How to reduce fats and increase protein?

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katrinalwaters0808
katrinalwaters0808 Posts: 5 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hey. I’m focusing on getting my macros in shape and I need some help and tips on how to reduce my fat intake. I eat all the right fats - avacado, nuts, eggs, olives etc. I also have almost cut out cheese (gutted). I am working on increasing my protein but whatever has protein in, has fat too and I am eating double the amount of fat i’m allowed. This could also be lack of education and knowledge but any tips would be great !

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  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    edited January 2019
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    Eat more lean protein. Fish, beans, chicken, ham etc. Eat less avocado, eggs, nuts.

    Try pre logging to help hit your protein goal
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
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    Do you have a medical reason to restrict your fat intake? And do you still have enough calories left for your protein given your current way of eating? I would not worry about the fat intake unless you have a medical condition that requires you to restrict fat, and/or you're eating enough fat that you can't fit in protein and still be within your calorie goal. Many people prefer to eat relatively high amounts of fat, and you don't have to restrict fat in order to lose weight.

    If you do need to cut your fat intake, plant based proteins like tofu, seitan, TVP, or beans and lentils are generally low in fat. Egg whites have no fat. There is also lowfat or fat free dairy, such as yogurt, cheese, and milk.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    TavistockToad wrote: »
    Eat more lean protein. Fish, beans, chicken, ham etc. Eat less avocado, eggs, nuts.

    Try pre logging to help hit your protein goal

    This. My common lean protein sources are canned tuna, beans and lentils, chicken breast, and low fat greek yogurt.

    Assuming you don't have a medical condition or family history you are gearing your diet towards, it's no big deal to go a bit over your fat goal. But if the fat you are eating is crowding out the protein you need, then you need to cut down the portions or frequency of fatty foods that aren't also giving you a good hit of protein.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Did you custom set your macros or are they the MFP defaults?

    Generally, if you're trying to eat less fat I would eat less of the foods that are primarily fat (avocado, nuts, olives, etc) because -- as you noticed -- there is often some fat in the higher protein foods that we eat. Beans are a low fat and higher protein food that might work well in your situation. There are also lower fat options for most types of meat if you're a meat-eater.
  • Cassandraw3
    Cassandraw3 Posts: 1,214 Member
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    I agree with eating more lean proteins. Also, try switching to just egg whites instead of the whole egg.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    Yes, did you custom set the macros?

    As others have said, easiest way (if you eat meat) is lower fat meats, like white fish, tuna, shellfish (although most fish is not that high in fat), chicken or turkey breast, lean cuts of beef or lean ground beef, pork loin or chops (really!), so on. Also low fat or skim dairy. I don't like egg whites (I think it's wasteful to toss yokes and love whole eggs), but you can get egg whites in a carton if you eat lots of eggs and use them to increase the protein by adding to a whole egg.

    Plant based sources of protein are often low fat also, like beans and lentils. Main exception would be if you were trying to get your protein from nuts or nut butters (nuts are good for you, but high fat).

    All that aside, I think hitting protein is important (especially since MFP's default can be quite low already if you are on low calories), but if you prefer more fat and less carbs, that's fine (as is the reverse).
  • katrinalwaters0808
    katrinalwaters0808 Posts: 5 Member
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    Ahh thank all so much. I think I have avoided this reality as I am not keen on meat, beans, lentils and also, what’s an egg without a yolk!
    But some really useful feedback I’ll be taking on board.
    No medical conditions, just trying to stick to my recommended macros and support my training. Then hopefully start to see some more results !! Thanks again all! X
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    katrinalwaters0808 wrote: »
    Ahh thank all so much. I think I have avoided this reality as I am not keen on meat, beans, lentils and also, what’s an egg without a yolk!
    But some really useful feedback I’ll be taking on board.
    No medical conditions, just trying to stick to my recommended macros and support my training. Then hopefully start to see some more results !! Thanks again all! X

    Weight loss comes from your deficit, not your macros
  • katrinalwaters0808
    katrinalwaters0808 Posts: 5 Member
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    Me again! And what about a Keto diet ? That seems to encourage all the foods I do prefer ? I train 5-6 times a week including lots of strength and cardio. I’ve lost 2 stone over the last year and am happy with my weight and general size, I just want to get in better shape, tone up, and get stronger !!
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,986 Member
    edited January 2019
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    katrinalwaters0808 wrote: »
    Ahh thank all so much. I think I have avoided this reality as I am not keen on meat, beans, lentils and also, what’s an egg without a yolk!
    But some really useful feedback I’ll be taking on board.
    No medical conditions, just trying to stick to my recommended macros and support my training. Then hopefully start to see some more results !! Thanks again all! X

    By recommended macros do you mean the MFP default macros 50% from carbohydrates, 20% from protein and 30% from fat. ? You can tweak them however you want. I left my fat at 30% but go over it every day and don't worry about that as it is the total calories that will cause me to lose weight or not.

    We have people losing weight on Keto with high fat and vegans losing weight with high carbs.
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
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    katrinalwaters0808 wrote: »
    Me again! And what about a Keto diet ? That seems to encourage all the foods I do prefer ? I train 5-6 times a week including lots of strength and cardio. I’ve lost 2 stone over the last year and am happy with my weight and general size, I just want to get in better shape, tone up, and get stronger !!

    Whether or not you should follow a keto diet is a matter of personal preference, barring any medical conditions. You can also eat a high fat diet without following any named diet plan.
  • katrinalwaters0808
    katrinalwaters0808 Posts: 5 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    katrinalwaters0808 wrote: »
    Ahh thank all so much. I think I have avoided this reality as I am not keen on meat, beans, lentils and also, what’s an egg without a yolk!
    But some really useful feedback I’ll be taking on board.
    No medical conditions, just trying to stick to my recommended macros and support my training. Then hopefully start to see some more results !! Thanks again all! X

    By recommended macros do you mean the MFP default macros 50% from carbohydrates, 20% from protein and 30% from fat. ? You can tweak them however you want. I left my fat at 30% but go over it every day and don't worry about that as it is the total calories that will cause me to lose weight or not.

    We have people losing weight on Keto with high fat and vegans losing weight with high carbs.

    I have worked out my recommended macros using a macro calculator considering my daily training regime and I have amended the goals in MFP. I know you can’t listen to every thing you hear but everyone I train with explains that focusing on eating the right macro nutrients has helped immensely with getting out the plateau zone!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,645 Member
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    If you want more protein without overdoing fats or carbs, the thread below is a great resource. It links to a spreadsheet that links many, many foods by protein efficiency: Most protein for fewest calories. Inherently, that means more protein, less fat/carbs. Look at the spreadsheet, find foods you like, eat more of them.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also

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