{"id":69289,"date":"2020-02-25T15:16:19","date_gmt":"2020-02-25T20:16:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/?p=69289"},"modified":"2022-11-09T18:46:53","modified_gmt":"2022-11-09T23:46:53","slug":"heres-how-to-eat-more-to-get-lean","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/blog\/heres-how-to-eat-more-to-get-lean\/","title":{"rendered":"Eat More to Get Lean"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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What if I told you that eating more is at the core of having the body of your dreams? And that eating to actually get lean, strong and fit doesn\u2019t come by eating like a bird?<\/p>

My guess is you wouldn’t believe me and instead would be thinking, “But why eat more? How does that even work?”.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

If so, you might be surprised to know that with a majority of the clients I work with, I recommend they eat more<\/em>. As crazy as it might sound, it’s true. =<\/p>

So, here\u2019s the skinny on eating more to get lean + strong…<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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EAT more TO PREVENT HANGRY<\/h3><\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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You\u2019ve heard advice to \u201ceat less, move more,\u201d which centers around a calories-in, calories-out model for weight loss. Well, what happens when you eat less? You get hungry. What happens when you exercise more? You get hungry. How long does that model last before your elbow deep in the box of Teddy Grahams or gnawing off the cheese block?<\/span><\/p>

What anyone who just offers that advice fails to realize is that losing body fat to reveal strong muscles involves hormones, not just calories. Hormones are the messengers that tell the body to burn fat or store fat, remain full or feel hungry, have cravings or not, enjoy balanced energy or feel fatigued. Hormones can even impact your mood and motivation to exercise.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

If hormones read the instructions sent from your body, macros <\/span>write<\/span><\/i> the instructions. And by keeping hormones in mind when setting your macro targets, you can reduce hunger, control cravings, elevate energy and increase metabolism. Isn\u2019t that a much different picture than a “calories-in, calories-out” approach?<\/span><\/p>

Here\u2019s how you know you’re eating enough: <\/strong>Instead of opting for the largest calorie deficit possible across the whole week, opt for the smallest one. Just as you wouldn\u2019t just up a 50 lb. dumbbell if you\u2019ve only been working with 20 lb. weights, it\u2019s better to incrementally adjust your nutrition.<\/span><\/p>

On the topic of strength training, if you\u2019re a novice, you might consider bypassing a calorie deficit and instead eat at \u201cmaintenance\u201d. Because you\u2019re a new lifter, you can see strength and lean muscle gains as well as fat loss at a much faster rate than a moderate or advanced trainee. Get yourself a trainer or formal training program that has you progressively overloading your activity week to week and eating enough to feel full, satisfied, and energized while you do it!<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Eat more to keep hormones happy<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Eating in a way that supports optimal hormone balance starts with eating enough calories. Ever notice when you\u2019re on a dieting stint, you feel more cold or have dry skin? Maybe your monthly cycle gets a little longer or shorter! Those messages from your hormones are basically saying, \u201cAlert! More food needed!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Following a macros approach doesn\u2019t inherently lead to hormone balance. But most people find that eating a variety of whole, real foods rich in fiber, vitamins and minerals in\u00a0<\/span>PFC balance<\/a>\u00a0at meals <\/span>does <\/span><\/i>make tracking easier! So, by default, we usually see better insulin, cortisol, and sex hormone balance in individuals who track macros.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Start by working backwards from your total macros for the day and creating meals that have a sizable mix of all three macros in each. This makes for stable blood sugar, which translates to stable insulin. Insulin can be thought of as the \u201cmaster hormone\u201d that turns on and turns off many other hormones in the body. By keeping this bad boy happy, we keep thyroid, estrogen, progesterone, and cortisol happy as well.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Here\u2019s how you know you’re eating enough<\/strong>: when setting your protein, fat and carbohydrate targets, visualize a pizza that\u2019s pretty evenly split in portion sizes between you and two of your friends. We wouldn\u2019t want one friend to get a tiny pie sliver while another is enjoying a gigantic portion all to themselves. Same goes for macros. Percentage of calories coming from protein, fat and carbohydrates should be catered to your personal preference and activity level, but you\u2019re looking for ranges such as 20-30% for protein, 25-35% for fat, 35-45% for carbohydrates to keep hormones happy.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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eat more carbohydrates to fuel your workouts and protect lean muscle<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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High intensity interval training, bootcamp-style workouts, metabolic conditioning and weightlifting require carbohydrates, which is why you were totally wilting in your workouts on that low carb diet!<\/span><\/p>

