IIFYM? Opinions?

auddii

You said you had gains with both. Are you trying to gain or lose? If you're gaining while trying to lose, you are eating too much no matter what method you go with. As previously mentioned, calculate your TDEE and eat at a deficit.

If you're trying to gain and you gained with both ways of eating, just eat whatever plan was easier to follow. And I suggest focus on your macros in general, and then fill in with whatever foods you want (whether they are clean or not is just personal preference).

BusyRaeNOTBusty

PikaKnight wrote: »

Kalikel wrote: »

I don't do the IIFYM thing, but many people swear by it. Some say that it's really a healthy program with a little junk allowed. Others report eating junk food all day, every day. I really don't know what the deal is, but if you like it and it's working for you, why not?

A link to what is IIFYM. There is also a website that goes into detail about what IIFYM is (iifym.com).

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/817188/iifym/p1

I really like IIFYM but I REALLY hate iifym.com. People google it and find that and think it's the only way to do IIFYM but really it works on macro percentages when minimums are generally better and it recommends pretty high protein. It just some guy who took a commonly used, loosely defined acronym and was smart enough to buy the domain name. He didn't come up with it at all.

NoelFigart1

I think it is a good way to get a more balanced diet while giving you some leeway for Life happening. The principles are fine.

At the end of the day, I'm more concerned with calorie consumption and trying to make sure most of my diet is centered around meat and produce instead of processed foods (including grains). But different things work for different people.

lemurcat12

I wouldn't say that I "do" IIFYM, but I have found that focusing on getting enough (based on my goals) protein makes it easy to structure my meals and tends to make me feel more satisfied than if I were focused on calories or nutrient-density alone. (If I eat enough protein my fats and carbs seem to fall in an acceptable range without effort.) Part of this is that "eat nutrient dense food" really doesn't mean much outside of a broader context. I mean, broccoli is nutrient dense, but is it more nutrient dense than, say, chicken? If you thought so, you could quite easily be eating a very unbalanced diet, and the focus on macros is a casual way of forcing some sort of balance (based on whatever you decide makes sense for you).

I despise the term "eating clean," but I also try to eat mostly (and a wide variety of) nutrient dense foods and cook and all that, because I prefer eating that way and think it's healthy for me. The two concepts to me (balancing macros, eating healthy) seem to go hand and hand.

That said, I'm not currently focused on building muscle, as I'm still losing.

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