!!!! You must know that if it is possible for someone else to achieve this, then it is possible for you!! All you need is the right knowledge and the will to stick to a plan and
YOU WILL ACHIEVE THE RESULTS YOU DESIRE! Make the commitment to yourself right now that you will learn how to use this book to achieve that which you desire. Everything is right here in this book for you, see this as a manual to the big secret you’ve been searching for. Absorb this knowledge and use it now. You will read step by step just how to set up your own meal plan for your lifestyle and the results you desire. Remember it is through planning and consistency that you will achieve your goals. It is 1 thing to have the knowledge but unless you action what you know and follow through, the information is useless. I am giving you the information you need to create lasting change in your body and whole life so as you read on, take what you learn and start to implement it immediately!! If you can make that commitment, let’s get into it and get you on your path of creating a healthier, more confident and magnificent version of you.
Why I wrote this book….. SO WHAT IS IT ?... Flexible dieting: “is the term used to describe a diet which is non-restrictive in nature”. The only boundary is the amount of food you are able to eat in a given day. It is a diet which allows you to have
virtually no restrictions, as long as it is track-able.
I have seen people use it sparingly to add the occasional treat or so each week and I have seen it work well on the other extreme end of the spectrum – a diet containing pop tarts, nutella, pancakes, icecream and have even seen those in the competitive body building and fitness
world use this method to eat foods that may be considered by some as just a bit ‘naughty’. However, before you get too excited, the most important point to grasp here is that each food needs to be logged with their nutritional specifications (macronutrients)
Each food contains three major macronutrients –
CARBOHYDRATES, FATS AND PROTEINS. These macronutrients feed your body energy in varying ways and are used by your body differently.
CARBOHYDRATES are your body’s main source of energy – they are broken down into glucose, which is used by your brain. PROTEINS are broken down into amino acids, which are used to help you in the recovery of your muscles as well as produce hormones and receptors.
These three major macronutrients make up the energy profile of the foods we eat daily. It is so important to have a good understanding of how these macronutrients influence your body, the impact they have on your body composition as well as your head space and energy levels
SO WHERE DO WE START?... I honestly hope your ears are ready for this because the information you are about to receive is
LIFE CHANGING! I will do my best to keep this as simple as possible and not get too boggled up with hormones, digestion and a lot of other fun interesting things that are involved with changing body composition. First off, the biggest thing you need to realize is that this is a lifestyle process, like most things that are worth obtaining, you will need to be patient & learn that consistency is key!!! Stay with the process and you WILL achieve the results. When people start diets and trends, the very first thing they do is expect to drop 5kg each week. Think of it this way, the average person puts on 3kg of weight per year. You don’t put on 5kg every week so don’t expect to loose it within that timeframe. It is unsustainable and you most likely will be loosing lean muscle tissue. I cannot emphasise enough that your dedication
is your key to success!
Your consistency will be rewarded with the best body you’ve ever had. Realistically, a male consisting of 20% body fat can have it reduced to 10% in 16 weeks, by following a flexible dieting deficit protocol. Pretty good if you ask me – even better because he can still eat whatever he wants!
HERE GOES… Hope you’re ready for this, this is where we get into it. Following are the steps needed to learn and make flexible dieting work for you!
FIRST STEP is calculating your basal metabolic rate. You need to know how much energy your body is burning at restWe call this maintenance. As an example, let’s say that you could eat 3 big macs a day and not change physically or gain any weight in any area of your body. Basically 3 big macs would be your maintenance. Eat 2 and a half and you’ll loose weight. Eat 3 and a half and you’ll start packing on a nice stomach. Once you have calculated this value in a number form, from there, depending on your goal, we can increase your energy intake if you want to build more muscle but for most guys, we will be decreasing your caloric intake to get those abs out. First off you need to find your BMR – I like to use myfitnesspal to track it so click here http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator Now, because this works out our basal metabolic rate at rest, its imperative that we use the next formula to determine what our real daily metabolic rate is – let’s face it, we all have different activity levels – some may be sitting in a office 12 hours a day, whereas guys like me are running around training clients and hence burn more fuel. A formula to follow is as below: -
If you live a sedentary lifestyle (little or no exercise): Calorie calculation = BMR x 1.2 -
If you are lightly active (light exercise or sports 1-3 says/week): Calorie calculation = BMR x 1.375 -
If you are moderately active (Moderate exercise or sports 3-5 days/week):
Calorie calculation = BMR x 1.55 -
If you are very active (hard exercise or sports 6-7 says/week): Calorie calculation: BMR x 1.725 -
If you are extra active (very hard exercise or sports/physical job or 2x training): Calorie calculation = BMR x 1.9
