Your macronutrient targets by default are set to a ratio that fit within the acceptable macronutrient distribution ranges recommended in the Dietary Reference Intakes. However, you can choose to customize your targets for protein, carbohydrates and fat.
There are three different approaches to customizing your macronutrient settings with Cronometer: Macro Ratios, Fixed Targets, and Keto Calculator. You can also customize your how you want to track your carbohydrates.
To customize your macronutrient targets:
- Go to the More tab > Targets > Macro Targets
- Select macros using > Choose one of the three options (Ratios, Fixed, or Keto).
Learn more about:
- Setting your Macro Targets using Macro Ratios
- Setting your Macro Targets using Fixed Targets
- Setting your Macro Targets using Keto Calculator
- Options to Track Carbohydrates
- How to Restore Default Settings
Macro Ratios
The Macro Ratios setting calculates your macronutrient targets by dividing your energy target between protein, carbs and fat to achieve the ratio of macros you've entered. Any time your energy target changes, your macro targets will update automatically to keep your ratio of protein:carbs:fat. Your energy target will update throughout the day if you log exercises or log a new weight in your diary, for example.
Enter the percentage of your energy target you'd like to aim for for each macro.
If you'd prefer to set your macro targets in ratios instead of percentages:
- Click on Show Advanced Settings
- Select Ratios
- Choose if you'd like to set ratios in kcals or grams
- Enter the ratio of your energy target you'd like to aim for for each macronutrient
Learn more about macro ratio settings here.
Fixed Targets
If you choose this setting your macronutrient targets remain the same each day. By default, this setting uses the recommended dietary allowances (RDAs) from the Dietary Reference Intakes for macronutrients. You can customize your targets manually to set fixed gram amounts for each macronutrient by entering the values in the boxes.
If you prefer to set Fixed Targets for calories instead of grams, click on Show Advanced Settings and select kcal.
Learn more about Fixed Macro Targets here.
Keto Calculator
Choosing a Ketogenic target is a special dynamic macronutrient target setting. Instead of targeting specific ratios, Cronometer dynamically calculates a maximum protein target based on your lean body mass, a maximum carbohydrate target, and sets the remainder of your calorie allowance to fats.
Once you've selected Keto, there are four Keto programs to choose from: Rigorous, Moderate, Relaxed, and Custom. This will determine your targets for protein, carbs, and fat.
Learn more about Keto Settings here.
Tracking Carbohydrates
For each macronutrient setting option, you can also decide if you want to track carbohydrates as total carbs or net carbs. To do this:
- Go to More > Targets > Macro Targets
- Tap on Show Advanced Settings
- Track Carbs as > Select Net Carbs or Total Carbs
Total carbs includes all types of carbohydrates in your carb target, including fiber.
Net carbs include only digestible carbohydrates in your carb target. Using net carbs can lead to more accurate energy estimates from carbs, since dietary fiber provides less energy than digestible forms of carbohydrates, like starches and sugars.
By default we use: Net Carbs = Total Carbs - Fiber - Sugar Alcohols
Learn more about Carb settings here.
Restore Default Settings
If you'd like to revert back to Cronometer's default macronutrient settings:
- Go to More > Targets > Macro Targets
- Tap the menu in the top right corner
- Select Restore Defaults
Learn how to edit your macronutrient targets on the web version of Cronometer