Thoughts on IIFYM (If It Fits Your Macros)

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  • Hollywood_Porky
    Hollywood_Porky Posts: 491 Member
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    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    People who do that aren't really doing IIFYM. It's pretty hard to hit your macros without also hitting your micros, and most people here stress that micros are part of it. IIFYM doesn't translate to 'just eat pizza/twinkies/ice cream so long as you stick to your calories'.

    #TeamModeration

    Actually I do it. I have no idea why it wouldn't work. This post doesn't make sense, sorry. See diary.
  • sarahlifts
    sarahlifts Posts: 610 Member
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    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    People who do that aren't really doing IIFYM. It's pretty hard to hit your macros without also hitting your micros, and most people here stress that micros are part of it. IIFYM doesn't translate to 'just eat pizza/twinkies/ice cream so long as you stick to your calories'.

    #TeamModeration

    Actually I do it. I have no idea why it wouldn't work. This post doesn't make sense, sorry. See diary.

    I'm not seeing much "junk" in your diary...that's what she was saying...if people are eating largely junk and justifying it with IIFYM, they aren't really doing it right.
  • galgenstrick
    galgenstrick Posts: 2,086 Member
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    sarahlifts wrote: »
    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.

    Why not? You could probably hit your macros pretty easily eating pizza, pop tarts, ice cream and a few glasses of muscle milk. Not sure if anyone does that, but people might??
  • sarahlifts
    sarahlifts Posts: 610 Member
    edited May 2015
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    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    People who do that aren't really doing IIFYM. It's pretty hard to hit your macros without also hitting your micros, and most people here stress that micros are part of it. IIFYM doesn't translate to 'just eat pizza/twinkies/ice cream so long as you stick to your calories'.

    #TeamModeration

    Actually I do it. I have no idea why it wouldn't work. This post doesn't make sense, sorry. See diary.

    Your diet does not look junk filled to me...at least not today.
  • ejbronte
    ejbronte Posts: 867 Member
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    I log mine too, but the site doesn't track many micros as has been pointed out. The only dodgy reading on a micro I ever had was minorly low sodium, though. I tend to drink a lot of water, so we weren't surprised by that one. I drink a zero-calorie sports drink a day to try to counteract that.

    Chronic thirst/dry mouth issues thanks to medication.

    So sorry to hear about that issue - I dislike medication intensely and was thrilled to hear I won't need any after a partial thyroidectomy about 2 weeks ago.

    When I want very detailed info about the food, or the meal or the day, I use Cronometer, which really breaks things down for me. In fact, from December through February, I was tracking religiously on both MFP and Cronometer, but got lazy, decided MFP had a more user-friendly aspect and stuck here. Cronometer is when I get nit-picky or curious now.

  • JPW1990
    JPW1990 Posts: 2,424 Member
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    sarahlifts wrote: »
    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.

    Why not? You could probably hit your macros pretty easily eating pizza, pop tarts, ice cream and a few glasses of muscle milk. Not sure if anyone does that, but people might??

    Someone posted their own diary as an example about 15 IIFYM debates ago. It wasn't as extreme as all pop tarts and ice cream, but it was mostly stuff like instant noodles, snacks and protein drinks. People do calorie counting inaccurately and low carb inaccurately and even vegan inaccurately, so I don't see why so many people are acting like there's this invisible wall between "real" IIFYM people and "fake" IIFYM people. They're all IIFYM, whether they do it right or not.
  • EvanKeel
    EvanKeel Posts: 1,904 Member
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    sarahlifts wrote: »
    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.

    Why not? You could probably hit your macros pretty easily eating pizza, pop tarts, ice cream and a few glasses of muscle milk. Not sure if anyone does that, but people might??

    Putting aside potential issues with energy density, there's nothing inherently unhealthy about any of that. Poptarts probably present the least bang for your calorie-buck in terms of micronutrients, but they're not bad or junk, imo. As to the rest, there are nutritious ways to eat all of it. Not all ice cream and pizza are equal. You can get plenty of veggies on pizza, for example.

    People just have to know what they're eating. And if we're at least under the pretense of tracking things, we should know what we're eating.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,868 Member
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    sarahlifts wrote: »
    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.