Your body uses carbs stored in your muscles (also called glycogen) and carbs floating around in your blood (glucose) to power you through your workout. Once you\u2019ve used up that available glycogen and glucose, your body looks for ways to conserve energy. What happens next is increased fatigue, decreased focus, power and strength and over time that leads to impaired results.\u00a0 Carbohydrates are \u201cmuscle sparing,\u201d which means when your body has enough of them, it won\u2019t draw as many amino acids (protein) from muscle tissue for fuel \u2014 and you\u2019ll \u201cmax out\u201d before your highest potential. This becomes important as your workout reaches the one hour point and beyond.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

You might be thinking, \u201cI always eat carbs before and after my workouts though!\u201d Sadly, your opinion about how many carbohydrates are appropriate for you is likely warped by diet culture and restrictive plans of your past. Carbs get a bad rep! Half a banana is not going to cut it here! You might never fully refill muscle glycogen stores \u2014 especially if you take the common approach to \u201ceat fewer carbs on less active or rest days.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Here\u2019s how you know you’re eating enough<\/strong>: After you\u2019ve calculated your carbohydrate targets with your personal preferences and training modalities in mind, do a double check to see your target is not lower than 1 gram per pound of body weight. In an example of a 160 pound active woman, we would not want to see her calculated carbohydrate macro targets lower than 160 g per day as a general rule of thumb. If your target is lower, consider bumping up your percent of calories coming from carbohydrates to find a new, higher carbohydrate target.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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eat more protein to support fat loss, not muscle loss<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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There is more than one destination for a calorie. Decrease calories and you <\/span>might <\/span><\/i>lose fat, but you might lose muscle instead. Increase calories and you <\/span>might <\/span><\/i>gain fat, but you might gain muscle, too. The type of activity you do and the amount of protein you eat can determine the outcome. This is why combining strength training with a moderate protein intake is so powerful in achieving your desired results.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Eating enough protein means more satiety, a better body composition and a higher metabolic rate. (How much better does that sound than the alternative of feeling hungry, losing muscle and knee-capping your metabolism from following a low-calorie diet?!)<\/span><\/p>

Eating more protein also suppresses hunger and appetite for longer than eating the same amount of the other macros (fats and carbs). This means if you eat 100 calories in the form of grilled chicken breast, you\u2019ll be fuller longer than if you eat 100 calories in the form of crackers or olives.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Protein is the only macronutrient that increases the metabolic rate. This translates to more calories burned over the whole day when you eat more protein and especially if you spread that protein target across 3-4 sizable meals. Even without eating less, simply by changing the content of the calories that you eat to include more protein, you could see change in the way you look and feel.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Lastly, eating enough protein, probably more than you are, provides the body with the building blocks to gain and maintain lean muscle. Muscle mass takes up less space than fat mass on your body\u2019s frame \u2014 meaning you could easily <\/span>look<\/span><\/i> 20 pounds lighter than what the scale says. (Which is another reason scale weight is such an arbitrary measurement!). Skinny and flabby is the look of weight loss<\/i> while lean and tight is the look of fat loss<\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>

Here\u2019s how you know you’re eating enough<\/strong>: After you\u2019ve calculated your protein targets with your personal preferences and training modalities in mind, do a double check to see your target is not lower than .8 g per pound of current body weight (or 0.6 g per pound of current body weight if you have a lot of body fat to lose). If you\u2019re vegetarian, you\u2019ll shoot for .7 g per pound of body weight or more. In an example of a 160 pound active woman, we would not want to see her calculated protein macro targets lower than about 115-130 g per day as a general rule of thumb. If you calculated your macros and the protein target is lower, consider bumping up your percent of calories coming from protein to find a new, higher protein target.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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I hope you can see how eating more is what’s needed if you truly want to get that lean, strong and toned look you’re chasing. If you feel like you still need more helping knowing what “eating enough” looks like for you, t<\/span>he best way to use this in<\/span>formation is to read it alongside my\u00a0<\/span>DIY Macros Guide<\/a>! This free guide will help you set your macros with all the key points noted in this post in mind!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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calculate your personal macro targets with my DIY Macro Guide<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGet the Guide<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Eating to get lean, strong and fit doesn\u2019t come by eating like a bird. Here’s exactly what we mean when we say you need to eat more to get lean.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":69296,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[142],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-69289","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-macro-tracking"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69289"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69289"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69289\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":78153,"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69289\/revisions\/78153"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69296"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69289"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69289"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/emilyfieldrd.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69289"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}