WHAT’S NEXT? So now that you have calculated your daily calorie intake with your lifestyle, you need to figure out what your goal is. Would you like to loose weight or gain weight? The most common question I get asked is – how many calories should I cut from my maintenance BMR? Meaning, my maintenance BMR was eating 3 big macs a day – should I cut down to 2 or 1 big mac? To be honest, this will vary from person to person and requires close examination of your body. Cutting too many calories will make you feel lethargic, negatively impact your workouts and most likely cause loss of lean muscle tissue – something we want to avoid at all cost!!! As a general rule of thumb, for the majority of the population, I advise to start the reduction of their maintenance calories by 20%. If your BMR is 2000 calories, a good way to lean up would be to diet on 1600 calories. This has worked very well for my clients and people I have helped advise in the past. Like I said, be sensible and closely monitor how your workouts are going. If your testosterone resembles that of a little five year old girl, then it may be a sign to increase your caloric intake slightly. Remember this is a process and we want long lasting results and lifestyle change. A chronically low diet can have negative effects on your health, including but not limited to:
-Reduced hormone production -Reduced sex drive (No-one wants that!) -Lower metabolism (which means you burn less energy) -Increase Irritability and cause Hangry syndrome (Hungry + angry = a common symptom of many competitors and is just not fun for anyone involved) -Increase cravings -Increased risk of binge eating
BRINGING IN THE MACRONUTRIENTS So as I was saying earlier, each macronutrient is important in determining how your body will function, how you will feel and ultimately how you will look. Whilst overall calories are important – the make up of the calories from protein, fats and carbohydrates will determine maximal fat loss and preservation of muscle.
PROTEIN = 4 CALORIES PER 1 GRAM This is the holy grail right here. When it comes to nuilding muscle and stimulating fat loss, we want as much of this stuff as possible!! We all know what this stuff is good for: building muscle! A good rule of thumb when dieting is to stick to 2.5g of protein per kilo of body weight. Let’s say you weigh 80kg – you should be aiming to consume 200g of protein daily. This amount should be constant, although our other two macronutrients will vary according to your body type. We need protein for the following reasons:
Growth (especially important for children, teens and pregnant women) Tissue repair Immune function
Production of essential hormones and enzymes Energy reserve when carbohydrates are not available Preservation of lean muscle mass
If you think you’re going to stack on a huge amount of muscle by eating a lot of protein then you’re hugely mistaken. Building muscle is one of the hardest tasks any new gym enthusiast can undertake. What you’ll realize soon enough is, the more muscle you have – the more you will want. Also, building muscle tissue is one of the key influences n your metabolism. The more muscle you have, the more fat you’ll burn. So guys, remember to keep plenty of protein around – don’t be that douche bag who drinks 10 protein shakes a day and expects to magically grow. Protein
shakes are convenient but It’s much better to be getting your calories from real food, especially when in a calorie deficit as this helps curb hunger. Just remember to get the results you desire you must stay consistent with eating the amount of food required to reach your goals, I hear time and time again that “I can’t eat that
much” this is a limiting belief that holds people back from achieving results. Most people are not eating on a consistent basis the amount of food needed for optimal performance. Your metabolism will speed up and appetite will increase as you eat more so even if you have to build up, find your target calories and make it a priority to be hitting your target daily.
FAT = 9 CALORIES PER 1 GRAM Historically, fats have had a bad reputation when it comes to weight gain, which is why you will see supermarkets stacked with 99% fat free products. Earlier on, the smart guys in government decided to give it a bad reputation and tackle the obesity epidemic by encouraging low-fat diets. The theory behind this was: every 1g of fat contains 9 calories, as opposed to 1g of carbohydrates or protein, which both contain only 4 calories. Therefore, eating the same weighted foods will result in a decreased caloric intake for a carbohydrates and/or protein based diet. To calculate how many fats you need to eat, you need to determine if your body likes fats. A general rule of thumb is, if your body has more love handles and stores more fat on your backside, then you will thrive off fats. If you have lean abs and chubbier legs I would advise you going on a lower fat/higher carb diet. If you thrive off fats, then use this formula: (1.0
x bodyweight) = amount of fats you can consume in grams
If you thrive better off carbs (or have chubbier legs and a leaner torso) use this formula: (0.77 x bodyweight) = amount of fats you consume in grams Just a few quick points on why fats are so important in your diet:
Hormone production. No fats = no hormones. Which for guys, equates to no testosterone! Absorption of certain vitamins (like vitamins A, D, E, K, and carotenoids) Maintenance of cell membranes and increased cell permeability for nutrient transport Immune system
There are three main types of fats: saturated fats, unsaturated fats, and trans fats. The bad one here is your trans-fats, which are commonly created artificially. They are shown to increase the risk of coronary heart disease by raising your LDL’s (bad cholesterols).