    Why not? You could probably hit your macros pretty easily eating pizza, pop tarts, ice cream and a few glasses of muscle milk. Not sure if anyone does that, but people might??

    I would think you could...but it would be a challenge and I think one would be hard pressed to do it day in and day out...but really, this is pretty much the bastardized version of IIFYM. This is not even remotely what the initial concept was about.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    SLLRunner wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    People who do that aren't really doing IIFYM. It's pretty hard to hit your macros without also hitting your micros, and most people here stress that micros are part of it. IIFYM doesn't translate to 'just eat pizza/twinkies/ice cream so long as you stick to your calories'.

    #TeamModeration

    And/or folks are emphasizing the low quality foods in their posts, and not emphasizing the nutrient dense ones. If it's this, it's problematic from an educational standpoint but nothing more, if it's the former, then it's more problematic.
    I think it's the latter, though one of the biggest IIFYM supporters here eats virtually no plant foods (except the occasional potato), as evidenced by his diary.

    But yes, micros are essential to health, and we need to be sure we aren't suggesting otherwise (or that protein is the only thing that matters) to new users.

    Mmmmm......I would agree nutrition is important, but that does sound like you are trying to shame "him".
    Nope. Just using him as an example. Could easily be a her. How many active posters here? How many love IIFYM? No shaming, just an observation. lol.
    Again, I don't have any issue with IIFYM, I simple questioned if folks are considering their micros, other than the simple ones logged here, and suggesting that a dieter who who logs no green vegetables (for example) on an open diary likely isn't seriously considering micros.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    I don't see how you can get your macros within your calories and not hit your micros. I just flicked back through my diary and when I was PMSing a few days ago, I didn't hit all of my micros and was way off on my macros and over my calories. Every day that I get my carb/protein targets and eat a reasonable number of calories, I am over on all of my micros. Maybe it's possible to do IIFYM the way you describe, but I don't see how I could do it.

    Again, those are the few micros MFP logs... but yes, one can "hit their macros" with no vegetables in their diet. Would that satisfy the few micros on here? Possibly.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    MrM27 wrote: »
    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    I don't see how you can get your macros within your calories and not hit your micros. I just flicked back through my diary and when I was PMSing a few days ago, I didn't hit all of my micros and was way off on my macros and over my calories. Every day that I get my carb/protein targets and eat a reasonable number of calories, I am over on all of my micros. Maybe it's possible to do IIFYM the way you describe, but I don't see how I could do it.

    The issue is there are a bunch of people that don't think food quality matters at all and that anything goes. Some go to extremes

    Indeed. And I don't think most experienced users think food quality is unimportant.
  • suke28
    suke28 Posts: 22 Member
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    BFDeal wrote: »
    IIFYM = If it fits in your mouth?

    Hahahahahah
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    I guess I do IIFYM because I eat what I want and make sure to hit my macro and micro targets. However, it is not some magical fat loss tool, you still need to be in a calorie deficit.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
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    sarahlifts wrote: »
    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.

    Why not? You could probably hit your macros pretty easily eating pizza, pop tarts, ice cream and a few glasses of muscle milk. Not sure if anyone does that, but people might??

    yea, but I don't think you would hit your micros...unless said person is taking a multivitamin...
  • 3bambi3
    3bambi3 Posts: 1,650 Member
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    ndj1979 wrote: »
    sarahlifts wrote: »
    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.

    Why not? You could probably hit your macros pretty easily eating pizza, pop tarts, ice cream and a few glasses of muscle milk. Not sure if anyone does that, but people might??

    yea, but I don't think you would hit your micros...unless said person is taking a multivitamin...

    What's the word on the efficacy and absorption of multi-vitamins and other supplements?
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
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    3bambi3 wrote: »
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    sarahlifts wrote: »
    I follow IIFYM my diary is open to friends. Friend me. IIFYM cannot be worked effectively hitting macros and cals on a junk diet. PERIOD. If someone is doing it show me. You just cannot. Its sad so many people view IIFYM this way.

    Why not? You could probably hit your macros pretty easily eating pizza, pop tarts, ice cream and a few glasses of muscle milk. Not sure if anyone does that, but people might??

    yea, but I don't think you would hit your micros...unless said person is taking a multivitamin...

