There is no one size fits all approach when it comes to nutrition. When tracking macros, your macro targets are based on your specific lifestyle, activity level, and dietary preferences, and are unique to your goals.  Just as everyone has different macro targets, every individual can choose how to hit these targets in whatever way suits their lifestyle best.

To give you a bit more insight into what tracking your macros can look like, the coaches are showing you what a full day of eating looks like for each of them and their specific goals. While we all follow the same concept of flexible nutrition, our approaches are very different and are dependent on our schedules and preferences.

DIANA

EATING FOR PERFORMANCE GOALS | FREQUENT MEALS | MEAL PREP

My goals are currently based in performance. I just finished training for a big CrossFit competition and will be preparing for another one at the end of July. I have 4-5 training sessions per week and my calorie intake is based on my volume training. I am not eating to gain weight but my main priority is to make sure I’m fueled to support my training and my recovery, so calories are a bit over maintenance. I follow training day and rest day numbers and also have a refeed day that I take on my hardest training day.

Since my husband and I both have very busy schedules, I do most of our meal prepping at the beginning of each week. Having our pre-measured meals in the fridge and ready to grab is essential for helping our week run smoothly. Italicized items were prepared during my meal prep Sunday.

HERE’S WHAT A TYPICAL TRAINING DAY LOOKS LIKE FOR ME:

5:30am WAKE-UP
I try to drink a full liter of water before eating anything. This gives me a jumpstart on my water goal and I find that once I start eating I want to keep eating, so I like to push breakfast off a bit.

7am COFFEE | 7.5P/1F/8C

1 oz. coffee + hot water
12g Bariwise protein hot chocolate (half packet)
15g Silk Almond Milk caramel creamer

I actually don’t drink coffee because I’m pretty sensitive to caffeine, but I like to have a hot drink in the morning, so I ease into my day with a protein hot chocolate. This helps me start off my morning without eating a full meal.

8:30am BREAKFAST | 34P/11F/19C
2 Easy Breakfast Muffins (from the Everyday Macros Cookbook)

10:30am SNACK | 12P/2F/33C

OATMEAL
1 maple brown sugar oatmeal single serve packet
75g liquid egg whites

On days I train around noon or in the early afternoon, I eat oatmeal as a mid-morning, pre-workout snack plus another liter of water before training.

12pm WORKOUT

1:30pm-2ish POST-WORKOUT | 59P/12F/62C

PROTEIN SHAKE | 30P/7F/17C
1 scoop vegan protein
65g frozen banana
300g unsweetened almond milk
12g peanut butter

POST-WORKOUT MEAL | 29P/8F/56C
BBQ Turkey Hash

4:30pm SNACK | 10P/5F/45C
Clif Bar + 1 liter of water

7:30pm-8ish  DINNER  | 33P/13F/59C

5oz. chicken thigh (weighed raw)
150g steamed broccoli
90g steamed white rice + 5g butter
160g roasted red potatoes + 5g coconut oil cooking spray + 20g ketchup

A typical dinner consists of whatever protein I have prepped for the week, usually pork tenderloin, beef roast or roasted chicken thighs paired with roasted or steamed veggies and carbs that are all made at the beginning of the week.

9pm SNACK | 3P/6F/37C

This changes depending on what I have a taste for, but lately it’s been:

(1) S’mores Pop Tart
100g unsweetened almond milk for dipping

I eat the same breakfast, lunch and dinner meals almost everyday and fill in the rest of my day with varying snacks that include:

• Apple + 8g peanut butter

• PB&J Rice Cake: Quaker lightly salted rice cake + 8g peanut butter + 10g organic simple truth four-fruit spread

• 100g baby carrots + 15g hummus

• Cascadian Farms dark chocolate chewy granola bar

• Chobani less sugar Greek yogurt vanilla cinnamon + 15g simple truth pecan pumpkin granola

• Sulspice dark chocolate peanut butter bites

WHITNEY

EATING FOR MAINTENANCE GOALS | WEEKDAY/WEEKEND MACROS | BATCH PREP

I am currently eating at a moderate deficit on weekdays and close to maintenance on weekends for slow and sustainable recomposition.  I work a desk job and train powerlifting 4-5 days per week, so my caloric needs aren’t super high, but I like to have a couple of higher-calorie days to help with recovery and also because it helps with my overall compliance.

