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eahearn5601
eahearn5601 Posts: 1 Member
in Introduce Yourself
Hi All,
I’m new to MFP. I was considering hiring a macro coach but it’s pretty pricey so I thought I’d try this first. As a pescatarian (most days vegan/vegatarian), I’m looking for guidance and help tracking macros.
Thanks in advance for support,
Elizabeth

Replies

  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 12,154 Member
    Welcome, Elizabeth! Perhaps @AnnPT77 will come along with additional suggestions...she is not our only vegetarian, but she is the most eloquent with her words and explanations!

    There are some great threads created by our members, bookmarked to the top of each category that may be helpful. Just look for "Most Helpful Posts - whatever the category name is”.

    For example:
    You can also ask your questions in any category that interests you, read posts or questions made by other members, join a group, or add some friends.

    Here are some frequently asked questions that may also be helpful: FAQ's
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,669 Member
    Yikes, I've been summoned! Yes, I'm vegetarian, ovo-lacto specifically, and have been for over 50 years. I'm also interested in nutrition, have read and explored quite a bit. Being honest, I have zero formal education or certifications. Well, a teensy, tiny bit of education about nutrition for athletes en route to coaching certification in my sport, but not very much.

    Fair warning: I tend to ramble. Apologies in advance. Also, I'm going to speak to you as if you were vegetarian/vegan, kind of ignore the pescatarian part. I have zero against that, but that's not my wheelhouse. I think the veg perspective is relevant for anyone who wants to get more of their nutrition from plants, at least to some extent.

    Macro needs is not a subject - IMO - that any reasonably intelligent adult human needs a coach for, if they're in generally good health (no major nutrition-relevant pre-existing health conditions). Humans are adaptive omnivores: One implication is that we will live through a period of time where we transition our nutrition from OK-ish to nearer ideal, without major health risk. Our ancestors knew near zero about nutrition, and lived long enough to breed, or we wouldn't be here, right? ;)

    Someone with very specialized needs should consult a registered dietitian with knowledge of that condition(s). Personally, I still wouldn't go with a macro coach, unless they have other relevant credentials. In some countries, but not all of the US, "nutritionists" need formal credentials. In large swaths of the US, anyone can call themselves a "nutritionist" or "coach". Caveat emptor.

    Do you have any nutrition relevant health conditions? Are you athletically active? How old are you? Those will color what might be best for you. (I'm not necessarily saying you need to answer here, just saying those are some relevant factors.)

    For most people, the MFP default macros are a reasonable place to start, while learning more nuanced information, as long as not cutting calories aggressively far for very fast loss. There's no getting adequate nutrition on too-low calories, because we need certain minimums of some nutrients in absolute amounts, not just percentages of calories.

    First, a few references that I've found helpful, in case they're new to you:

    https://veganhealth.org/

    That's a site that has content from registered dietitians who are themselves vegan, so it's much more level-headed and science-based than some of the vegan advocacy sites (some of which push utter nonsense).

    An aside: Most non-vegetarians/vegans will fuss about us getting enough protein. Personally, that took me a little bit of attention on reduced calories, but some of the micros were a bit more challenging than that. The vegan health site can be helpful when identifying and improving intake of those. (I do supplement selectively a little.)

    This next is a good science-based source in general, with a mix of free and paid content, but noting that what they sell isn't supplements, it's consumer-friendly analysis and summaries of nutritional research. I'm linking their protein calculator/guide, which is free content:

    https://examine.com/guides/protein-intake/

    The calculator is useful (with the note that if substantially overweight, it can make sense to use something nearer goal weight as the basis). The section on "Optimal Daily Protein Intake for Vegans" is one of the best relatively brief summaries I've seen about that topic. It applies to vegetarians, of course, if we're getting some meaningful fraction of our protein from plant sources.

    If you're older like me, I'd throw this in as a useful resource, but it's not important if you're young:

    https://www.jamda.com/article/S1525-8610(13)00326-5/fulltext

    Here on MFP, there's a thread that links a spreadsheet listing many, many foods in order by highest protein to calories ratio. Most of the foods near the top of that spreadsheet are meaty/fishy, but there are plant sources further down if one scrolls. I found it helpful when I was trying to improve my protein to calorie ratio when first losing weight. It also has a basic protein quality score, useful but not sufficient.

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

    Another thing I'll point out, with some hesitation, is this:

    https://www.nal.usda.gov/human-nutrition-and-food-safety/dri-calculator

    The hesitation is that I believe the focus is more like minimums needed to avoid poor outcomes, not necessarily optimal intakes, which can vary with individual characteristics it doesn't capture, besides. I'm convinced it lowballs protein, based on recent research.

    I don't know of a super-great resource for dietary fats, even though the contain essential nutrients our body can't manufacture, so I rely on rules of thumb. I aim for 0.35-0.45g per day per pound of body weight (maybe goal weight, but I'm in maintenance now). Men might get away with a bit less, possibly women who are pre-menopausal should be at/over the top end, not sure. (I'm female & 69, so in menopause.)

    Of course, at a more detailed level, ratios of saturated to unsaturated fat can matter, as well as Omega-3 to Omega-6 ratio. If you're eating fish, cold water fatty fish are among the best Omega-3 sources, and vegans might benefit from supplementing with algae sources, since plant Omega-3s are converted only inefficiently in the body to the truly necessary forms.

    Personally, I use a protein minimum consistent with the calculator I linked above, and nearly always exceed that minimum, and try to get most of my protein from high-quality sources (essential amino acid (EAA) complete, more bioavailable). I use the rule of thumb for a fats minimum, and pay attention to getting some monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats in the mix, plus supplement Omega-3s.

    As long as calories balance, I don't really care where carbs fall, since they're technically not an essential nutrient, but I eat a lot of them, mostly from veggies, fruits and dairy foods. Some people prefer low-carb diets for various reasons, or need to manage carbs because of a health condition like diabetes, but if those things don't apply, I feel like limiting carbs just adds another layer of complexity on top of mainly or entirely plant-based eating. There do exist keto vegans, I'm told, but I wouldn't remotely consider that myself. From personal experience, low carb diets aren't universally essential for weight loss. If a person finds that carbs spike appetite, that can matter. I don't find that to be the case with the carbs I eat, for me. YMMV.

    Enough (too much) yammer yammer yammer. You were warned! If you have questions, please ask.

    Best wishes!

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