New to Macro counting

chefnatmaynard

Hello everyone, I'm curious how many of you are doing the macro way to track your food etc. I'm new to this and from what is shows, I should be eating more calories that I never used to eat before. Anyone was in that same issue and looking forward to have some new peeps to help me on that too and give me some tips. Thank you!

nanastaci2020

I count calories.

But I also pay attention to macros.

Calories matter for weight loss. Macros play a role in how satisfied I feel with eating the amount of calorie I aim for, and they are useful for some other general health benefits.

My personal calorie goal for a slow & steady weight loss (I am less than 10 pounds to goal) is 1400-1700. I could eat 2 sour cream cake donuts each day for breakfast, lunch and dinner (so 6 per day) and be at 1680. Goal met, I should continue to lose at the slow & steady pace. BUT I would feel lousy. Lots of sugar, not a lot of protein. And I'd be hungry within a couple of hours of each meal, and no calories left to snack. So that would not be a good way for me to eat. Having a donut from time to time: fine. But eating only donuts? Not great. I could not stick to that long term.

My general macro guidelines:
I aim to get 100+ grams of protein. (You may not need this high a #.) I'm also trying to focus on strength training and toning, and more protein is useful for that. Low protein can encourage muscle loss. Since I do not eat chicken breast (or other lean meat) in large quantities at each meal, I also boost my protein as needed with drinking protein infused water (70 cals for 15g protein, or 90 cals for 20g protein) or drinking protein 'shakes' (140-160 cals for 30g protein). Protein comes in meat/fish/dairy but can also be found in other sources. Seeds, nuts, soy, quinoa, some grains. And you can always add a protein powder supplement.

I do not try to cut my fat too low. I don't go out of my way to increase it, but I would not want my fat to be any lower than 30-50 grams per day. The body does need fat in order to be healthy. I don't fret if my fat is higher - it often is in the range of 60-80 grams. As long as I have room in my calories for enough meals & snacks to get me thru the day, the actual # is not important. Since fat is more calories per gram, if one goes excessive on fat they may limit themselves. Such as if I had breakfast for 100g fat/25g carb/25g protein: that would be 1100 cals and majority of my cals for the day spent.

I do not pay attention to my carbs. They fall where they fall. Some days I have around 100g, and some days it is closer to 200 g.

I have found that what fills me up: tends to include all 3 macros. A snack of almost pure carbs does not. But have something with fat/protein and it seems to last longer for me in terms of satiety.

chefnatmaynard

@nanastaci2020 Thank you for taking time to talk about your experience and what you are doing with your macros and calories. Yeah I've been watching my macros to make sure I don't exceed what I am suppose to eat in one day. Currently I have 182g of protein, 82g of Fat, and 271g of carbs. I'll be honest, so far I wasn't able to eat as much as I should with what is required. I workout 3 times a week with a personal trainer and she was showing me those numbers will be best for me. It's been only my 3rd day on it and so far it pretty easy as long you read labels and watch what you eat. As for as my fat, I'm trying to get it from the good fat, fish, nuts, oils, and avocados. I prefer eating protein for sure in the morning cause I feel full way longer and can't wait until lunch without feeling too hungry. The goal is really to balance it out and feel that you are not depriving yourself for sure. Thank you again for your input and help.

dsconz

Hi there! I am starting tomorrow counting macros. For the 1st week, I have 170g of carbs, 57g of fat, and 125g of protein. I like to have a protein shake in the a.m. w either a banana or berries, 1 tbl flax seed, 1 tbl chia seeds, 1 tbl of cacoa powder, w 8 ounces of almond milk, and 1 tbl of peanut butter. Do you think I can continue to have this as my morning meal? I workout 3 times a week. 30 min of HIIT indoor cycling followed by strength training. Thanks for the input.

Dogmom1978

Honestly, if you are new to this, counting macros just over complicates the process. Macros are for health, not weight loss. Weight loss comes from eating in a calorie deficit.

psuLemon

chefnatmaynard wrote: »

@nanastaci2020 Thank you for taking time to talk about your experience and what you are doing with your macros and calories. Yeah I've been watching my macros to make sure I don't exceed what I am suppose to eat in one day. Currently I have 182g of protein, 82g of Fat, and 271g of carbs. I'll be honest, so far I wasn't able to eat as much as I should with what is required. I workout 3 times a week with a personal trainer and she was showing me those numbers will be best for me. It's been only my 3rd day on it and so far it pretty easy as long you read labels and watch what you eat. As for as my fat, I'm trying to get it from the good fat, fish, nuts, oils, and avocados. I prefer eating protein for sure in the morning cause I feel full way longer and can't wait until lunch without feeling too hungry. The goal is really to balance it out and feel that you are not depriving yourself for sure. Thank you again for your input and help.

That is a lot of protein. It's certainly not required, but may be useful for satiety reasons. In general, a person can aim for .8-1g/lb of their GW. Most studies support 1.5-2.2g/kg of lean body mass.

What are your goals? What are your stats? And do you exercise outside of 3x a week? 2500 calories is a lot of calories, unless you are trying to bulk or maintain or very active.

FTS511

dsconz

Set up your Macros, then enter you food the day before, you will be able to see if you can continue to eat some of the things you're eating, you may need to modify quantities or all-together change products/recipes.