How can I possibly get enough fat? Or does it even matter?

Berkables

Don't worry, this isn't a post about how it's hard for me to eat enough! It's not hard at all.


I'm just curious:

I eat 1200/day, five days a week (averaging about 1600/day with my cheat meals factored in). I almost always go over on carbs, sugar, and protein while staying under my calories. It seems near impossible not to: if I so much as look at a piece of fruit, I've gone over on my sugar! However, according to MFP, I almost never get enough fat. How can one possibly reach their fat allotment without going wayyyyy over on protein or sugar? Does it matter? Is it better to hit the fat goal and go over on other things, or stay under on all things across the board? macros confuse me no end. Any help would be appreciated!!

I know it's calories in v. calories out when it comes to weight loss, but I'm curious from a health and sustainability perspective. Thanks!

SingRunTing

Use full fat dairy or eat more nuts.

Meerataila

It matters in the long run, you do have to have a certain amount of fat in your diet. Avocado is a good source, as well as the aforementioned nuts and full fat dairy.

VeryKatie

Maybe try less lean cuts of meat. If you're using extra lean ground beef, switch to lean. It'll be the same amount of protein (if you were going to have ground beef anyway) but contain a bit more fat. Or you could start eating the chicken with some skin, etc.

It might mean you need to adjust other calories though. If you're over on sugar, maybe try cutting out one piece of fruit (I know I eat too much fruit too but it's sooo tasty) in exchange for the skin on the chicken/fattier beef.

ETA: OH! Try roasting veggies in olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper once in a while too. Or you could take fish oil tablets (Omega 3). I'm sure those have part of your daily intake of fat.

Berkables

Thanks, all. I'm just worried that with full fat dairy etc. it'll be difficult to stay under 1200 calories/day and feel full. But I guess I do have some junk in my diet that I could replace with avocados and dairy! Nuts seems to contribute to the protein problem, though.

AliceDark

You don't need to worry about sugar at all -- the only macros you really need to look at are fat, carbs and protein.

StaciMarie1974

Eating more fat (9 cal per g) will make it harder to stay under 1200. Perhaps you need to reassess your daily goal?

Athijade

No reason to worry about sugar unless you have an actual medical reason to do so.

Don't use fat free products or even reduced fat.

danfeldman494

Dietary fat is an important part of the diet, and going too low on fat is definitely no good...

that being said, some people perform better on lower fat diets, and others function better on higher fat (and lower carb) diets. There are actually various genetic factors that may determine how you respond to dietary fats vs. carbohydrates.

If you want to add more fat into your diet, it's important to make sure that you don't exceed your calorie needs, as fat is quite calorie dense. I suggest that if you add more fat into your diet, compensate by decreasing your carbohydrates/sugars.

Nuts, seeds, avocados, olive oil, coconut oil, high quality fatty fish (such as salmon) are all excellent sources of healthy fats.

Try to do it gradually...maybe a few nuts here and there, or an occasional fattier cut of meat, no need to go crazy.

Monitor yourself...if you change your diet and you don't feel good, gain weight, or whatever, adjust accordingly. Self-discovery is a very important part of the journey. Self-experimentation is key!

Hope this helped!!

Dan

lemurcat12

That's so funny--I have to work to hit my protein (I raised it to 30%, but still) and am almost never over on my sugar despite not even trying to watch it and even though I think I eat plenty of fruit, and tend to eat below my carbs, yet fat is usually over. I don't find this to be a problem, but maybe we ought to compare diaries (although mine has been atypical the last week because I've been going out too much and the oven part of my oven has been broken).

Looking back to more typical days, major fat sources for me are: eggs, olive oil (even when I use the spray I estimate fractions of a TBSP, because it obviously has calories), meat (including salmon), dairy (mostly 2%, occasionally whole). Also nuts and avocado from time to time.

lemurcat12

Thanks, all. I'm just worried that with full fat dairy etc. it'll be difficult to stay under 1200 calories/day and feel full. But I guess I do have some junk in my diet that I could replace with avocados and dairy! Nuts seems to contribute to the protein problem, though.

There is no protein problem. At 1200 you are almost certainly not too high on protein, especially if you are also high on carbs. You can think of the protein number from MFP as more of a minimum.

enoliaa

I love cheese and eggs, I do easily me fat objective, I though exceed lightly my sugar and protein but I think it is fine to exceed the protein, not sure sugar is good though but yes it is a challenge to satisfy all macros, it is possible though, I had weeks where I hit all my objectives!
You could go more wild by eating fries, and other fried chicken, spring rolls, lasagna, etc. For me, it is cheese and/or eggs every morning and when I want to binge, sour cream and chips

grimendale

Thanks, all. I'm just worried that with full fat dairy etc. it'll be difficult to stay under 1200 calories/day and feel full. But I guess I do have some junk in my diet that I could replace with avocados and dairy! Nuts seems to contribute to the protein problem, though.

There is no protein problem. At 1200 you are almost certainly not too high on protein, especially if you are also high on carbs. You can think of the protein number from MFP as more of a minimum.

This. Protein is a minimum goal, as is fat. Carbs should be a max goal. Unless you are eating an absurd amount of protein (and at 1200 calories, that's effectively impossible), you can't eat too much. Don't worry about busting on sugar either. As long as you are under calories and over on protein and fat, you're fine.

Brownsbacker4evr

Nuts are always my go to for the good fats. Be sure to get lightly salted or plain ones though. Otherwise you're getting a bunch of sodium among other things you don't need.

NumbrsNerd

I'm on a high fat intake diet as arranged w/my doctor for my specific medical conditions.

