Table of contents
In the final article of this target series, I’ll discuss how to more easily hit your macro targets in a deficit. If you’re struggling to adhere to lower targets, a change in your strategy may help. For example, you might explore the possibility of increasing overall daily energy expenditure or decreasing the loss rates of your targets (or perhaps both).
But what if those strategies are not feasible for you? Or perhaps you’ve already tried those methods and are still having challenges with those targets? In this article, I’ll discuss some practical tips to navigate those lower days to decrease hunger and help with the sustainability of your goal.
Let’s dig in.
Why are my Calorie targets so low in the first place?
Calorie targets are tailored based on your energy expenditure and your desired rate of weight loss. To understand this better, refer to our first article here, which goes into much more detail. As a brief reminder, your daily energy expenditure is composed of four core factors:
Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), Thermic Effect of Feeding (TEF), Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (EAT), and Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT).
These components determine how many Calories you burn, and each of these factors accounts for a certain percentage of your energy expenditure each day.
When setting your targets, MacroFactor considers your baseline details like age, weight, height, sex, and activity level. However, this initial estimate is just the starting point. As you log your weight and food intake, the app dynamically adjusts your Calorie targets to better match your actual energy needs. After 3-4 weeks, the app will have a pretty good idea of your expenditure and appropriate intake to hit your goals.
It’s important to remember that this accuracy depends on the data you put into the app. Your expenditure is calculated based on what you log, so do your best to try to log accurately. This doesn’t mean every Calorie needs to be perfectly logged, but consistent and reasonable estimates are key. For a deeper dive, the first article discusses partial logging and when you might need to audit your intake.
However, let’s move forward assuming you’ve been doing a good job of logging, and your targets are correct for your goal, but you’re still struggling with how low they are.
In this situation, there could be two possible explanations for your low daily targets: 1) Low Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) and/or 2) a target rate of weight loss that may be too fast for you.
Solution for low TDEE: Increasing activity
If your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) is low, one potential solution is to increase your activity levels, especially if you have a sedentary lifestyle. Depending on your baseline activity levels, increasing your activity might have a minor or sizable impact on your total daily energy expenditure. If you’ve previously been very sedentary and not taken part in any formal exercise or low-grade activity, you’ll likely have a more noticeable change and shift in your TDEE than someone who is already taking part in some form of formal or purposeful exercise or activity.
However, even with these increases in activity, you should be aware of the concept of energy compensation. Energy compensation is the body’s adaptive response to increased physical activity, where expenditure compensations can contribute to an offset of the Calories burned during those exercise events. For example, if you go for a morning jog and it energizes you, you might also move more throughout the day, leading to a greater overall increase in TDEE. On the other hand, if the jog makes you feel tired, you might move less, resulting in a more minor increase in TDEE due to possible compensatory effects.
Research has shown that for every 100 additional Calories burned through physical activity, total daily energy expenditure only increases by an average of 72 Calories. However, this is a higher figure for people with lower levels of baseline activity (i.e., if you’re currently sedentary and start exercising, you’ll likely experience less energy compensation) and a lower figure for people who are already quite active (i.e. if you already exercise a lot, and you start exercising more, the additional exercise will likely have a smaller impact on your total daily energy expenditure). So, the impact of exercise on total daily energy expenditure isn’t always directly additive.
With all that said, I don’t want to discount the positive impact it can have, especially if you currently have a sedentary lifestyle. It’s just about keeping realistic expectations and awareness of the concept.
In short, if your TDEE is low, you can incorporate more physical activity into your daily routine. This approach is more likely to be more effective if you currently have low activity levels. Just keep in mind that the relationship between exercise and total energy expenditure is complex, and individual responses can vary.
Different target rates of weight loss and their effects on Calorie targets
The rate at which you aim to lose weight impacts your daily Calorie targets. When setting up a goal in MacroFactor, we recommend that you keep your “target goal rate” within the green “Standard (Recommended)” zone. These are the rates of weight loss that tend to be manageable and sustainable for most people, most of the time.
Example of goal screen and green slider recommendations during goal setting. This rate is expressed as a percentage of your body weight per week. For example, if you set a goal to lose 1% of your body weight per week, that equates to 2 pounds. Note the absolute amount of weight you lose each week might slightly decrease over time (e.g., from 2 pounds to 1.96 pounds).
