I’m all for keeping nutrition simple and practical, but one area where getting it right really matters is eating enough each day to adequately fuel our workouts.
If we’re under-fueled, our performance will suffer, muscle stores will be broken down for fuel, and recovery will be impaired. Under-fueling increases stress hormones and blood sugar and makes it more likely that we’ll store fat.
And if you’ve been feeling rundown and not getting the results you want, you may not be eating enough. Other symptoms include: gut distress, irregular periods, decreased immunity, stress fractures, and chronic hunger, irritability, and low mood.
A good rule of thumb for a moderately intense training day according to Dr. Stacy Sims, an expert on female physiology & training, is 3-4g carbs per kg of body weight, 2-2.3g protein per kg BW, and 1.2g fat per kg of BW.
So a 150 lb. woman would need 205-272g carbs, 136g protein, and 82g fat, which is a total of about 2,100-2,400 calories (far below what most women think they need, especially if they’re trying to lose weight).
Consistently under-fueling is a recipe for lackluster results and feeling shitty all the time. But by making the effort to focus on hitting the right amount of calories, carbs, and protein, we can not only have the energy to kick ass in our training sessions, but also get the results that we want.