What happens when you don't hit your macros?

estaticaa

Some days I will go over / under my carbs, or protein or fat macros, while staying under my calorie goal. I know this doesn't influence my weight loss directly, because as long as I don't consume more calories than I spend I should keep losing weight as I am now, but what happens to your health when you overeat - or not eat enough - macro nutrients?

I know only general stuff, like protein helps you synthesize aminoacids / rebuilding tissue, and that fat helps you absorb vitamins, and that carbs are a great source of energy, etc. But I'd really like to hear your thoughts on how much sticking to your macros - or not paying attention to them - changed your body for the better or worse.

Will_Thrust_For_Candy

Well....it depends on where they are set at and how much of a variance you have.

In the grand scheme of weight loss? Not much happens. In terms of satiety. Yeah, you can find that you aren't feeling as satisfied. If you are lifting, you want to make sure you eating adequate protein for muscle repair. If you are doing endurance training, carbs become more important.

So really it kind of depends on your goals For me, it's important I come as close as I can for 2 reasons 1) my training regime--half marathon training plus strength training. and 2) I feel better overall when I am eating to fuel my activity.

I hope that helps

SezxyStef

For me when I was in a deficit and was lifting heavy all I paid attention to was my protien and calories as I knew that a deficit can hamper lifting at some point. So when I stalled on my weights I didn't think much about it...chalked it up to a deficit in calories, as I was often under...way under in carbs.

Now that I am in maitenance I have a few more calories to eat so what I have noticed is the days that I hit all three relatively closely my lifts feel better, I have more energy and not as lethargic in the evenings.

For example on Monday I had about 75grams of carbs before I lifted...felt like a bag of crap during and after...

Last Friday I ate 2x that many carbs before I lifted and I felt great during and after my workout...

So today and yesterday I am seeing if by having my carbs closer to goal will help or if it was just an off day...I suspect the carbs will be the key.

Will_Thrust_For_Candy

For me when I was in a deficit and was lifting heavy all I paid attention to was my protien and calories as I knew that a deficit can hamper lifting at some point. So when I stalled on my weights I didn't think much about it...chalked it up to a deficit in calories, as I was often under...way under in carbs.

Now that I am in maitenance I have a few more calories to eat so what I have noticed is the days that I hit all three relatively closely my lifts feel better, I have more energy and not as lethargic in the evenings.

For example on Monday I had about 75grams of carbs before I lifted...felt like a bag of crap during and after...

Last Friday I ate 2x that many carbs before I lifted and I felt great during and after my workout...

So today and yesterday I am seeing if by having my carbs closer to goal will help or if it was just an off day...I suspect the carbs will be the key.

Yup. So many of us have focused so much on protein and calories when lifting, when carbs do play a big role in energy for any activity. I did the same thing and have actually recently found the same thing as you :drinker:

estaticaa

Thanks for replying! You're helping me more than you know. At the beginning, I wasn't paying too much attention to my macros, but as I'm reaching my initial goal (which was to lose weight and inches), I realize I still have a long road ahead to become fit and reach a lower body fat percentage. I have a tendency to overeat carbs and never quite manage to hit my protein goal, but I'm trying to rectify that.

All my exercise so far is basically walking / hiking, swimming and dancing, which are probably the only things I really enjoy doing, but I am aware I also need to gain some muscle and strength. I tried a few things at my gym in the past, but I was so sore in the days after, I couldn't do anything. Talked to my trainer about this and she planned something a bit lighter for me in the future, so we'll see how that goes. I've changed my macros to 45% carbs, 30% protein and 25% fat, I hope this is the right thing to do.

TrainingWithTonya

There are a lot of reasons to be at different macros, as mentioned above. For the person saying that they felt better for their lifts with more carbs, that's because the energy for most lifting exercise (if you are going heavy enough to do more than cardio with lifting) comes from about 75-80% carbohydrate and only 15-20% fat. Protein actually only ever provides 2-10% of the actual energy used to fuel the exercises and other activities we are doing.

For most people the macros as MFP sets them are good and just need to be spread out throughout the day so that you have an adequate supply of carbs before exercise for fuel and a mix of carbs and protein after exercise to rebuild and restore glycogen stores. However, there are people who need to change their macros based on health issues. For those who have cancer, for example, they need more protein and carbs and less fat to reduce the risk of tumor regrowth while maintaining muscle mass that can be lost due to treatment. For those who have diabetes, they need to have moderate amounts of all three macros. Unfortunately, most people think diabetes means to cut carbs, which can actually increase their risk of other issues such as heart disease and kidney issues. Those with heart disease need to make sure they are getting the healthier fats and cutting cholesterol and saturated fats. Those with kidney issues need to cut protein. So, as you can see, there are any number of reasons why you would want to adjust your macros to various things. If you have any health issues, see a Registered Dietitian to get a better idea of how your macros should be distributed. Otherwise, stick with the general recommendations as closely as you can. But remember, MFP sets a general recommendation that is within the overall guidelines and not 100% perfect. The recommendations are actually ranges so you can be a little over or a little under the MFP # and still be in the range.