What Are Macros? 5 Proven Reasons to Track Them (For a Bit)

If you’ve spent any time in the health and fitness world, you’ve heard the term “macros.” It’s often associated with rigid meal plans and meticulous food logging, which can feel intimidating. But at Pillar, we see things differently. Understanding “what are macros” isn’t about following a new set of rules; it’s about understanding the “why” behind your nutrition.

Think of your body as a laboratory. Every plan you make is a hypothesis, and every result is just data. Macronutrients are simply the primary resources you use to run your experiments.

So, what are macros? The term is short for “macronutrients,” and it refers to the three main nutrients your body needs in large amounts to function:

Carbohydrates
Protein
Fats

That’s it. These three components provide your body with energy (measured in calories) and the raw materials needed for everything from thinking and moving to repairing and growing.

Table of Contents

The 3 Macros: Your Experiment’s Core Resources

Understanding the role of each macronutrient is central to the Nourish pillar of our methodology. It’s the “Principle of Rationale”—knowing how different nutrients facilitate the adaptations you’re seeking from your Stimulus (your workouts).

1. Carbohydrates: The Energy Source

Carbohydrates are your body’s preferred and most efficient fuel source. When you eat them, your body breaks them down into glucose, which is used to power your brain, muscles, and daily activities.

Role: Primary energy for your body and brain.
Found in: Fruits, vegetables, whole grains (oats, quinoa, brown rice), and legumes (beans, lentils).

2. Protein: The Building Block

Protein is made of amino acids, which are the literal building blocks for your body. When you apply a Stimulus like resistance training, protein provides the materials needed to repair the muscle damage and build new, stronger tissue.

Role: Essential for muscle repair, tissue growth, immune function, and hormones.
Found in: Meat, poultry, fish, eggs, dairy (Greek yogurt, cottage cheese), tofu, and legumes.

3. Fats: The Support System

Fats are a dense energy source, but their most critical roles are behind the scenes. They are essential for producing hormones, absorbing crucial vitamins (like A, D, E, and K), and managing inflammation.

Role: Hormone production, vitamin absorption, satiety (feeling full), and protecting organs.
Found in: Avocado, nuts, seeds, olive oil, and fatty fish (like salmon).

Is Tracking Macros Important?

This is the key question, and the Pillar answer is: it can be, as a short-term experiment.

We strictly avoid guilt-based language. You are not “good” for hitting your macros or “bad” for missing them. Instead, tracking macros is one of the most powerful ways to conduct an Audit—our fifth pillar. It’s the act of gathering data to see what’s really happening in your “laboratory.”

Most of us have a “hypothesis” about how we eat, but we’ve never actually collected the data to test it. Tracking for a week or two isn’t a life sentence; it’s a simple, non-emotional data-gathering phase.

Here’s what this Audit can help you discover:

1. You’ll See What’s Really Driving Your Results

For goals like weight loss, the primary driver is a sustained calorie deficit. In fact, a major Stanford study found that weight loss was similar between groups on low-fat and low-carb diets (1), showing that the total energy intake was what mattered most, not the specific macro ratio. Tracking helps you objectively see your total calorie intake, removing the guesswork.

2. You Can Optimize for Your Specific Goal

While a calorie deficit is key for weight loss, your macro balance becomes critical for changing your body composition (losing fat while building muscle). This is where protein becomes the star player.

Research consistently shows that a higher protein intake is essential for maximizing muscle repair and growth (2), a conclusion supported by further studies on dietary protein’s role in promoting muscle hypertrophy (3). Studies from this research recommend a range of 1.2 to 2.0 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for active individuals. If your goal is to get stronger and build muscle, tracking for a short time can be a vital experiment to see if you are actually eating enough protein to support your Stimulus.

3. It Empowers You to “Form a New Hypothesis”

Once your short-term tracking Audit is complete, you have data. You are no longer guessing.

Data: “I’m only eating 60g of protein per day, and my recovery from workouts feels slow.”
New Hypothesis: “What if I try to include a protein source with every meal for the next two weeks?”
Run Experiment & Re-Audit: “I’ve been eating more protein. My soreness has decreased, and I feel stronger during my workouts. This seems to be working.”

This is the Pillar Methodology in action. You used a tool (tracking) to gather data, made one intelligent adjustment without guilt, and achieved a better result.

You don’t need to track macros forever. But using it as a strategic tool to Audit your Nourish pillar is one of the best experiments you can run to understand your body and build a sustainable plan that works for you.

What Are Macros? A Simple Guide to Fueling Your Experiment