We do a lot of batch prep in my house, so many of these meals are mix-and-match or interchangeable. Italicized items were prepared during my batch cooking Sunday and required no cooking or preparation the day of.

HERE’S WHAT A TYPICAL WEEKDAY LOOKS LIKE FOR ME:

7:30am BREAKFAST
Steamed kale with Trader Joe’s Mushroom & Co seasoning + lemon juice
2 eggs
1 link of Trader Joe’s chicken apple sausage
10 oz. black coffee

10:00am SNACK
Fage 2% Greek yogurt with strawberry

12:15pm LUNCH
150g sweet potato
100g asparagus
120g grilled chicken thigh
100g each strawberries and blueberries

3:30pm PRE-WORKOUT MEAL
150g red potatoes
Korean Gochujang 96% lean ground beef meatballs

5:00-6:30pm WORKOUT

7:30pm DINNER
TACOS
3 white corn tortillas
125g carnitas
3T pickled onions
lime juice

1 slice Dave’s Killer power seed toast + 8g butter
½ cup sugar-free jello + 4 T Reddi Whip

KATE

EATING FOR WEIGHT LOSS GOALS | INTERMITTENT FASTING APPROACH | BATCH PREP

A few months ago I started working towards fat loss goals and was in a more dramatic calorie deficit. I found that I was having a hard time adhering and recently made some adjustments so that I am now eating in a small calorie deficit with a focus on more flexibility. My current goals have me focusing on a calorie goal and protein goal and letting the rest of my numbers stay more flexible.

I like to eat with a loose intermittent fasting approach because I have found that it helps me both with adherence and with time management. I really don’t enjoy cooking so spending less time in the kitchen preparing food is a huge win to me!

HERE’S WHAT A TYPICAL DAY LOOKS LIKE FOR ME:

5:00am WAKE-UP
I reserve the morning for focusing on fluid intake. Mornings are full of a lot of plain water, 30 oz. of water with Crystal Light Energy, tea, and occasionally BCAAs.

12pm WORKOUT

1:30-2:30pm FIRST MEAL | 67P/34F/85C

I have been having my first meal when I get home from the gym. Since hunger hits pretty hard by then, I start with oatmeal and eat that as I prepare the rest of my meal.

ZUCCHINI OATS
1 packet Better Oats maple brown sugar
150g shredded zucchini (using the finest cheese grater setting)
32g peanut butter
6g chia seeds
As strange as it sounds, zucchini oats are awesome. The zucchini is tasteless and just adds more volume to the meal. I grate the zucchini then cook it for 1 minute before preparing the rest of the oatmeal according to package directions.

LUNCH:

This meal is usually thrown together using foods I have already prepared. Today looked like this:

50g spring mix
100g cabbage slaw
100g cooked shrimp
150g roasted sweet potatoes
30g bolthouse dressing
1 Carbmaster strawberry rhubarb cottage cheese

4:00pm SNACK | 9P/6F/21C
3 Bedrock peanut butter banana macro cookies

7:00pm DINNER | 39P/10F/58C

I’m a big fan of frozen meals/frozen veggies for convenience. My dinners are usually a batch prepped protein and carb and frozen veggies. Today’s dinner utilized canned garbanzo beans since I already had sweet potatoes at lunch (and am not a fan of rice).

200g Trader Joe’s cauliflower stir fry
50g zucchini, eggplant, broccoli
100g egg whites
1 egg
Coconut aminos
100g roasted chickpeas

PRO-TIP: SUPPLEMENTS + ADD-ONS

I have a section in my MFP labeled supplements, and this is where I track the small, seemingly negligible items throughout the day. Usually that includes gum, fish oil, vitamins, crystal lights or diet sodas, BCAAs. While these things are all small, they can add up over the day! On this specific day, they added an extra 5P|2F|8C to my day.

Want to find out more about what eating for your specific goals could look like? Visit our coaching page for more information about flexible nutrition & coaching services.