CARBOYHYDRATES = 4 CALORIES PER 1 GRAM The voodoo topic is carbohydrates. Everybody avoids them – they are the enemy and sometimes I even judge myself for over indulging in them. But fear not, let’s shed some light on this extraordinary macronutrient – in my opinion nothing beats carbs with satisfaction. It is no secret that protein builds muscle but why do we need carbohydrates? For atheletes that train in the gym, carbohydrates spare protein stores and are your bodys main source of fuel. In fact, starving your body of carbohydrates for long periods of time will cause your body to start using protein as the main energy source. This will eventually lead to loss of muscle tissue and will result un a negative shift in your metabolism. As discussed earlier, you will either thrive more on carbohydrates or fats. To make it easier, we
keep protein intake constant and adjust these other two macronutrients according to how your body deals with it. Since we already have our protein intake value (2.5g x bodyweight) and your fat intake (0.2g x bodyweight or 0.16 x bodyweight), your carbohydrate intake is calculated as what remains of your calorie intake. Carbohydrates are essential for our bodies:
Proper functioning of the central nervous system, the kidneys, the brain and the muscles (including the heart) Can be stored in the muscles and liver and later used for energy Are important in intestinal health and waste elimination Are stored in your muscles cells as glycogen, which will help increase the intensity of your workouts
PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER So if you’ve made it this far, I’ve done my job and you’ve been slightly educated!! Or you could just be a fatty desperately hoping to somehow eat tim tams and get leaner. Either way you’re in luck – this is where the magic happens! Right now, we’re going to look at a case study so that you can actually use all the facts I’ve provided to you. Although macronutrients are very important, they are not the only sustenance that we need for survival. Our bodies also need water (6-8 glasses a day) and micro-nutrients. Micro-nutrients are nutrients that our bodies need in smaller amounts, and include vitamins and minerals. SUBJECT 1: 85KG Male who is 179cm and 27 years old BMR = 1839 calories
REMEMBER
(as calculated by http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmrcalculator)
Torso = (1.0 x Bodyweight)
Now he trains 6-7 times per week which would put him in the very active category hence multiply BMR by 1.725 = 3172.3 Calories. Subject 1 would require 3172.3 calories to keep doing what he is doing every day and remain the same – that is, no change in weight. Subject 1 wants to lose weight, hence we work out his maximum calories to be 80% of his resting BMR 0.8 x 3172.3 = 2537.84 calories
Legs = (0.77 x bodyweight. Subject 1 stores fat on his torso. Hence (1.0 x 85kg) FATS = 85g The last thing we have is a subtraction equation here. We need to convert the fats and protein to calories by multiplying it by their caloric value per gram. So far Subject 1 has 2537.84 calories to play with. He has used up 850 calories (4 calories per gram of protein) and 765 calories from fat (9 calories per gram of fat).
Great. Well, what is next? Working out his macronutrients.
A simple subtraction equation will yield the amount left he has in carbohydrates
We know that he needs 2.5g of protein per bodywight (85kg)
2537.84 – 850 (protein calories) – 765 (fat calories) = 933 calories of carbohydrates.
PROTEIN = 212.5
From here we need to divide the value by 4.
We then need to determine whether subject 1 thrives on fats or carbs. The question he should ask himself is – do I store fat on my torso or my legs?
As 4 calories = 1 gram of carbohydrates. Which gives us the value of CARBS = 233.25g
WHERE TO GO FROM HERE? Alright, so now you have a better understanding of how much food your body needs and you’re on the right path to your body transformation. In my experience there is ‘no one size fits all’ rule, however if you have never tracked your food before this process works brilliantly. Just keep in mind – consistency is king: If you have over indulged in one day, then you should reduce your caloric intake the next day so that over the two days, your caloric/macronutrient intake would have been identical to not splurging at all. Increase your resistance training, add in a few sessions of high intensity interval training, and follow this nutritional plan and you will be well on your way to single digits on the body fat scales. If you start to find your stalling in progress then drop 50 calories off your daily caloric intake. Slow and steady is your best bet – rome wasn’t’ built in a day and a great body takes some time to build. Track your food but more importantly have fun with it! Cutting down your body fat this way will reduce the amount of binge eating and cravings you will have, as you will soon realize you can fit them into your daily macronutrient intake. There you have it! Welcome to the world of IIFYM and flexible dieting!! Remember this is the method many of the fitness industries leaders have adopted and if it can work for someone else, it can work for you. Set your goals and map out a plan to ensure your success. It is wise to pre cook meals to make sure you are being consistent with your food intake. Use the myfitnesspal app to build your meal plan based on your caloric needs and to get a better understanding of the nutritional content of the foods you choose to eat. My desire is for you to find the same success in your body transformation as this information has allowed me to have.
Yours in health
David Berriman