To make fast “macro-friendly food”, first, you need to understand what the friendly meals bit actually means. Spoiler alert, it’s not just throwing a bunch of hot sauce or sour cream over your chicken wrap. Ultimately it should mean that you can still enjoy your favourite foods as part of your overall healthy diet as long as you take care of the nutrition fundamentals and meet your individual needs, namely your total calorie intake, protein requirements and nutrient quality.
When you set this up properly, you CAN have your cake and eat it. You just need to master building a perfect fit of menu items with menu options that support your specific goals.
In order to do this, it boils down to understanding the following:
- What your calorie/energy needs should be for your goal
- What your protein requirements should be
- What carb to fat ratio do you want to give yourself
- How much flexibility are you going to allow yourself for fast food
I’ve been coaching athletes and the general public for over 15 years and when one of them has ever asked me, “can I still eat at my favourite fast food restaurant,” we first discuss and develop a plan to implement the above. Why? Because if we don’t, it’s not going to be friendly to his/her goals, lifestyle, needs or indeed long term health.
Let’s dig into each.
Step 1: Work out your calorie intake
Whether your goal is fat loss, muscle increase or weight maintenance, the single most important piece to get right is your calorie intake not extra protein, eating healthy food or any other variable. If you don’t have a budget for this, it will make it harder to factor in a fast food component, as you won’t know if you’re budgeting the right way for your goals.
For example, if my goal is weight loss and I don’t know that I should aim to stay within a 2000 calorie a day budget based on my energy requirements to lose a few pounds, I could easily overeat and go beyond my calorie budget with or without fast food.
But, if my daily total consumption were 2500 calories, 500 above my target consistently over a week or two, this approach would be moving further away from my goal, not closer to it.
Many metabolic formulas an online nutrition calculator will get you in the ballpark of your calorie intake, but the Mifflin-St Jeor equation has been proven to be the most reliable in the research. While you can work it out manually, to speed things you can use an online calculator and let it do your calculations for you here by plugging in your personal information.
I’ve plugged in mine below to illustrate the points. Regarding “activity” choose the activity status that best represents how active you are right now.
Below is what happens when I hit “calculate”
As you can see, I have a few numbers to choose from depending on my goal (weight loss, maintenance, or weight gain. For the purpose of this post, let’s say I want to lose some weight, and I’m aiming to lose about a pound a week, so I’ll go with 2000 calories a day. That’s Step 1 done.
Step 2: Work out your protein requirements
The general most applicable range for setting individual protein requirements is 1.6–2.2 g/kg (0.7–1 g/lb). Going higher won’t hurt, but the evidence we have to date suggests that no additional benefit is gained when you go beyond the higher end of that range. Therefore, using myself as an example, with my weight being 75kg (165lbs) and the fact that I’ll be in a moderate calorie deficit, so increased hunger is likely, I will pick the higher end of that range to curb some of that hunger and aim for 1g per pound of body weight which is 165 grams of protein (165lbs x 1g).
As 1g of protein is 4 calories per gram, all together that equates to 660 calories.
An important caveat to mention here is that if you are in the obese category, it’s best to base your protein off your goal weight, as tailoring it to total body weight when you are overweight or obese increases the likelihood of consuming extra calories you don’t need therefore promoting more fat storage over time.
As it stands now, we have the following numbers: a daily calorie target of 2000, with 660 those being attributed to protein, leaving 1340 to distribute between carbs and fats, which is our next step.
Step 3: Choose a carb to fat ratio
The last step is a relatively simple one. You need to decide how you would like to split the remaining calories between carbs and fats. Unless you’re a high-performance athlete, it really doesn’t matter how you split these two remaining macronutrients up. If you were, it would definitely be a good idea to distribute carbohydrates as it’s long been known that carbohydrates are a better fuel source for the body high intensities.
Again, using myself as the example and the fact that I do engage in some high-intensity bouts throughout the week, I will allocate myself more carbohydrate calories than fats, so let’s say a round figure of 800 calories which would be 200g seen as each 1g of carb equates to 4 calories. The calories that are left (540) would be allocated towards fats.