I drink "bulletproof coffee" for breakfast: 1 cup of coffee, 2 tbsp grass fed butter, 1 tbsp coconut oil, and vanilla flavored Stevia. It packs 320 cals, 0 protein, 0 carbs, and 36 grams of fat.

I don't eat anything else for breakfast, but honestly I do not feel the need to anyway. I get hungry daily around 11 - 12ish; in time for lunch.

My target is between 1200 and 1300 and I manage to hit it just fine. I do stick to lean cuts of meats for the rest of the day and avoid nuts and dairy to ensure my fat doesn't go too high.

Good luck!

njitaliana

Add more full fat dressings to salads. Dip veggies in full fat dressings. Drink a glass of full fat milk or eat some yogurt. And this is probably the easiest way: don't forget to add the fat that you use in cooking. If you stir fry in olive oil, add the olive oil. If you saute in margarine, add the margarine. And so on.

Mischievous_Rascal

Thanks, all. I'm just worried that with full fat dairy etc. it'll be difficult to stay under 1200 calories/day and feel full. But I guess I do have some junk in my diet that I could replace with avocados and dairy! Nuts seems to contribute to the protein problem, though.

There is no protein problem. At 1200 you are almost certainly not too high on protein, especially if you are also high on carbs. You can think of the protein number from MFP as more of a minimum.

This. Protein is a minimum goal, as is fat. Carbs should be a max goal. Unless you are eating an absurd amount of protein (and at 1200 calories, that's effectively impossible), you can't eat too much. Don't worry about busting on sugar either. As long as you are under calories and over on protein and fat, you're fine.

For eating only the bare 1200 minimum, this is the best advice you can get. However, IMO, with only 25 pounds to lose, you've set your goal too aggressively. One pound a week is slow, steady and, most importantly, maintainable. If you really want to stop yo-yoing, stop looking for the fast way out. You could definitely eat a little more, especially protein and fat. Check this out and all the links it references:

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

konerusp

Actually fats help assimilation of nutrients,my mom never included too much fat in our diets,and that was something I had to get my body used to when I grew up.

I now eat a small portion of nuts or avocado or clarified butter(ghee) every day to meet my fat requirements.We also use grated coconut and coconut milk in our foods.

Unknown

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rml_16

Get enough fat if you don't want to lose your hair and nails and develop ailments due to not absorbing fat-soluble vitamins. Fat is ESSENTIAL.

Add a couple teaspoons of oil to something every day if you have to. Fat is the one thing I'm always over on, even when I'm under calories. I don't know what you're eating that you're having trouble with this ...

martinel2099

It's pretty important to make sure you are getting the recommended amounts of fats and protein into your diet. I find little things like cheese and mayo/horse radish on sandwiches to be a great way to get them into my diet.

bcattoes

I have the opposite problem. I have to really watch my fat intake or I easily eat way too much.

Cook your meat and veggies with a little extra virgin olive oil or whatever fat you prefer.

Use olive oil based dressings for salads

cwolfman13

You just have to balance out your diet better...it sounds like you have a very carb heavy diet (noun) if you are constantly going over there but under fat and protein.

Also, I would suggest tracking carbs as a whole rather than sugar as a subset unless you have some specific reason for doing so like diabetes or another medical condition.

Also, I wouldn't worry at all about going over on protein...it is difficult to have too much protein.

Ultimately, calories are what is most important here...but I'd definitely suggest making efforts towards balancing your diet and getting proper nutrition which includes dietary fat...truly getting optimal nutrition on 1200 calories is pretty difficult though, it's a pretty paltry calorie goal and just about as aggressive as you can get.

laurie04427

I'm mainly getting mine via peanut butter and olive oil when I cook stuff.

87monkey

Add coconut oil to your diet. It is high in fat and has lots of health benefits . I add a tablespoon a day to my coffee. It is 120 calories, but I always feel super energetic after drinking it.

redmagpie91

I'm on a high fat intake diet as arranged w/my doctor for my specific medical conditions.

I drink "bulletproof coffee" for breakfast: 1 cup of coffee, 2 tbsp grass fed butter, 1 tbsp coconut oil, and vanilla flavored Stevia. It packs 320 cals, 0 protein, 0 carbs, and 36 grams of fat.

I don't eat anything else for breakfast, but honestly I do not feel the need to anyway. I get hungry daily around 11 - 12ish; in time for lunch.

My target is between 1200 and 1300 and I manage to hit it just fine. I do stick to lean cuts of meats for the rest of the day and avoid nuts and dairy to ensure my fat doesn't go too high.

Good luck!

Does that coffee actually taste good? I am thinking about trying to cut down my carbs and increase my fat as I am ALWAYS tired and extremely lethargic, but I hate fatty milk. Anything other than skim churns my stomach just because it grosses me out for some reason.

NumbrsNerd

I think it's delicious - especially with the vanilla stevia (I use Sweet Leaf brand drops). I was skeptical. You have to blend it somehow (I use an immersion blender); otherwise, you are drinking a cup of coffee with grease on top. Oh, and it has to be unsalted butter, of course. I've made it with salted - it's drinkable, but it's much better with unsalted.

Berkables

Thanks, everyone! I am getting a lot of good ideas, although it does seem difficult to get enough fat while staying under 1200 calories. So my next question is: can one count fats as a weekly average, the way I do with calories, or do I need a minimum amount every single day? As I said in my original post, I only eat 1200/day five days a week. I eat A LOT more than that on the other two days, and I get plenty of fat on those days. So if my weekly average of fat is good, is that enough?