Food and calorie related

red_devil786

Can someone please guide me about low carb or high carb low fat or high fat diets what does it mean and what will be best for me since I'm new to all of this and my goal is 1200 calories per day but with what foods I'm not sure. I am currently 80kgs and need to lose 20kgs to be under healthy BMI.

yirara

Hi there,

I'd suggest just forgetting about macro goals. What you need to do is to figure out what keeps you full and happy. There's no point eating a specific diet if you hate it and stop eating this way once you've reached goal weight. Then you regain because you've not learned how to eat outside of the weightloss period. Thus log your food, maybe make notes what worked and what didn't work. Make small changes. Maybe try new food things, and if they're yucky then just don't.

Also, I wonder if 1200 calories really is necessary. The art of losing weight is to eat in a way that keeps you full and happy. if either is not given then you give up. Often it's better to lose a bit slower, lose a bit slower, but eat enough and have treats every now and then.

Lietchi

Macros are secondary to calorie intake. Barring medical issues (for example diabetes) a general guideline:

• sufficient protein to protect against muscle loss
• sufficient fat for hormonal health (and for digestive transit)
• anything else is purely what your prefer/what satiates you/what gives you enough energy

Some people find low carb filling, others (like me) prefer a higher carb intake because low carb makes them miserable,… So feel free to experiment and see what works for you.

springlering62

IMHO, I agree. Forget macros at first. It’s overwhelming enough to worry about calories, finding what’s nutritious and what’s not, learning to weigh accurately, finding accurate entries to log etc.

You don’t have to do everything perfect from day 1.

I didn’t even worry about macros my first year.

However, what I did find was, as I learned to control portions, make better choices, etc etc my macros started to fall into place decently all by themselves.

Also, taking a while before you focus on macros lets YOU determine which macro you might want to focus on. I can eat a bowl of healthy airpop popcorn and be hungry again in ten minutes. Carbs just go right in me and out the other side. But, if I eat something with protein, it’s very satiating and satisfying and I don’t feel peckish again for a while.

Others report that carbs or even fats do the same for them. Everyone is individual.

You’ll start to get a feel after a few weeks.

also, if you just check macros, consider checking your weekly average versus daily. You can make yourself mental trying to meet calories, carbs, protein, and fats on a daily basis. Look at the weekly average instead, and you may be much happier, and more relaxed as a result.

Let macros sort themselves out while you sort out the bigger issues to start with.

Also agree about the 1200 being potentially too low.

Where did you come up with that number? That’s the least MfP will let you enter as a goal.

Is this a number you “heard” somewhere was a good number? Or did you enter a rapid weight loss goal?

It’s so much better to lose slower, build habits, take the time to learn the app, plan for maintenance (too few people here do that, hence so many “I’m back!” posts).

Wouldn’t you rather lose half a pound or a pound a week, and after a year, still have that 27-52 pounds remain off, than cut hard to lose fast, binge on the rebound, cut harder, binge worse and give up in a couple weeks?

westrich20940

I'd argue that if you have less than ~50lbs to lose…and aren't at least moderately/highly active - I'd highly recommend NOT choosing to lose 2lbs/week. I'd honestly choose .5lbs or 1lb/week. You need to figure out what amount of calories you need (theoretically) in a day to maintain your current weight - and then from there figure out how much actual wiggle room you have to create a deficit without going below your BMR.

Example - I started weighing ~155lbs…but I have a desk job. The only activity I do is intentional physical activity. Climbing, hiking, running. Maybe going to the gym …not religiously but casually. So I'd consider my self sedentary. If I'm not planning to do any of the above activity - I'm going to work, and then just home. I'm not really using many calories above my regular daily need. So I really didn't have 500 calories a day to cut out of my diet in order to lose 2lbs per week. This is all just my opinion based on my experience. I def started out attempting to eat 1200 calories per day - but quickly realized that was NOT going to work or be sustainable. I also felt like *kitten*.

For MOST women (I'm assuming your gender…but correct me if I'm wrong) 1200 calories a day isn't going to be appropriate. Unless you are very short.

I'd try to use some other ways to calculate how many calories you need in a day - try a TDEE calculator for example. But ultimately remember that you don't want to eat less than your BMR, which in *most (not all) cases will be MORE than 1200 calories per day or around there.

From there, focus on calories per day - you will get a better feel for what split to do with macros as you progress. Prioritize protein is the only advice I'd give you. But depending on your activity level on different days you might want more or less fat/carbs - or even based on what food related plans you have (parties, social gatherings, etc.). You may also find once you log for a consistent amount of time that there are certain levels of macros that keep you more on track with daily calorie goals. Example: if I eat a breakfast that is higher in carbs, less in protein —- I will be hungry ~2-3 hours earlier than if I eat a breakfast that is higher in protein/fat, and less in carbs. So that's how I tend to figure out what my macro split should be. However, I will say that I very much don't focus on my macro split. But that's a personal decision.

csplatt

None of the above. Just focus on learning how to count calories and getting to your goal and don't worry about the rest.

neanderthin

Calories are actually food and which type of food, macros and diet would suit your circumstances best is difficult to assess without knowing your metabolic health. I would say to try and consume more nutrient dense foods as opposed to calorie dense, which mostly represents a whole food diet and less takeout and processed foods. Good luck going forward.😊

ddsb1111

Where did you get the 1200 calorie goal. Break it down for us.

Unknown

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springlering62

Good advice, but your profile pic is touting a vitamin website.