Another important caveat is that you don’t want to ever choose a super low fat intake or cut out fat completely would be asking for trouble. Choosing a super low-fat diet isn’t a great option, or cutting out fats completely might seem like a good idea for weight loss or health reasons. However, it can lead to a host of problems. Fats play a crucial role in our bodies by providing energy, aiding in absorbing fat-soluble vitamins, regulating hormones, and maintaining healthy skin, hair, and nails. In essence, taking the yolk (fat) out of your egg whites consistently or cutting fat out completely will cause many future problems.
Taking all this into account, it’s best to keep fat intake no lower than 15% of total calories. For this example, this would mean no lower than 300 calories (2000 x 0.15). As I’ve got 540 calories left over for fat intake, it’s all good.
The final numbers would look like the below:
- Daily target/budget: 2000 calories
- Daily protein: 660 calories = 165g (660/4)
- Daily carbs: 800 = calories = 200g (800/4)
- Daily fat: 540 calories = 60g (540/9)
Before we allocate calories towards fast food, it’s important to note that the majority of the foods you choose should be nutrient dense foods. Examples of nutrient dense healthy options include leafy greens, whole grains, lean protein sources, and fruits and vegetables. By prioritising these types of foods, you will ensure that your body is getting the nutrients it needs to maintain optimal health.
In theory, you can improve your health in the short term by eating a majority fast food diet, but it is context dependent. For example, if you are overweight and you put yourself in a calorie deficit, a range of health profiles can improve. There is a popular story to illustrate the point about a professor who lost weight on the “Twinkie Diet”. This professor set out to prove that it’s not just what you eat that matters, but also how much you eat. Haub’s experiment involved eating mainly junk food, including Twinkies, powdered doughnuts, and Oreos, but limiting himself to 1800 calories daily. He also took a multivitamin and drank a protein shake daily.
The experiment lasted 10 weeks, during which time Haub lost 27 pounds and saw improvements in his cholesterol levels and blood pressure. While this experiment was not a recommendation to eat a diet high in junk food, it did highlight the importance of calorie balance and the idea that weight loss can be achieved with a calorie deficit regardless of the food source.
However, had he continued to eat this way, health outcomes would of no doubt worsened in the long term due to a deficiency in a wide range of nutrients that inevitably come when a diet is severely lacking in them. The key takeaway here is to ensure the majority of your diet is full of nutrient dense food before you go all in on the fun stuff. How much fun stuff you can have is explained in the next step.
Step 4: Flexibility for fast food
Now that we have covered the important components, we can allocate discretionary calories towards fast food. Note I said a small amount, not a huge amount. Back in 2005, the US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) came up with a catchy term – “discretionary calorie allowance”.
Essentially, this refers to the number of calories you’re free to consume after meeting your body’s recommended nutrient intake through healthy and nutrient packed foods. To put it simply, having a little wiggle room in your daily calorie count for some indulgences. Roughly about 10-20 percent of total calorie intake should be the aim.
Using a 2000 calorie per day daily target. This amounts to 200 to 400 calories per day (1400 – 2800 calories per week) for whatever fast food and drinks you prefer. I’ve gone to the trouble of giving you an idea of what type of macro-friendly options you can choose by listing some of the most popular fast-food restaurants.
If yours is not on the list below, it’s a good idea to look up what popular fast food restaurants or fast food places you like to go to next time you get a minute. Explore the different options that are low-calorie, low carb or low fat, and you should find some macro-friendly food.
