Macronutrients~ Why you should care about them.

DOES IT FIT YOUR MACROS?

You may or may not have heard the term "macros" loosely thrown around here and there. Why do people talk about them so much?  Why not just eat "healthy" foods 24/7?   Healthy foods leaves way too much room for misconceptions and confusion.  Lets take sweet potatos, or yams, for example. Many people wisely choose these over their starchier, less nutritious brother the regular potato. While it is a better choice, if you had 10 a day, you would still gain weight.  Dividing up your macro-nutrients is the most balanced way I know of to live a nutritious and healthy lifestyle.  So what ARE macros? Macronutrients are the structural and energy-giving caloric components of our foods that most of us are familiar with.  They include carbohydrates, fats and proteins. 

1. Protein sources include:
Seafood
White meat poultry
milk, cheese and yogurt (Though most yogurt is over-saturated with sugar so cottage cheese is a much healthier choice)
egg whites
beans
pork
soy
lean beef
Protein powders (different kinds to be taken for different times of the day)

These are all considered healthy foods. Proportions matter. Lean red meats are a great source but are slow to digest so should be limited to once a week. Tuna should also be limited to no more than once a week as it has such high levels of mercury. It could easily be replaced with canned Salmon. There are other food sources high in protein but here is a start. It is important to ingest enough protein in order to maintain the muscle you've worked so hard to build and to keep your energy levels from dropping. You should ALWAYS pair a protein with either a carbohydrate or a healthy fat source so your body will more easily absorb what it needs.













2. Fats 
Avocado
seeds (pumpkin, sunflower and sesame)
nuts and nut butter (peanut butter, almond butter, etc)
olive oil 
coconut oil
egg yolk

Again, proportions! Proportions are determined by a large number of things but I will include a basic guide at the end. Why do you need it? Check out this link.

3. Complex Carbohydrates
Oatmeal
bran
barley
quinoa
brown rice
sweet potato
A large variety of vegetables are also great sources for carbohydrates. The most basic reason to eat them is for energy. Most people (including myself) go overboard on the carbs. These go through a process after having too many to burn off in a day so they eventually store as fat. Obviously there is a LOT to this process but I'm trying to keep this short. Shoot me a message if you'd like more detail on the matter.

Alright, now let's get back to portion sizes.  This all depends on your goals.  I love this calculator from IIFYM.com That stands for If It Fits Your Macros. I also like to use MyFitnessPal.com.  It is a free app on your mobile device or can be used on your computer. It will break up the macros into 3 categories so you can see if you need to add more of 1 nutrient and less of another.  For a very basic guide, use myfitnesspal and aim to have an even amount in each category. Personally I am aiming for 40 to 50 % of my diet to be protien and splitting the remainder  percentages of my intake between carbs and fats. My biggest problem with upping my protein is that my fat intake always goes a little over but I was told by another trainer that it's common and not to worry about it. So for now I won't.

One last thing that is SO beneficial is to eat a vegetable at EVERY meal.  Hopefully you're eating 5 to 6 times a day to keep your blood sugar levels from spiking and crashing and to prevent yourself from becoming famished and later over eating. If you haven't heard of Kristy Jo I would recommend you check out her website at www.body-buddies.com  She has TONS of great information and has really done a lot of research.

Last last thing- Drink lots of water! You need a half ounce of fluid per day for every pound of body weight. For example, if you weigh 160 lbs, you need 80 oz. Divide that by 8 to calculate the number of cups you need. In this case, 10.   

If you'd like me to write up a basic meal plan please contact me. Keep in mind I am NOT a certified nutritionists or dietitian.

tara.allred@yahoo.com
801-864-8272
FB: Total Training
IG: Train_with_tara

Meet the Trainer

Hi! I thought I would start this blog by introducing myself. Here is a picture of me with my amazing husband and the 3 smallish people I call my kids. I have wanted to be a personal trainer since I was 19 but every time the thought came up, my inner self doubt would scoff and push the thought away until I dished up a bowl of ice cream and reminded myself that I would never be smart enough or skinny enough or (insert terrible insults we all give ourselves here).... You get the idea.  I've always struggled with low self esteem. I've suffered from anxiety for as long as I can remember. My mom would take me to the doctor for my terrible stomach pains related to it but at the time, we didn't know what was going on. as I got older, it became worse. Sometimes walking through the halls in High School I would suddenly get tunnel vision until everything went black and I would have to crouch down until I could see and breathe again. I didn't know what was happening. Sheer panic out of nowhere was never fun. I never knew when it would hit or how long it would last. I learned to deal with these emotions in negative ways. I was desperate to find relief but was afraid I was straight up CRAZY so I did my best to hide it. Once my parents realized something was going on they made me see a doctor and get some help. I had been good at hiding it and pretending things were totally fine but that only works for so long. The 2nd counselor I saw gave me some great tools to use to help me through some difficult panic attacks and I was prescribed some medication. One thing I could always fall back on for relief was physical movement. I used to roller-blade EVERYwhere. Then when I went to Dixie State College I took up longboarding as my mode of transportation since I didn't have a car. Some days I just had to MOVE or I would literally go nuts. Whether it was on wheels or a brief walk around the block, releasing those endorphins made all the difference. I used to love rock climbing and I swam in High School. I took a few swimming courses at Dixie as well and ironically I now teach water aerobics.  The one class I never actually participated in.
Fast Forward to 2007. I was pregnant with my first baby and worried that my medication would affect him. I slowly weaned myself off and it was a very difficult time in my life as I couldn't just get up and leave to take a walk whenever I needed to anymore.
Fast Forward to present time. I have been learning more and more about the human body and how greatly nutrition affects mental health.  I'm not sure why, but mental health is such a taboo subject I've always struggled talking about it.  It's amazing how many people are secretly coping with mental health issues of their own. I hope that by sharing this about myself you will feel comfortable enough to honestly open up and see if I can't help. Mental health is so closely correlated with physical health that one will never be happy with the physical outer improvements until one is in harmony with who they truly are.

My goals as a personal trainer:
1. To prove to myself that I smart enough and capable enough to achieve more than I thought possible.
2. To help others achieve their personal health goals by writing strategic workouts using the OPT Model as I learned through the N.A.S.M. course.
3. Continue to learn more about strategic eating and the best foods to eat together along with meal timing and which vitamins and supplements could improve an individual's health the most.

Those are my top 3, though I have many more.

I'm hoping that by starting this blog, I can open discussions to questions you may have in regards to health, fitness, and nutrition. If you have a specific topic in mind please leave a comment or shoot me a message!
You can find me on instagram @train_with_tara
facebook: Total Training
e-mail: tara.allred@yahoo.com

If you're still reading this, I thank you for your time and hope you have an amazing day!