Understanding that, let’s break down how different rates of weight loss – 0.5 pounds/week, 1 pound/week, and 2 pounds/week – affect Calorie targets based on a given daily energy expenditure.
Assuming your current maintenance caloric expenditure is 2,200 Calories per day, here’s how the targets would look for each weight loss rate:
- 0.5 pounds/week: To lose 0.5 pounds per week, you need a daily Calorie deficit of about 250 Calories. This brings your target to approximately 1,950 Calories per day.
- 1 pound/week: Aiming to lose 1 pound per week requires a daily deficit of about 500 Calories, resulting in a target of around 1,700 Calories per day.
- 2 pounds/week: For a more aggressive weight loss goal of 2 pounds per week, you need a daily deficit of about 1,000 Calories, leading to a target of roughly 1,200 Calories per day.
So, if you don’t have that fast of a rate, you will not have that low of a target. The low target is only an issue if you’ve elected to have a faster rate. If your target rate is higher and you’re having a problem with low calorie recommendations, one of the easiest solutions is to reduce your rate of weight loss.
Solution: Reducing your target rate of weight loss
Successful cutting phases find the balance between speed and sustainability. You want to lose weight and make progress toward your goal fast enough that you’ll feel encouraged. But you also want to lose weight slow enough to avoid issues with muscle loss, aggressive fatigue, and sustainability. Let’s take a moment to look at the pros and cons of faster rates of loss and determine where your balance might fall if you’re having issues with hitting your macro targets.
Pros of faster rates of loss
Short times in a deficit: Deficits aren’t particularly enjoyable or fun for most people, so if individuals feel as if the journey they are about to embark on is a short one, then it could be easier for them to engage with tackling the goal.
Motivation: For most, one of the key aspects of fat loss success is maintaining momentum and motivation. Seeing successful results at a fast pace can contribute to the motivation and momentum people need to continue pushing week after week into a deficit.
Cons of faster rates of loss
Risk of muscle loss: To pull stored energy (ideally from mostly fat) into circulating energy, you need to be in a deficit of total daily energy needs. However, when your body is in a deficit state, it might also pull stored energy from muscle. To decrease muscle loss during a deficit, consider your percentage of body weight loss per week and protein intake. Staying within a reasonable rate (generally not exceeding 1 pound or 0.5 kilos per week) while eating adequate protein and maintaining a bare minimum of activity will likely keep you in a decent spot. Adding resistance training to the equation is even better. The more you increase that rate, the more muscle loss could be at risk.
Increase hunger: Larger Calorie deficits can increase hunger and contribute to a decreased ability to adhere to a deficit. This can lead to breaking deficit goals or overeating on non-deficit days, potentially leading to people spinning their wheels.
Decrease in sufficient nutrient levels: When you’re eating less food overall, the total intake of each nutrient tends to decrease as well. This can apply to both macro- and micro nutrients. For example, it may be challenging to consume enough fat to optimally absorb fat-soluble vitamins, or you may struggle to get sufficient carbohydrates to optimally fuel your exercise if your overall Calorie target is very low. Additionally, the risk of inadequate micronutrient intake increases as overall energy intake decreases.
Low energy levels: As discussed with TDEE components, activity is an aspect of daily expenditure. Low daily Calorie intakes can lead to exacerbated energy compensations and decreased thermic effects of food. For most, eating less tends to coincide with moving less and burning less over longer periods.
Low sustainability: Losing body fat is a time game. There are limits to how quickly you can lose fat, even if your motivation is high. While the first few weeks of rapid weight loss can be enthusiastic and motivating, it’s not uncommon for faster rates to lead to hitting a wall and finding the deficit unsustainable. Much like pacing yourself for a race, coming too hard out of the gate could mean you lead initially but fall short of your ultimate goal unless you modify your pacing. There is evidence suggesting that many people who attempt to lose body fat struggle with sustaining that loss. A lot of those failure rates could be improved with education and better lifestyle strategies, and a big part of that is pace. With a larger deficit, your diet and lifestyle while losing weight are likely to look much more dissimilar to the diet and lifestyle you’ll need to maintain your weight loss long-term.
Take home on target rates?
Everyone has different experiences at different rates, and a variety of factors contribute to that. Even the same person can handle one intensity during a certain phase of their lives that they might not be able to handle during another, let alone the difference from person to person.
