The Angry Typist

Successful body recomposition is all about nutrition, specifically macro nutrition.

WHY?

Macronutrients are essential nutrients that the body needs in large amounts to provide energy and support various bodily functions. The three main macro nutrients that most nutrition apps track are carbohydrate, fat, and protein. The percentages of all three should total 100% and the amount of each type of macro nutrient is dependent on personal goals and physical activity.

For example, a wrestler may have macro nutrients of 40% Carbs, 35% Protein, and 25% Fat – more carbs for the energy boost. Whereas an Olympic lifter may opt for 40% Protein, 35% Carbs, and 25% Fat – more protein to help support muscle growth. (These are arbitrary numbers and are not meant as a nutrition eating plan).

Adults gradually begin losing muscle mass and strength in their 30s or 40s. This process increases exponentially between the ages of 65 and 80. Although rates vary, one may lose as much as 8% of your muscle mass each decade. While ‘everyone loses muscle mass over time, people with sarcopenia lose it more quickly’ (Sarcopenia, Mayo).

Some risk factors are physical inactivity, reduction in hormone levels (perimenopause, menopause), and malnutrition or inadequate protein intake. Primary treatment options are lifestyle changes of “progressive resistance-based strength training” to not only mitigate the muscle loss but perhaps to increase the amount of muscles, essentially reversing muscle loss. And a healthy diet, especially important to increase protein intake through food or supplements (Sarcopenia, Mayo).

HOW?

Since I am a woman in menopause and is doing CrossFit, often lifting very heavy, my focus macro is protein. The total grams of protein experts recommend is .8 – 1 gram per body weight. If one is trying to lose weight, it should be .8 gram of the goal weight. For example, if someone is 300 lbs, and aims to be 250 lbs, the grams to pound of body weight should be at the goal weight of 250 lbs, not the current weight.

For me, my protein has been 125g of protein a day which initially seemed nearly impossible to achieve. I am a firm believer that for any nutrition changes to last (at least for me), I can’t stray too far from what I like. If all my efforts has to be invested in just getting myself to eat lentils for example, the chances are I will not be successful in a new eating regiment.

I squeeze in protein from foods I already eat. For example, instead of regular bagel, I eat Dave’s Killer Bread Cinnamon Raisin Remix Organic Bagels which offers 12g of protein for a whole bagel or 6g for half.

I usually have my bagel with cream cheese but trying to squeeze in more protein I swapped it out with Chobani Whole Milk Plain Greek yogurt. Admittedly I hate that yogurt tang, so I started by mixing ½ whipped cream cheese with ½ Greek yogurt. Then I would progressively reduce the ratio of cream cheese to whole milk Greek yogurt until it’s just Greek yogurt. Now I have transitioned to Chobani Plain Nonfat Greek yogurt and is currently at ¼ whipped cream cheese to ¾ nonfat plain Greek yogurt. The Greek yogurt offers an additional 14g of protein.

So, with some simple and minor tweaks to breakfast, I can squeeze in additional 20-26g of protein by end of breakfast. And if I have 5-6 g of protein with lunch and dinner, I now can hit 125g easily.

Perhaps what I learn most through this nutrition reboot is to give myself some grace when I don’t hit my macros. The 80/20 rule, not perfection works for me best. And when lift happens, I lean on Fairlife Nutrition Plan which offers a whopping 30g of protein at only 150 calories. The consistency is between chocolate milk and chocolate shake. At one point I was struggling to break 100g of protein a day, so I had considered adding plant-based protein powder to Fairlife but thankfully I eventually got there.

WHAT?

As far as tracking goes, I am terrible with visual-spatial reasoning. Meaning I am horrible trying to gauge portion sizes with my eyes. So I use a food scale and food tracking app. I started using MyFitnessPal many years ago when it was in its infancy. However, as MFP became more popular, the ads became intolerable and the features which use to be free become only available with a paid version. The UI is very plain jane and not a lot of customizations.

I now use MyNetDiary and it specializes in allowing the tracking of macros. The UI is in full color with customizable icons for custom recipes & foods. It also allows my Nutrition Coach to easily connect to my food log once she inputted her credentials.

I was recently asked what type of foods I eat to get my protein in. So here are some examples of protein my standard ‘Go Tos’:

• Beef (Hamburger Patty – it’s the only form of beef I eat)
  • 5oz (37g Protein); 5.5oz (40g of Protein); 6oz (44g of Protein)
• Pork (Slow Cooked)
  • 5oz (30g Protein); 5.5oz (34g of Protein); 6oz (37g of Protein)
• Chicken Breast (Baked or Grilled)
  • 5oz (44g Protein); 5.5oz (48g of Protein); 6oz (53g of Protein)
• Salmon (Baked or Grilled)
  • 5oz (36g Protein); 5.5oz (40g of Protein); 6oz (43g of Protein)
• Dave’s Killer Bread Cinnamon Raisin Remix Organic Bagels (12g of Protein per Bagel)
• Chobani Plain Nonfat Greek yogurt (14g of Protein per Serving)
• Fairlife Nutrition Plan (30g of Protein per 11.5oz Bottle)
• IF you have to incorporate protein powder, plant-based protein typically are easier to digest.

CITE

 “Sarcopenia” Mayo Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/23167-sarcopenia   August 10, 2025.

“What Are Macronutrients and Micronutrients?” Mayo Clinic; Oct 5, 2022. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/macronutrients-vs-micronutrients  August 10, 2025.