I love carbs... will they really get in my way?

Slim_strategy

Ok so I achieved my goal weight recently and I'm working on body composition now + working my way up to maintenance calories... I eat 50% carbs and I love it, I eat oatmeal for breakfast, pasta for dinner, fruit smoothies, and these all fit nicely with this macro, but wherever I look I see people saying that you can't lose a lot of body fat and get a lean look if you eat too many carbs.. :L do I really need to reduce my carbs to reduce my body fat? my diary is open also.

Mr_Knight

do I really need to reduce my carbs to reduce my body fat?

No, you don't.

rockmama72

Nope. I've lost weight successfully in the past, kept my pasta, and wore a bikini. Strength training mixed with cardio was my magic wand. That's what made everything tight.

Edited to add that I don't eat a TON of bread and pasta.

Escape_Artist

Calories in vs calories out
As long as you are at a deficit, even with carbs the weight will drop. There is no need to eliminate them, unless for a medical reason.

Enjoy your carbs :flowerforyou:

twixlepennie

I'm also in maintenance and my macros are set 45c/35f/20p (LBM is around 97lbs). My carbs are set higher than yours, but my calories are set to 2,250 a day, so that's where the difference comes in Just experiment with different macros splits and see which way works best for you!

ETA: My bf% is around 17% and I eat a lot of carbs

Eta2: we seem very much alike, besides the fact that I'm a lot older than you I'm 5ft, 6in and also doing strength training now. My maintenance range is 117.5-120lbs

Slim_strategy

Thank you for the replies guys! I have been doing strength training and noticing small differences but it's just hard to stay positive when all I read is that you can't be successful unless you eat ungodly amounts of protein and tiny amounts of carbs XD

@ twixlepennie You have a lovely body! Good to hear you eat the carbs I was thinking of doing your ratio but I was worried that the fat might have been too high but your body says otherwise lol! xD My bodyfat% was around 22.3% the last time I checked a few days ago, aiming for around 18-20%

I couldn't imagine life without smoothies + pasta

twixlepennie

Thank you for the replies guys! I have been doing strength training and noticing small differences but it's just hard to stay positive when all I read is that you can't be successful unless you eat ungodly amounts of protein and tiny amounts of carbs XD

@ twixlepennie You have a lovely body! Good to hear you eat the carbs I was thinking of doing your ratio but I was worried that the fat might have been too high but your body says otherwise lol! xD My bodyfat% was around 22.3% the last time I checked a few days ago, aiming for around 18-20%

I couldn't imagine life without smoothies + pasta

I'm new to aiming for specific macro ratios (this is pretty much my first week of focusing on them), but I've always eaten a lot of carbs :bigsmile: I'm really liking the 45c/35f/20p split so far!

KANGOOJUMPS

NO!, carbs are good, and they are your fuel!

amandakev88

ive just begun my journey but im glad you posted this--im italian, and if i cant eat carbs, i will be disowned.

and they taste great. pasta? uh YEAH. ive been exercising, watching calories, etc. but i haven't *cut* carbs. i mean ive changed white rice to brown rice but i still eat white pasta, bread etc. i try to make a whole grain choice when it comes to bread and eat less than i used to but im fairly sure i will never ever be able to cut out carbs.

also, before a workout, they are AMAZING.

Slim_strategy

I'm new to aiming for specific macro ratios (this is pretty much my first week of focusing on them), but I've always eaten a lot of carbs :bigsmile: I'm really liking the 45c/35f/20p split so far!

I think I might steal your macros at some point

Slim_strategy

ive just begun my journey but im glad you posted this--im italian, and if i cant eat carbs, i will be disowned.

and they taste great. pasta? uh YEAH. ive been exercising, watching calories, etc. but i haven't *cut* carbs. i mean ive changed white rice to brown rice but i still eat white pasta, bread etc. i try to make a whole grain choice when it comes to bread and eat less than i used to but im fairly sure i will never ever be able to cut out carbs.

also, before a workout, they are AMAZING.

Firstly I will say, You have a very beautiful Italian look xD I'm actually part italian ! I'm glad this post might have helped, I think it definitely eased some of my own issues XD I don't think I could ever cut carbs either, after all it's meant to be a lifestyle change and I couldn't live life without a decent amount !

duffypratt

If you are trying to gain/tone muscle, you will have to have enough protein to support the muscle gain. That may mean adding some protein, but if you are doing enough exercise, the extra that you eat should simply come from the exercise calories.

For the amount of body fat you carry, the source of the calories is almost completely irrelevant. As fuel, we can get 4 calories from a gram of either protein or carb, and 9 from a gram of fat. The main trouble with the carbs you listed is that they tend to be relatively nutrient poor. But if you are getting ample nutrition, and have the room in your daily allowance to eat that kind of food, then its fine.

twixlepennie

I'm new to aiming for specific macro ratios (this is pretty much my first week of focusing on them), but I've always eaten a lot of carbs :bigsmile: I'm really liking the 45c/35f/20p split so far!

I think I might steal your macros at some point

That's ok, I stole them from someone else :laugh:

Springfield1970

Carbs!! Love em!! Lost 10% body fat on them.

I eat 110-130g protein per day and the rest carbs n fat.

One thing though, 50g of pasta looks so forlorn in the saucepan it always makes me a bit sad.

That's why I try and work it so I can have mooooore!

It's the calorie deficit that will bring your fat level down. Just keep it at about -15% tdee and you'll not lose LBM.