    What's the word on the efficacy and absorption of multi-vitamins and other supplements?

    Depends on the studies reviewed, the supplements chosen etc. I think it's a bit of a gamble.
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
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    SLLRunner wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    People who do that aren't really doing IIFYM. It's pretty hard to hit your macros without also hitting your micros, and most people here stress that micros are part of it. IIFYM doesn't translate to 'just eat pizza/twinkies/ice cream so long as you stick to your calories'.

    #TeamModeration

    And/or folks are emphasizing the low quality foods in their posts, and not emphasizing the nutrient dense ones. If it's this, it's problematic from an educational standpoint but nothing more, if it's the former, then it's more problematic.
    I think it's the latter, though one of the biggest IIFYM supporters here eats virtually no plant foods (except the occasional potato), as evidenced by his diary.

    But yes, micros are essential to health, and we need to be sure we aren't suggesting otherwise (or that protein is the only thing that matters) to new users.

    Mmmmm......I would agree nutrition is important, but that does sound like you are trying to shame "him".
    Nope. Just using him as an example. Could easily be a her. How many active posters here? How many love IIFYM? No shaming, just an observation. lol.
    Again, I don't have any issue with IIFYM, I simple questioned if folks are considering their micros, other than the simple ones logged here, and suggesting that a dieter who who logs no green vegetables (for example) on an open diary likely isn't seriously considering micros.

    When someone does extreme low carb or even the few people that do literal no carb (which someone pointed out actually exist) and barely has any fruits and veggies in their diet, no one seems to question if they can hit their micro nutrients on that and some people even write white knighting posts defending them if someone questions if that kind of diet is alright.
    But if someone going by iifym does it it's somehow bad? Or what exactly was your observation supposed to be about?
  • JPW1990
    JPW1990 Posts: 2,424 Member
    edited May 2015
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    SLLRunner wrote: »
    Nony_Mouse wrote: »
    My gripe with IIFYM is a lot of people completely disregard their micros and therefor their health. If you do it in such a way where you eat the majority of your foods from nutrient dense sources, and fit in the things you like in small amounts, then that's probably a great and sustainable plan for most people.

    People who do that aren't really doing IIFYM. It's pretty hard to hit your macros without also hitting your micros, and most people here stress that micros are part of it. IIFYM doesn't translate to 'just eat pizza/twinkies/ice cream so long as you stick to your calories'.

    #TeamModeration

    And/or folks are emphasizing the low quality foods in their posts, and not emphasizing the nutrient dense ones. If it's this, it's problematic from an educational standpoint but nothing more, if it's the former, then it's more problematic.
    I think it's the latter, though one of the biggest IIFYM supporters here eats virtually no plant foods (except the occasional potato), as evidenced by his diary.

    But yes, micros are essential to health, and we need to be sure we aren't suggesting otherwise (or that protein is the only thing that matters) to new users.

    Mmmmm......I would agree nutrition is important, but that does sound like you are trying to shame "him".
    Nope. Just using him as an example. Could easily be a her. How many active posters here? How many love IIFYM? No shaming, just an observation. lol.
    Again, I don't have any issue with IIFYM, I simple questioned if folks are considering their micros, other than the simple ones logged here, and suggesting that a dieter who who logs no green vegetables (for example) on an open diary likely isn't seriously considering micros.

    When someone does extreme low carb or even the few people that do literal no carb (which someone pointed out actually exist) and barely has any fruits and veggies in their diet, no one seems to question if they can hit their micro nutrients on that and some people even write white knighting posts defending them if someone questions if that kind of diet is alright.
    But if someone going by iifym does it it's somehow bad? Or what exactly was your observation supposed to be about?

    Wrong, that comes up every single time no carb is brought up, and half the time regular low carb is brought up. Right along with OMFG you'll die if you don't eat carbs, or your kidneys will fail, or CICO will magically disappear and you'll gain all the weight back if you ever eat carbs again. As it is, LC/keto/NC are all just variations of IIFYM anyway, just a different proportion of macros that need fitting. Ironically, some of the loudest LC detractors are IIFYM proponents.