Macro-friendly fast food options between 200-400 calories
Subway:
- 6″ Veggie Delite sandwich (230 calories)
- 6″ Turkey Breast sandwich (290 calories)
- Roast Beef Mini Sub (340 calories)
- Ham and Egg English Muffin (290 calories)
- Chicken Caesar Wrap (300 calories)
- Subway Club Salad (140 calories)
- Veggie Delite Salad (60 calories)
- Roast Beef Salad (140 calories)
- Turkey Breast Salad (110 calories)
- Ham Salad (120 calories)
Greggs:
- Mexican Chicken Oval Bite (315 calories)
- Cheese & Onion Bake (296 calories)
- Ham & Cheese Baguette (358 calories)
- Egg Mayo Sandwich (319 calories)
- Steak Bake (391 calories)
- Cheese & Ham Toasty (380 calories)
- Chicken Mayo Sub Roll (292 calories)
- Tuna Crunch Baguette (315 calories)
- Sausage Roll (327 calories)
- Belgian Chocolate Brownie (311 calories)
Pizza Hut:
- Veggie Lover’s Personal Pan Pizza (310 calories)
- Fit ‘N Delicious Personal Pan Pizza (330 calories)
- Garden Party Personal Pan Pizza (310 calories)
- Grilled Chicken Salad (320 calories)
- Garlic Knots (250 calories)
- Caesar Salad (270 calories)
- Boneless Wings (340 calories)
- Classic Pepperoni Pizza (300 calories)
- Italian Meat Pizza (360 calories)
- Cinnamon Sticks (290 calories)
Burger King:
- Hamburger (250 calories)
- Cheeseburger (300 calories)
- BK Veggie Burger (310 calories)
- 4-piece Chicken Nuggets (190 calories)
- Side Salad (15 calories)
- Bacon Cheeseburger (330 calories)
- Tendergrill Chicken Sandwich (370 calories)
- Whopper Jr. Sandwich (310 calories)
- Grilled Chicken Salad (240 calories)
- French Fries (230 calories)
Nando’s:
- Quarter Chicken Breast (201 calories)
- Chicken Caesar Salad (375 calories)
- Grilled Chicken Pitta (343 calories)
- Mixed Leaf Salad (69 calories)
- Spicy Rice (206 calories)
- Fino Pitta with Peri-Peri Chicken (381 calories)
- Houmous with PERi-PERi Drizzle and Pita (265 calories)
- Corn on the Cob (104 calories)
- Grilled Halloumi Cheese (166 calories)
- Peri-Peri Chips (450 calories)
Pret A Manger:
- Roast Chicken Salad (215 calories)
- Egg & Spinach Pot (152 calories)
- Humous & Chipotle Wrap (317 calories)
- Veggie Mac & Greens (239 calories)
- Chicken & Butternut Squash Stew (299 calories)
- Mushroom Risotto (340 calories)
- Tomato Soup (138 calories)
- Crispy Chicken & Bacon Salad (309 calories)
- Roast Beef & Horseradish Sandwich (310 calories)
- Five Bean Salad (105 calories)
Five Guys:
- Little Hamburger (480 calories)
- Little Cheeseburger (560 calories)
- Little Bacon Burger (590 calories)
- Little Bacon Cheeseburger (620 calories)
- Little Fries (526 calories)
- Veggie Sandwich (440 calories)
- Grilled Cheese Sandwich (480 calories)
- Bacon Dog (520 calories)
- Cheese Dog (480 calories)
- Milkshake (380-810 calories, depending on flavor)
Costa Coffee:
- Scrambled Egg & Mushroom Brioche (316 calories)
- Small Chicken Salad Sandwich (275 calories)
- Small Hummus & Falafel Wrap (268 calories)
- Chicken & Bacon Toastie
- Chicken & Pesto Panini (330 calories)
- Ham & Cheese Toastie (377 calories)
- Vegan Smoky Ham & Cheeze Toastie (322 calories)
- Mozzarella & Tomato Panini (321 calories)
- Ham & Egg Roll (363 calories)
- Small Tuna Mayo & Sweetcorn Sandwich (264 calories)
McDonald’s
- Egg McMuffin (300 calories)
- Filet-O-Fish (380 calories)
- 4-Piece Chicken McNuggets (190 calories)
- Bacon Ranch Grilled Chicken Salad (320 calories)
- Sausage McMuffin with Egg (470 calories)
- Double Cheeseburger (440 calories)
- McChicken Sandwich (370 calories)
- Small Fries (230 calories)
- Vanilla Cone (200 calories)
- Fruit ‘N Yogurt Parfait (150 calories)
KFC