But the important distinction here is if things are working versus if they are not working for you. If you’re on a roll and feeling good with your current rate and weight loss, stick with it! But, if you’re struggling with low-Calorie targets, we’d recommend reducing your target rate of weight loss. If you’re struggling while trying to lose 2 pounds per week, try 1 pound per week. If you’re struggling while trying to lose 1 pound per week, try 0.5 pounds per week. If you’re struggling with 0.5 pounds per week, you could go even slower and target a rate of 0.25 pounds per week (which would require Calorie goals that are just barely below your maintenance intake). Remember, fat loss is usually a marathon, not a sprint, and there’s nothing wrong with reducing your pace to increase your chances of reaching the finish line.
Regardless of adjusting activity or targets, there’s still appetite management
Alright, to quickly recap: you’re logging accurately, you understand why your targets are low and have considered if you need to make adjustments to your activity levels or rate of loss. With those factors audited, you may still have difficulty hitting lower targets. And that’s where this section comes in to give you a bit of applicable advice for hitting those targets a little easier.
Appetite management strategies
The most difficult and obvious factor affecting the ability to hit lower targets is that people get hungry. To some degree, we have to accept a bit of hunger while in a deficit. But I do think you can do a lot to mitigate the severity of those effects with a little planning and self-experimentation. This recent MacroFactor article goes into great detail about satiety and satiation and how to increase their effects when you’re in deficits or if you frequently find yourself unsatisfied with meals.
Here is a general overview of what increases satiety:
| Strategies for increasing fullness and decreasing caloric intake | |
|---|---|
| Incorporate low-energy foods | Include vegetables, lean proteins, and legumes in as many meals and snacks as possible to boost satiation and satiety. These foods are nutrient-dense, low in Calories, and high in volume, helping you feel full without consuming too many Calories. |
| Balance macronutrients | Avoid focusing on a single macronutrient. Combine fiber, protein, and fat, especially from whole foods that are low in energy but high in volume, to enhance satiation and satiety. A balanced mix of these nutrients helps stabilize blood sugar levels and provides sustained energy. |
| Limit processed foods | Processed or ultra-processed foods are often high in Calories but low in essential nutrients and volume, leading to overeating and reduced satiety. |
| Mindful eating and harder textures | The texture of harder foods requires more chewing, which can increase feelings of fullness and satisfaction. Mindful eating helps you recognize hunger and fullness cues, preventing overeating and enhancing digestion. |
The above alone can make a notable difference in your satiety levels and should be strongly considered if you haven’t already implemented them. However, I want to focus on a few details and offer extra tips to round out the advice.
Stacking your meal, starting with lean proteins
If you take time to master anything for a deficit (or really, for health and body composition in general), it should be building a catalog of lean protein sources that work for you. They should meet cost, convenience, and enjoyment requirements, and should become the building block on which you plan your meals.
After determining your lean protein source, you can add fibrous vegetables or fruits and ensure you get a nice presence of unsaturated fats. Those three factors are the basis for setting up any meal. From there, you can add more starch-based vegetables or fruits and then simple sugars or saturated fats. This system keeps meal design from being too complicated but doesn’t have to be monotonous.
Here is a list of lean protein sources per 100 Calories
Protein Sources per 100 Calories
| Food Item | Protein per 100 Calories (g) | Vegan (V) |
|---|---|---|
| Tuna (Light, Water Pack) | 22.6 | |
| Whey Protein | 22.0 | |
| Cod | 21.7 | |
| Egg Whites | 21.0 | |
| Soy Protein | 20.0 | (V) |
| Chicken Breast | 19.9 | |
| Shrimp | 19.1 | |
| Scallops | 18.5 | |
| Non-fat Greek Yogurt | 18.2 | |
| Pork Loin | 17.6 | |
| Seitan | 16.0 | (V) |
| Spirulina | 15.0 | (V) |
| Low Fat Cottage Cheese | 14.4 | |
| Nutritional Yeast | 14.0 | (V) |
| Lean Ground Beef | 13.6 | |
| Turkey Breast | 13.4 | |
| Mushrooms | 13.0 | (V) |
| Spinach | 12.9 | (V) |
| Tofu | 12.0 | (V) |
| Peanut Butter Powder | 11.1 | (V) |
| Tempeh | 10.6 | (V) |
| Edamame | 10.3 | (V) |
| Lentils | 7.9 | (V) |
| Kidney Beans | 6.8 | (V) |
| Black Beans | 6.7 | (V) |
| Chickpeas | 5.4 | (V) |
These figures were obtained by the MacroFactor app database.
