How to Set Your Macros for a Cut
The first number to set on a cutting diet is protein: 0.8 to 1.2 grams per pound of body weight. In an energy deficit, the body relies more heavily on protein for fuel because training increases protein requirements, less carbohydrate and fat are coming in, and as glycogen and body fat stores shrink, the body may increasingly break down protein, including from muscle tissue, to compensate. That protein number anchors the rest of the budget: fat has a physiological floor that must be respected, and carbohydrates fill whatever calories remain.
This article walks through all three in order, with a worked example for a 180-pound person at the end.
The calorie target
Before macros, you need a total number to work within. A deficit of 10 to 25 percent below your maintenance calories is the standard recommendation for a cutting diet. If you maintain at 2,500 calories a day, a 20 percent cut puts you at 2,000.
For a twelve-week cut, a phased approach works well: split it into three four-week blocks, gradually increasing the deficit, for example 10 percent during the first four weeks, 15 percent during the second, and 20 percent during the last. A typical cut lasts 6 to 12 weeks.
Protein comes first
The target: 0.8 to 1.2 grams of protein per pound of body weight. A 200-pound person would aim for 160 to 240 grams per day. If you know your body fat percentage, 1.14 grams per pound of lean mass is a more precise number. If you do not, 1 gram per pound of target body weight works as a simpler guideline. Both sit above the general recommendation of 1.2 to 2 grams per kilogram of body weight that research supports for weight loss and muscle retention.
For a deeper look at protein targets, see our full breakdown on how much protein you actually need.
Protein at 4 calories per gram is the most calorie-efficient macro to increase. At 180g for a 180-pound person, protein accounts for 720 calories, leaving 1,280 on a 2,000-calorie cutting diet to split between fat and carbs.
The fat floor
Fat is an essential nutrient the body cannot produce on its own. Dietary fat is necessary for regular hormonal function, gallstone prevention, and fat-soluble vitamin absorption. Your body uses fats to produce hormones like testosterone and estrogen, and while it is okay to eat lower amounts of fat, going too low for too long can cause health issues.
The floor: a minimum of 0.25 grams per pound of body weight per day. For a 180-pound person, that is 45 grams (405 calories). This should easily cover your physiological needs.
For the overall range, 15 to 25 percent of total calories from fat is recommended when cutting. That range sits below the general guideline of 20 to 35 percent for a concrete reason: on a 2,000-calorie cutting diet, choosing 15 percent fat (33g, 300 cal) over 25 percent fat (56g, 500 cal) frees up 200 calories, roughly 50 grams of carbohydrates, for training fuel. One gram of fat contains 9 calories, compared to 4 for protein and 4 for carbohydrates, so the trade-off between fat grams and carb grams is roughly 2:1 in caloric terms.
One additional guardrail: keep saturated fat below 10 percent of total calorie intake to minimize cardiovascular risk.
Carbohydrates fill the rest
After protein and fat are locked in, carbohydrates fill the rest of the calorie budget.
Carbohydrates replace muscle glycogen, the primary and preferred fuel source of your muscles, fueling your workouts. They also have positive impacts on hormonal function. As the deficit deepens through the phased approach, carbs are the number that shrinks, because the protein target and fat floor do not move. In the twelve-week phased example, moving from a 10 percent deficit (2,250 cal) to a 20 percent deficit (2,000 cal) drops carbs from roughly 281g to 219g while protein and fat stay anchored. If carbs are restricted too severely, it may cost you muscle mass through reduced training capacity.
The math: take your total calorie target, subtract protein calories (grams times 4) and fat calories (grams times 9), and divide what remains by 4. That is your daily carb target in grams.
If you want a primer on how to count macros or how the IIFYM approach gives you flexibility in food choices, those guides cover the mechanics.
Worked example: 180 lbs, 2,500 cal maintenance
A 20 percent deficit brings the daily target to 2,000 calories.
Protein. At 1 gram per pound of body weight: 180g. That is 720 calories (180 x 4).
Fat. At 20 percent of total calories: 400 calories from fat, which is about 44g (400 / 9). This barely clears the 0.25 g/lb floor of 45g, so round up to 45g (405 calories).
Carbs. Remaining calories: 2,000 minus 720 minus 405 = 875 calories. Divide by 4: roughly 219g of carbohydrates.
| Macro | Grams | Calories | % of total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein | 180g | 720 | 36% |
| Fat | 45g | 405 | 20% |
| Carbs | 219g | 875 | 44% |
| Total | 2,000 | 100% |
For context, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend, for adults over 18, 10 to 35 percent of calories from protein, 20 to 35 percent from fat, and 45 to 65 percent from carbohydrates. A cutting diet pushes protein to 36 percent and compresses fat to 20 percent and carbs to 44 percent.
When to recalculate mid-cut
As weight drops, maintenance calories drop with it, which means a deficit set at week one shrinks over time. Check every two weeks using a 7-day rolling average of morning weigh-ins, and recalculate from your current weight.
The twelve-week phased approach handles some of this automatically. Moving from a 10 percent to a 15 percent to a 20 percent deficit recalculates the total at each block. Protein stays anchored at your current body weight. Fat stays at or above the 0.25 g/lb floor. Carbs absorb the reduction.
Three triggers for recalculation:
- Weight stall lasting two or more weeks. Your deficit may no longer be a deficit at your new weight. Recalculate maintenance from your current weight and reapply the percentage.
- Training performance dropping. Carbs may be too low. Before cutting more calories, check whether redistributing from fat to carbs helps, keeping fat above the 0.25 g/lb floor.
- Protein target consistently out of reach. If 1.2 g/lb feels impossible at your calorie budget, drop to 1 g/lb and redistribute those calories to carbs.
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