When it comes to macros...

sunnshhiine

MFP set my daily macros at 55% carbs, 25% fat, and 20% protein. I just recently started watching those numbers with my daily intake of food.

Just a quick question... do they really matter?

I know some diets promote high fat/high protein and low carb. Other diets are carb-based with protein, but low fat.

So I'm curious to know if it's going to hurt my "diet" any if I'm over my "fat" allowance one day, over my carb allowance another day, and so on and so forth. Should I be trying to cut down on the carbs and increasing my protein and fat intake?

Or does it really all just boil down to calories in, calories out -- as long as there's a deficit at the end of the day, that's what really matters (I mean, within reason... not 1200 calories of chocolate cake...)?

kristen2713

You're probably going to get a million different answers on this, but it really depends on what your goals are for your body. Just general weight loss if you have a fair amount to lose, it basically boils down to calories in and out. FYI, MFP really sets the bar too low at 1200 calories, and you should do your BMR, TDEE, and figure out what you really need. You don't need to starve to lose weight. Macros really make a difference when you're trying to reshape or transform your body, and that can vary a lot of different ways, and there are a lot of different opinions on what you should set them at throughout the phases of your "transformation". Hope this makes sense and helps you out a bit! Good luck!!

sunnshhiine

You're probably going to get a million different answers on this, but it really depends on what your goals are for your body. Just general weight loss if you have a fair amount to lose, it basically boils down to calories in and out. FYI, MFP really sets the bar too low at 1200 calories, and you should do your BMR, TDEE, and figure out what you really need. You don't need to starve to lose weight. Macros really make a difference when you're trying to reshape or transform your body, and that can vary a lot of different ways, and there are a lot of different opinions on what you should set them at throughout the phases of your "transformation". Hope this makes sense and helps you out a bit! Good luck!!

I have my daily intake set at 1300 (versus the 1200 MFP originally set for me). I usually eat around 1300 on days when I don't exercise. And on days that I do exercise I eat some of my workout calories back. I. Love. Food. nomnomnom.

jpolinisse

You're probably going to get a million different answers on this, but it really depends on what your goals are for your body. Just general weight loss if you have a fair amount to lose, it basically boils down to calories in and out. FYI, MFP really sets the bar too low at 1200 calories, and you should do your BMR, TDEE, and figure out what you really need. You don't need to starve to lose weight. Macros really make a difference when you're trying to reshape or transform your body, and that can vary a lot of different ways, and there are a lot of different opinions on what you should set them at throughout the phases of your "transformation". Hope this makes sense and helps you out a bit! Good luck!!

MFP does not set the bar, the user does.

jacksonpt

Generally speaking, weight loss is solely about calorie intake, so macros don't matter there (assuming we are talking about normal eating patterns and not something ridiculous that only comes up on internet forums).

For other goals (like workout/race performance, body composition, sustainability, health concerns, dietary preferences, etc), then macros most definitely do matter.

darkangel45422

As the other posters have mentioned, you'll get a lot of different opinions on this because people all have their methods that work for them, and because science hasn't come to a definitive conclusion. A calorie deficit WILL matter for weight loss because obviously if you're taking in way more calories than your body is burning you aren't likely to lose weight. But there is some evidence that suggests the kinds of foods you eat will impact whether or not you lose weight; for example:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2459915/Could-low-fat-diet-make-EVEN-FATTER-As-experts-question-conventional-wisdom-diets-extraordinary-results-mans-experiment.html

This is by no means a scientific experiment but it does show that calories-in/calories-out might not be the whole story.

Personally, I try to limit the number of carbs I take in because I personally believe that it'll not only help with weight loss but also make room for more useful macronutrients - protein and fat. We don't need dietary carbs but we do need fat and protein so -shrugs- Like I said, this is just one person's view of things so take it all with a grain of salt.

kristen2713

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I have my daily intake set at 1300 (versus the 1200 MFP originally set for me). I usually eat around 1300 on days when I don't exercise. And on days that I do exercise I eat some of my workout calories back. I. Love. Food. nomnomnom.
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MEEEE too Congrats on your 21 lost already! Don't stress about the over and under thing. If you have MFP on your phone, the nutrition pie graph will show you not only a daily view of your macros, but you can check out how you're doing on a 7 day average as well, if you find that macros are important to your goals.

And thank you jpolinisse, you're correct that the user does set it...I just meant that MFP suggests too little in general for the basic "lifestyle" a person might choose. Really every person and every body is different and it sometimes takes weeks of tweeking to figure out what works for you.

sunnshhiine

Thanks, everyone!! I appreciate your help!

Just to clarify: right now I'm just looking to lose weight, with mild-moderate exercising (mostly walking, occasionaly a workout DVD).

sunnshhiine

MEEEE too Congrats on your 21 lost already! Don't stress about the over and under thing. If you have MFP on your phone, the nutrition pie graph will show you not only a daily view of your macros, but you can check out how you're doing on a 7 day average as well, if you find that macros are important to your goals.

And thank you jpolinisse, you're correct that the user does set it...I just meant that MFP suggests too little in general for the basic "lifestyle" a person might choose. Really every person and every body is different and it sometimes takes weeks of tweeking to figure out what works for you.

Yeah -- that's how I originally discovered that MFP had my macros set where they are -- that little pie chart on the app. LOL. I'll have to play around with it some more to figure out how to see the graph for the whole of 7 days. Thanks for you help, and good luck in your goals!!