To give you a meal example, let’s look at a protein-heavy rice bowl. You start with a lean protein like chicken breast or a plant-based alternative like seitan nuggets. Then you add a mix of vegetables and incorporate a bit of healthy fat using sesame oil. After that, you can add a protein/starch veggie like green peas, and finish with a smaller portion of rice. The seasoning here can be a mix of Calorie-free liquids, powders, or herbs, depending on your pantry and skill level.
Chicken Breast Rice Bowl
| Ingredient | Calories | Protein | Carbs | Fats |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken Breast 4oz (115g) | 170 | 33.9g | 0g | 3.9g |
| Broccoli 1 cup (91g) | 32 | 2.2 | 6.5g | 0.4g |
| Mixed Peppers 1 cup (92g) | 35 | 1.1g | 8.1g | 0.2g |
| Sesame Oil 2 tsp (10g) | 88 | 0g | 0g | 10g |
| Green Peas 1/2 cups (80g) | 62 | 4g | 11g | 0.2g |
| Rice (cooked) 1/2 cup (79g) | 103 | 1.9g | 22.6g | 0.2g |
| Seasoning (optional) | ||||
| Total | 490 | 43.1g | 48.2 | 14.9 |
These figures were obtained by the MacroFactor app database.
Vegan Alternative: Seitan Nuggets Rice Bowl
| Ingredient | Calories | Protein | Carbs | Fats |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seitan Nuggets 4.5 oz (128g) | 180 | 31.9g | 6g | 3.0g |
| Broccoli 1 cup (91g) | 32 | 2.2g | 6.5g | 0.4g |
| Mixed Peppers 1 cup (92g) | 35 | 1.1g | 8.1g | 0.2g |
| Sesame Oil 2 tsp (10g) | 88 | 0g | 0g | 10g |
| Green Peas 1/2 cup (80g) | 62 | 4g | 11g | 0.2g |
| Rice (cooked) 1/2 cup (79g) | 103 | 1.9g | 22.6g | 0.2g |
| Seasoning (optional) | 0 | 0g | 0g | 0g |
| Total | 500 | 41.1g | 54.2g | 14.0g |
These figures were obtained by the MacroFactor app database.
This example could easily be swapped out for different proteins or different veggies or starches. The oil, rice, and vegetable choices imply a more Asian-style stir fry, but with a few alterations, it could be an Italian or Mexican dish. You could change the sesame oil to olive oil, the rice to noodles, and so on. The point is to work on your ability to layer from one satiating item to the next until the meal is complete. Lastly, be intentional in saving these recipes and adding them to your rotation so that you have “go-to” meals that make the planning process less arduous.
Meal frequency
The frequency and size of your meals can really impact your ability to hit lower-Calorie targets. As we’ve stated throughout this series, self-experimentation is important here to determine what works (and what doesn’t) for you. Here are some tips to keep in mind when testing your schedule.
Consider your activity needs: Activity and exercise affect people differently. If you are training, it’s beneficial to plan your meals around your workouts. This can help prevent energy crashes, which might reduce your total daily energy expenditure. Similarly, you may find you need more food allocated at different times of the day based on your level of activity.
Take social needs into account: Adherence to your weight loss goals often requires a multifactorial approach, and this includes social eating. If you enjoy dinner with your family or have plans with friends, you can allocate more Calories toward those times. This strategy can make lower-Calorie targets more manageable during social occasions, so be open to uneven meal distributions or adjustments for an upcoming social evening.
Maintain a predictable eating schedule: The body has a chronobiology that forms regular patterns for things like sleeping and eating. A predictable eating schedule can help you better determine which meal patterns keep you satiated and which do not. It also helps you better understand hunger signals and assess their severity and need.
Test different eating windows: Various meal allocations can work (or not), from three meals and two snacks to 8-hour eating windows. Whatever you choose, consider how well it aligns with all of these factors, from social to activity needs. Self-experimentation is really vital overall for meal frequency and planning.
