How Do You Eat?

myturn15

I am getting back on track with mfp and can't wait to strength train again after a serious injury and surgery last year. I was curious about how many of you count macros? calories? or both. I know I need to make sure I get enough protein and enough calories overall
. I think my issue is going to be getting enough carbs. I naturally prefer low carb eating. How low carb is too low carb with this intense strength training? Any advice is appreciated and I know we are all different, but I just wanted to hear what others might be doing. Or if you have done a macro combination in the past that was not good.

Sumiblue

I started doing Stronglifts on a paleo diet but 1) it was too expensive and 2) I needed the carbs for my lifts. After a point I started stalling on lifts. Now I just eat what I want and getting enough carbs is not a problem. I have to try hard to meet my protein macro. I concentrate on that and fat and carbs just fall into line. Sometimes I need to add whey protein to plain yogurt or a smoothie to hit my protein number.
I'm a lot happier not restricting carbs. Also, I have increased my calories closer to maintenance as I am close to goal and am trying to lose fat. I've been told that maybe having your most carb heavy days coincide with lifting days is a good idea. Lately, I make a pre-workout snack of whole wheat toast, peanut butter and sliced banana. I generally eat lunch right after workouts, too.

Llamapants86

I aim for 0.8g per lbs of body weight for protein. 0.4g per lbs of body weight for fat and then just fill the rest up in carbs. I found that sticking to a percentage was really difficult on my high activity days and I needed carbs for fuel on those days more than I needed more protein.

myturn15

Sumiblue wrote: »

I started doing Stronglifts on a paleo diet but 1) it was too expensive and 2) I needed the carbs for my lifts. After a point I started stalling on lifts. Now I just eat what I want and getting enough carbs is not a problem. I have to try hard to meet my protein macro. I concentrate on that and fat and carbs just fall into line. Sometimes I need to add whey protein to plain yogurt or a smoothie to hit my protein number.
I'm a lot happier not restricting carbs. Also, I have increased my calories closer to maintenance as I am close to goal and am trying to lose fat. I've been told that maybe having your most carb heavy days coincide with lifting days is a good idea. Lately, I make a pre-workout snack of whole wheat toast, peanut butter and sliced banana. I generally eat lunch right after workouts, too.

Thanks Sumiblue, I have heard that too low carb is hard for lifting. I am going to brainstorm what carbs I like. I could do some bananas on bread with almond butter. Do you actually set up your macros in mfp? If so, do you mind sharing with me what they are at?

myturn15

Thanks Llamapants86. I am only doing strength training at home right now without the correct equipment for SL. I am having a hard time finding the right gym. Once I am fully into routine, I will keep in mind that carbs may need to be higher on the lift days.

LaarainNYC

myturn15 wrote: »

Thanks Llamapants86. I am only doing strength training at home right now without the correct equipment for SL. I am having a hard time finding the right gym. Once I am fully into routine, I will keep in mind that carbs may need to be higher on the lift days.

Leangains is a great program for that. He suggests a combination of intermittent fasting (10-hour window for women) and lower-carb on rest days.

Sumiblue

I have set up macros in MFP for carbs-40%, Protein-25% & fat-35%. My protein goal is for at least 100g protein.

ar9179

I'm new to this group and fairly new to SL and really appreciate your question. I like low carb, as well, especially since I have a lot of fat to lose and it helps me with satiety. However, I've had some energy dips the last few days and upped my grams and ate at less of a deficit yesterday. Had a good lifting day today! I've been very snack-y today, but I think that may be related to poor sleep (too humid!).

I'm looking at carbs 20%, protein 25-30%, and fat 45-50%. I use IF for calorie control, as I've never been one to eat in the morning, and lift/workout before eating. Have no idea if the macros/calories will support me better, or not.

DawnEmbers

I mostly focus on protein as it was a challenge in the beginning to get close to 80 grams per day, as my low days were like 50 and 60 grams. Now I'm getting 80-100 grams a day with my goal being 90 grams 5 days a week. The rest just kind of fills out on its own. On the rare occasion I will be over on the recommended carbs and a little more would be over on the fats. I like carbs though and haven't really tried to focus on lowering the amount I get of them. So far haven't seen any issues in my lifting but I have only been lifting since very end of October.

mirrim52

I aim for at least 1g protein per lb LBM, so about 85g protein a day. My MFP goal though is just over 100. I try never to go below 85. Sometimes I need a protein shake to meet my goal, but only a couple times a week. I have my macros set at 45% carb, 30% fat, 25% protein. This works for me. I really only concentrate on protein, then rest ends up within 2% over the week naturally. I don't really aim to hit carbs or fat, but I do look at those when I am planning evening snacks. If I have calories left and am higher in fats, I will choose a more carb heavy snack. If I am high on carbs that day, I will have cheese or something higher in fat. If I know I had a high carb day, I will aim to have a lower carb day the next.

I love carbs though, so I never have a problem getting them in :P

Graceious1

I do strong lifts, taekwondo 2x a week and jog for 30 minutes a week. I follow the TDEE method and my macros are carbs 40%, fat and protein 30% each. Like others I struggle to keep my protein up. I like that I can eat as much as I need and ofter find that I have between 100-200 cals left over. I got the calculation of my daily calorie intake from scooby workshop calorie calculator. I have more energy and my workouts a much more enjoyable. All the best with whichever programme you follow.

MissHolidayGolightly

Carbs might be a little low at 20% but you can try it and see how you feel. If you find you're lacking energy, sleeping poorly, feeling down in the dumps, etc. up carbs or overall calories (don't know how much you're eating a day).

I calculated protein on IIFYM and it matched to about 25% of my daily calories on MFP. Left fat at 25% and carbs are 50%. I usually go over on fat and protein though a little.

myturn15

Thank you everyone for helping with this. I am really excited to be back at the strength training. Your responses are great. I am going to keep playing with the macros and see how I feel. I will probably start keeping track of my mood and energy level so I can look back and adjust accordingly.

Graceious1

Keeping track of your mood is a really good idea @myturn15. It is something that I think we overlook. I would love to know how you get on.