calculating macro ratios actually eaten - help??

jody0912

question regarding ratios:

I read in some old community posts that a gram of carbs = 4 calories, a gram of protein = 4 calories, and a gram of fat = 9 calories.

I tried to calculate the ratio of what I actually ate (as opposed to my goal), and I'm coming out higher than 100% every time. Can anyone explain what I'm doing wrong?

example:
breakfast = 412 calories, 52 grams of carbs, 39 grams of protein and 9 grams of fat.

What I did:
protein - 52 (times) 4 (divided by) 412 = 51%
carbs - 39 (times) 4 (divided by) 412 = 38%
fat - 9 (times) 9 (divided by) 412 = 20%
* figures rounded

this adds up to 109%.... what am I doing wrong?? I'd really like to understand this, so any help would be really appreciated!

AI1108

The numbers don't always add up. I'm not 100% sure how they work either as I'm not all that into the science of it but there's a lot more involved with the carbs than just the 4 calories per gram. Sometimes there are insoluble fibers, that shouldn't be added into the equation but most manufacturers just add it in to the calories. You would never be able to tell from the package. They pass through our bodies without being converted to energy. Also if your diet contains any alcohol or sugar alcohol, that may be added in on the packaging even though it shouldn't be added into the equation. Some foods have up to 1% alcohol or sugar alcohol.