Understanding Macros
and your new favorite muffin recipe
Hi! Welcome back to today’s read all about macros. If I’m being honest, they seemed intimidating and stressful to keep track of before diving deeper into their science. I read countless pages on their breakdown and what an ideal day should look like based on your personal goals.
If you’re a paid subscriber, you can scroll down to the bottom of this read for an example meal plan and a deeper dive into what an ideal plate should look like. Enjoy!
Let’s break it down—
What Are Macros?
Macronutrients are the three main nutrients that provide energy (calories) to our body. They are the building blocks of a healthy diet and include:
1. Carbohydrates
Carbs are your body’s primary source of energy.
The carbs in food get broken down into glucose, a simple sugar, in the digestive system. Glucose is then absorbed into the blood stream and transported to cells, where it is used for energy. The body stores excess glucose in the liver and muscles as glycogen, which can be converted back to glucose when energy is needed.
When choosing your carbs, you want to prioritize complex carbs over simple carbs.
2. Proteins
Protein is essential for muscle repair and growth, as well as immune function.
Proteins in food are broken down into pieces called amino acids. The body uses them to build new proteins with specific functions, such as starting chemical reactions, helping cells communicate or transporting things within the body. When there is a shortage of fats or carbohydrates in the diet, proteins can also be used for energy.
3. Fats
Fats are crucial for hormone regulation, brain health, and absorbing vitamins. Healthy fats are found in foods like avocados, olive oil, nuts, seeds, and fatty fish. Fatty acids that aren't needed right away are packaged in bundles called triglycerides and stored in fat cells, which have unlimited capacity.
YOUR NEW FAVORITE MUFFIN RECIPE:
Packed with good ingredients, higher in protein than other muffin recipes and are LIGHT, so you’ll feel good reaching for one as an on-the-go breakfast option or snack.
+ 1 ripe banana, mashed
+ 2 eggs
+ 1 cup greek yogurt
+ 1 cup apple sauce
+ 1 tbsp vanilla paste
+ 2 cups einkorn flour (low gluten index, high protein and easier to digest)
+ 2 tsp baking powder
+ 1 tsp baking soda
+ pinch of salt
+ flavor of choice - frozen wild blueberries are my personal fav but you can do anything - chocolate chips, banana and walnut, dried cranberries…
For the crumble: combine 1/2 cup almond flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup olive oil
+start by mashing the banana and adding in all of the wet ingredients then adding in the dry ingredients. Mix well. In a separate small bowl, combine the crumble ingredients. Pour the muffin batter into a muffin pan, top with the crumble using your hands and bake for 20-22 minutes on 350F.
Fitness Tip: Let’s use daylight savings to our advantage and incorporate a little challenge for the week— 30 minutes of walking added to the calendar. Take a walk after dinner, bring the kids, during your lunch break, add it to a workout you already have scheduled, pull out that walking pad during a call. However you can manage to add in just 30 more minutes of walking, try it!
Motherhood Tip: stop eating your kids leftovers!! I used to call the crust of my kids sandwich lunch and that’s not ok. When making your kids a meal, make yourself one too and don’t over complicate it. When I make my girls breakfast, I prioritize protein to benefit all of us. I’ll boil a bunch of eggs (refrigerate the ones we don’t eat for a snack later on), mash some avocado and serve that with some crackers and fruit. I try to meal prep my lunches because I try to get as much done as possible during school hours and we all eat an early dinner together. Making multiple meals is exhausting and really doesn’t benefit anyone at the end of the day.
Beauty Tip: I recently got the Jones Road What The Foundation (color: light) and have to say I totally understand the hype. Add some of the Merit Cream Blush (color: cheeky) on your cheekbones, down the center of your nose, eyelids and a touch on the lips and you have yourself a glowy morning look in under two minutes.