FAQ

The way we use calories in nutrition is simple: Your body needs a certain amount of calories (energy) to maintain its processes, and in order to get this energy you need to feed your body with food which contains energy (calories), otherwise you die of starvation.

In order to know how many calories your body uses we need to determine two factors; your basal metabolic rate (BMR) and the amount of calories you burn during your daily activities (work, walk, exercise, etc). The first one is simple, since this is your body’s rate of burning calories at bed rest without any activity. The number is different for all of use based on our gender, height, and weight and there are bazillion of different calculators available to find yours out in few seconds. In order to determine the amount of calories burned by your daily activities you can use a wearable fitness tracker/watch or input your daily exercise into an application that calculates it for you such as: MyFitnessPal or FatSecret.

After you’ve identified your energy needs, it’s as simple as eating enough food to consume adequate amount of calories based on your goal. If you need to lose weight, eat a little less than your body needs. If you’re looking to build muscle, lift weights and eat a bit more than your body normally needs. If you would like to maintain your current weight, consume roughly the amount your body burns per day. Simple.

• 1 gram fat = 9Kcal
• 1 gram protein = 4Kcal
• 1 gram carbohydrates = 4Kcal

• Protein
• Dietary fat
• Carbohydrates
• Alcohol

Out of these four, fat, protein, and carbs are essential for life and bodily processes, whereas alcohol is non-essential (although calorically dense, thus a macronutrient).

Let’s take a closer look at the three essential macronutrients and their importance…

Protein

Proteins are molecules consisting of one or multiple amino acids, bound together with peptide chains. Amino acids come in three different categories; essential (9), conditionally non-essential (7), and non-essential (4). The term “complete protein” is used when some food has all 20 of them. Animal proteins (meat, milk, cheese, eggs) are all considered complete, whereas many plant-based proteins (legumes, seeds, grains, vegetables) are not (however they can be combined in a same meal to make a complete protein source).

Some basic functions of proteins include;

• maintenance and growth of lean muscle mass, connective tissue, and bones
• acting as neurotransmitters in the brain
• transportation and storage of bodily molecules
• hormone creation (insulin, secretin, etc)
• enzyme synthesis

Dietary Fat

Dietary fatty-acids or triglycerides (fancier word) are esters of the fatty-acid chains, often separated into the following three types:

• Monounsaturated fatty-acids (MUFAs)
• Polyunsaturated fatty-acids (PUFAs)
• Saturated fatty-acids (SFAs)

These fats are found in different ratios from our everyday basic foods, most red meats and tropical oils for example are higher in saturated fat and low in PUFAs, whereas seed and vegetable oils tend to be higher in PUFAs with lower amounts of saturated fat. Foods high in MUFAs include olive oil, avocados, argan oil and Macadamia nuts.

These three types of fats also branch down into even more specific types – but most notably – remember that the polyunsaturated fats are identified with omega (ω) numbering, such as;

• Omega-3’s
• Omega-6’s
• Omega-7’s
• Omega-9’s

The benefits of fatty-acids are numerous, for one, fats are the most nutritious (9kcal/gram) macronutrient, which according to some experts allowed the human species to develop bigger brains than other mammals. Aside from just being an energy source, fats serve as signaling molecules between cells and hormones, are necessary for creation of all steroid hormones, protect and “insulate” bodily organs, and are vital components in normal cell functioning. Out of the three macronutrients – completely omitting from dietary fat would yield the biggest health problems, with this view it could be labeled as the most important macronutrient for human survival.

It’s also worth mentioning that some vitamins are fat-soluble (A, D, E, and K2) and thus can only be absorbed by the body with proper intake of dietary fat.

Carbohydrate

Carbohydrates (CHO) consist of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. They are the most readily-available form of energy for the human body, and are often divided into groups of;

• Sugars (found in table sugar, fruits, and some vegetables)
• Starches (found mostly in grains and root vegetables)
• Fiber (found in many foods but highest in whole grains, nuts, fruits, and legumes)

Carbs are often simplified and separated into two categories; simple carbohydrates and complex carbohydrates. The simple type being the kind that is rapidly absorbed to the bloodstream and complex being something that’s released to the bloodstream in a slower manner. The key here is to remember that all carbohydrates (with the exception of insoluble fibers) will be converted to the simplest form of sugar (glucose) before it enters the bloodstream, some just convert faster than others.

Carbohydrates are necessary part of;

• Fueling the metabolic processes of nearly all of the bodily cells
• Storage of energy in muscle tissue and liver (muscle and liver glycocen)
• Providing energy (ATP) for the central nervous system and endocrine system

If you’re looking to maximize muscle growth then maintaining a good amount of protein in the diet is preferable. According to research however, the upper limit of protein necessary for maximal growth of muscle tissue during heavy strength training is 0.8g/lb, after this point its likely that you will not get any extra benefits (you’ll likely just start farting more).

If you’re looking to maximize your hormonal health and especially testosterone production, then according to research the optimal amount of protein to consume would be twice less than that of your daily carbohydrate intake. In other words a protein-to-carb ratio of 1:2. This would mean that if your daily carbohydrate intake would be 300g, your protein intake should fall somewhere close to 150g.

Here at Anabolic Men we have for long recommended a starting point of 20% daily calories from protein (while the remaining 40% and 40% should come from carbs and fat). This is the scientifically sound “sweet spot” for the goal of building muscle AND having high testosterone levels at the same time. It just so also happens to perfectly fall into that 1:2 ratio of protein-to-carbohydrate.

Further reading: Protein Intake and Testosterone Levels.

For someone who exercises a lot, be it gym or some athletics training, carbohydrates are a vital source of energy. If you omit from carbs and exercise a lot, you will quickly run into problems with sluggish thyroid activity, low testosterone levels, and poor sleep. A relatively lean athlete/gym rat should be consuming at least 150g of carbs per day, preferably 250+.

However if you’re holding on to some fat mass (fat percentage 25%+) you should dial your carb intake a bit lower due to the fact that fatter people in general have more problems with insulin sensitivity (which can be aggravated with high carb intake). Higher amount of fat-mass also makes it easier for your body to get energy from your own fat storage. Simply put, fatter guys should have their carb intake between 75-150g being at the lower end for sedentary individuals and higher end for exercising individuals. In this scenario you should also increase your protein intake and should not follow the 1:2 ratio too strictly (just so you don’t end up eating too little protein).

Lastly, if you’re relatively lean (less than 20% bodyfat) and would like to maximize your testosterone production, then your carb intake should fall somewhere between 200-400g/day depending on your exercise habits and caloric intake, also keep in mind that for optimal hormone production one should eat twice as much carbs as they do protein. Remember the golden 1:2 protein-to-carb ratio.

Some examples for optimal T-production would be:

• 300g carbs with 150g protein
• 200g carbs with 100g protein
• 400g carbs with 200g protein
• 350g carbs with 175g protein

Further reading: Carbohydrates and Testosterone.

Further reading: Dietary Fat and Testosterone.