Make intelligent use of supplements and multivitamins.
I’m not huge on pushing supplements, but a few can help ensure a better deficit experience and easier recovery. The most obvious is finding a protein powder that fits your dietary needs, if you struggle to eat enough protein from whole foods. Generally speaking, whey is suitable for those who use animal protein sources, and soy works well for vegans. You should also ensure your protein powder includes all essential amino acids at daily recommended value levels if you’re a vegan.
For additional energy or performance support, consider adding in creatine. Among supplements researched for energy and performance assistance, creatine performs well.
Lastly, though a bit more controversial, I recommend a solid and vetted multivitamin and mineral supplement. While some research shows benefits are mixed, in cases of potential nutritional deficiencies, vitamin or mineral use has shown either neutral or positive results. To be clear, this is about taking adequate and normal amounts of an orally bioavailable multivitamin with food as an insurance policy. From a deficit perspective, there is merit to their use with minimal risk.
Something to consider with all these aids and ideas is that the goal is to make eating less a little easier. Rather than relying on any single strategy in isolation, it’s likely going to be a combination of multiple approaches and a lot of self-experimentation. Be open to the journey and discovery process because restricting food can be challenging for most people.
Do you need to change your macronutrient targets within the app?
If you’ve determined that you need to change your targets or want to examine your program again, I wanted to give you a reminder of how you can use MacroFactor to do it. This article won’t dive deep into why these specific targets were chosen. For a general look at standard needs for each macronutrient, you can check out these articles on protein, carbohydrates, and fat. Note the MacroFactor algorithm uses special formulas to determine these targets to optimize your deficit and protect against muscle loss.
You can choose from coached, collaborative, or manual programs and make more personalized selections within those. However, due to this customization, your current MacroFactor setup might not be ideal for your cutting plan. So, if you’re having a hard time hitting lower targets or hitting a specific macro target like protein, you might need to consider adjusting your app program.
When creating your program, you have several options for the program style and amount of each macronutrient in your diet. For example, the balanced plan will distribute non-protein Calories evenly between carbohydrates and fat.
For cutting or maintaining after weight loss, I generally recommend starting with a balanced macronutrient intake. As previously stated, each macronutrient contributes uniquely to satiety and recovery, and it’s important to consider our essential fatty acid and fiber needs as well. However, it may be worth experimenting with low-fat (and therefore high-carb) or low-carb (and therefore high-fat) plans if you struggle with a balanced macronutrient split. You may find that one of these options makes it a bit easier for you to feel full while consuming fewer overall Calories. Also, carb-based foods tend to have more volume, whereas fat-based foods tend to decrease rates of gastric emptying – you may find that you’re more sensitive to one of those factors.
When selecting a protein target, remember that the “low” protein selection will still give you a protein target within the optimal range (for both muscle retention and general satiety). It also may be worth selecting a “moderate” target if you previously selected “high” or a “low” target if you previously selected “moderate.” Don’t be afraid to adjust your macro program to find a macronutrient split that makes it a bit easier to achieve your overall Calorie targets.
Take-home cheat sheet: hitting lower targets
- Understand TDEE components: Daily energy expenditure is composed of BMR, TEF, EAT, and NEAT. These components play a role in your target selections. You can increase activity levels to raise your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE), especially if you are currently living a sedentary lifestyle.
- Rate of weight loss impact: Different rates of weight loss (e.g., 0.5, 1, or 2 pounds/week) significantly affect daily Calorie targets. Faster rates equal lower targets, so consider reducing your target rate of weight loss if other adjustments don’t help.
- Consider the pros and cons of rates of loss: Faster rates can lead to short deficit periods and increased motivation. However, quicker rates can also risk muscle loss, increase hunger, and be difficult to sustain. The key is finding the balance between these factors.
- Appetite management: Incorporate low-energy, high-volume foods with plenty of fiber and balanced macronutrients, and try to limit processed foods to increase overall satiety.
- Build meals around lean protein: Create a list of easy-to-repeat lean protein sources and build your meals around them alongside fibrous veggies and healthy fats.
- Meal frequency: Find the best repeatable strategy to help you maintain a consistent deficit that gets you to your goal.
- Supplements and multivitamins: Use protein powders, creatine, and multivitamins to support nutritional needs and recovery during a deficit.
