Fat, Carbs, Sugar....

Pattie74

If I stay at or under my calorie goal, how important is it to stay at or under the amount MFP has for the fat, carbs, and sugar?

holly55555

Very important. The quality of your food matters in terms of WHERE you will lose weight and how your body will look. In example, going overboard in certain foods will cause you to retain belly fat - REGARDLESS if you're still losing weight by the numbers.

It is also better to have a higher calorie goal with very healthy foods - whole wheat, etc.. than a low calorie goal of bad food.

You're going to look and feel better. You should be eating a lot of protein, low fat, and only necessary whole wheat carbs (meaning do not go over that percentage).

fast_eddie_72

If I stay at or under my calorie goal, how important is it to stay at or under the amount MFP has for the fat, carbs, and sugar?

It depends.

If you're under on your calorie goal, you'll lose weight. If that's all you're worried about, that's all that matters. On some days I want to eat something junky. I know it's not great food but I want it. On those days, I just try to stay on target for calories. Most days I try to get kinda close to the other numbers. I rarely actually hit them, though.

.It is also better to have a higher calorie goal with very healthy foods - whole wheat, etc.. than a low calorie goal of bad food.

If the higher calorie goal still results in a deficit - assuming you want to lose weight. It'll just take a little longer. Agree, that's a good trade off for getting your body good fuel.

krist3ng

I view it as a goal to aspire to, although I tend to ignore my sugar because 90% of my sugar (except for today, cough) usually comes from fruits and vegetables. Mainly I try to focus on hitting 20% protein (on the pie-chart thing, which is a chart of your macros) and the carbs + fat tend to just naturally hit around the right mark.

florentinovillaro

Calories in calories out.

FitMelody4Life

I agree with the last post that the quality of your food matters.

That being said if you are using MFP guidelines I wouldn’t be too concerned with going over your fats. Your carbs maybe, but it depends on your diet and since your diary is not public I can't see what that diet looks like.

I don't use the MFP macros; I customize my own as my diet needs change. I do feel, that the MFP guidelines are set to low for protein which has a tendency to pitfall people into eating more carbs than they should. But without getting overly technical, if you are just looking to lose weight, the old calories in vs. calories out will always be the determining factor in your losses.

mungowungo

Very important. The quality of your food matters in terms of WHERE you will lose weight and how your body will look. In example, going overboard in certain foods will cause you to retain belly fat - REGARDLESS if you're still losing weight by the numbers.

It is also better to have a higher calorie goal with very healthy foods - whole wheat, etc.. than a low calorie goal of bad food.

You're going to look and feel better. You should be eating a lot of protein, low fat, and only necessary whole wheat carbs (meaning do not go over that percentage).

Oh dear.

1. Sugar on MFP is set low and doesn't differentiate between added sugar in processed food and sugar in fruit and veg. Eat a decent amount of fruit and veg and you will be over in sugar according to MFP.

2. Fat is also set low - think of MFP's goal as a minimum. You need a certain amount of fat to regulate hormones in your body.

3. You cannot control where you lose fat from - your body is funny like that.

4. If you are eating at a deficit you will lose weight - no matter what you eat. That being said adequate protein, fats, vegetables, fruits are better for your general well being.

prattiger65

Very important. The quality of your food matters in terms of WHERE you will lose weight and how your body will look. In example, going overboard in certain foods will cause you to retain belly fat - REGARDLESS if you're still losing weight by the numbers.

It is also better to have a higher calorie goal with very healthy foods - whole wheat, etc.. than a low calorie goal of bad food.

You're going to look and feel better. You should be eating a lot of protein, low fat, and only necessary whole wheat carbs (meaning do not go over that percentage).

Sorry, but this is nonsense. For weight loss, calories are the only thing that matters. If you eat above your maintenance calories you will gain weight regardless of the food, cheeseburgers or "whole" foods, wont matter at all. For being healthy, a balanced diet is important. What I do is look to protein and fat macros first, calories second and carbs a distant third. I dont even trackl sugar because it is just a carb.