- Original Recipe Chicken Breast (320 calories)
- Popcorn Chicken (310 calories)
- Chicken Little Sandwich (290 calories)
- Famous Bowl (710 calories)
- Honey BBQ Sandwich (380 calories)
- 3-Piece Tenders Meal (560 calories)
- Mashed Potatoes with Gravy (120 calories)
- Mac and Cheese (290 calories)
- Cole Slaw (170 calories)
- Chocolate Chip Cookie (160 calories)
Wendy’s
- Grilled Chicken Sandwich (370 calories)
- Small Chili and Caesar Side Salad (380 calories)
- Classic Single with Cheese (570 calories)
- Jr. Bacon Cheeseburger (380 calories)
- Homestyle Chicken Sandwich (470 calories)
- 4-Piece Chicken Nuggets (170 calories)
- Small Fries (320 calories)
- Small Chocolate Frosty (320 calories)
- Apple Pecan Chicken Salad (550 calories)
- Spicy Chicken Caesar Salad (680 calories)
- Grilled chicken cool wrap (400 calories)
Dunkin’ Donuts
- Egg & Cheese Wake-Up Wrap (180 calories)
- Ham, Egg & Cheese English Muffin (330 calories)
- Plain Bagel with Cream Cheese (320 calories)
- Veggie Egg White Omelet (290 calories)
- Multigrain Brown Sugar Oatmeal (290 calories)
- Small Hot Coffee with Cream and Sugar (60 calories)
- Medium Iced Latte with Almond Milk (120 calories)
- Small Frozen Coffee with Skim Milk (230 calories)
- Small Cappuccino with Whole Milk (120 calories)
- Glazed Donut (260 calories)
Tim Hortons
- Beyond Sausage Farmer’s Wrap (380 calories)
- Turkey Sausage Breakfast Sandwich (360 calories)
- Grilled Chicken Caesar Wrap (440 calories)
- BLT with Cheese Sandwich (470 calories)
- 10 Timbits (340 calories)
- Small Tims Specialty Coffee with Cream (80 calories)
- Small Iced Capp with Skim Milk (110 calories)
- Small Steeped Tea with Milk and Sugar (70 calories)
- Small Frozen Lemonade (140 calories)
- Chocolate Chunk Cookie (250 calories)
Wagamamas:
- Edamame (150g) – (189 calories)
- Yasai Gyoza (vegan) – (207 calories)
- Itame Soba (vegan) – (292 calories)
- Ebi Gyoza – (218 calories)
- Chilli Squid – (300 calories)
- Miso Soup (vegan) – (73 calories)
- Chicken Wonton Soup – (232 calories)
- Chicken and Prawn Yaki Udon – (321 calories)
- Duck Donburi – (364 calories)
- Seared Nuoc Cham Tuna Salad – (257 calories)
Taco – bell
- Bean Burrito – 380 calories
- Soft Taco – 200 calories
- Spicy Tostada – 210 calories
- Black Beans and Rice – 200 calories
- Beef Crunchy Taco – 230 calories
- Shredded Chicken Mini Quesadilla – 180 calories
- Spicy Potato Soft Taco – 280 calories
- Cinnamon Twists – 170 calories
- Pintos ‘n Cheese – 190 calories
- Cheesy Roll-Up – 190 calories
Another great way a lot of people often choose is to pick a day in the week to have a fast food meal that works out about 10-20 percent on over a weekly period. In my case here, I could go to one of my favourite places and have a large pizza (~ 2000 calories) every Saturday night and stick to the healthier options throughout the week.
Remember, it’s up to you, you are welcome to go completely “clean” if you want, and nothing bad will happen. As long as you don’t fall into the trap of developing a rigid mindset, thinking that only eating foods that are considered very healthy might not make you healthier. This is particularly true if you find it hard to keep eating that way for a long time. Sometimes, it’s good to be able to eat some less healthy foods too.
Summary
I told you that when it comes to fast food, you can have your cake and eat it. But you need to know how to bake the cake. The best options for people will always depend on how they set things up. By following the advice above, you can definitely make fast food macro-friendly.
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