What Do You Watch Most? (Calories, Fat, Carbs, Sugar, etc.)

katiebythebay

I've been trying to stay under my calorie goal of 1200, but was recently told the carbs are more important to watch.

In order, I try to maintain:

1) carbohydrates
2) calories
3) daily exercise
3) fat
4) sugar
5) sodium


Would love to know what other people's dietary priorities are.




~katie

purpleipod

The only thing I pay attention to right now is calories.

kateroot

Different things work for different people. I count calories with an emphasis on keeping my carbs relatively low and protein high.

CMmrsfloyd

My main priority is calories, which includes eating most of my exercise calories. (my goal is set to lose 1/2 lb per week currently, which gives me a net goal of 1370, on exercise days I might consume a total of 1800-2000 depending on what I burned that day - and I try to exercise at least 5-6 days a week b/c honsetly I love to eat food LOL). Secondly I like to make sure I eat plenty of protien and fiber - helps keep you feeling full longer. I really don't stress over carbs/fat/sugar/sodium etc. I feel it would stress me out too much and make me a little *too* obsessive, for me personally, plus I have seen consistent results by doing what I do so I have no desire to change it right now. :-)

iKapuniai

Personally, I think carbs are really only important for those who suffer from diabetes or any other insulin related issues, because carbs are needed energy for our bodies and unless there's a medical condition involved, I don't think it's wise to restrict them too much. Of course, simple carbs, such as cookies, cakes, ice creams, etc., we could ALL benefit from kicking out of our diets completely, but realistically speaking... not so much lol

For me, I watch calories the most, because at the end of the day, that's all it really comes down to. Whether you watch carbs, fat, sugar, or anything else, the one thing that'll help you lose/maintain weight are the calories.

Love and Alohas,
Ihilani Kapuniai

170to117

i try to have high in protein and low in saturated fat. I also definitely make sure to stay under target caloric intake.

formersec

I don't pay any attention to sugar as there is sugar occurring naturally in many foods, eg. fruit. Thanks to certain health issues, I also have to watch potassium, protein, calcium and iron levels . I pay attention to these, plus calories, fat, sodium, etc. fairly equally.

kbwdad

It's calories. Everything has calories including carbs. The adage "Calories In / Calories Out" is true. What you need to do learn to balance the food groups which will include carbs, protein, fruits, vegetables, oils etc. The trick is keeping it at 1200 a day and taking in enough food to keep you from being hungry. You'll learn quickly that oils, sweets, meats and fruits will be quite limited but vegetables and whole grains (carbs) will be your friend. I know, I lost 80 pounds on a 1500 a day diet with exercise supervised by dieticians. No drugs or surgeries.

mrFerris

I focus mainly on calories but I try to keep fats in check. I am not too concerned about going over slightly on sugars or protein becau both of these are set quite low. Fats because I want to force my body to burn off the fats and not add to them. 1g of fat delivers twice the calories of 1g of carbs I am told. Having said all that I do try to keep them all under control but calories are the priority.

regions02

I mainly focus on calories. Try to watch the other stuff, but I really do try to stay under cals.

Rae6503

Calories (trying to bulk so I make sure to hit my goal, but I work with a weekly average so some days are more and some are less)
Protein (at least 115g but 150g is better)

That's about it. As long as I eat my 150 in protein I get to eat whatever I want.

Jnine25

I pay attention to calories first, but i do glance at the other stuff. I've found that for myself, if I eat more fiber and protein, I stay full longer. Usually after lunch, I kind of look over carbs and protein and then try to plan my dinner meal accordingly... so if I'm higher in carbs, I'll try to eat something with more protein at dinner. I'm not obsessed with it, just try to keep a balance. Good luck!

thepetiterunner

I watch calories the most and how much I'm exercising, that's it.

I could care less about hitting specific grams for sodium, carbs, proteins, etc.

badgerbadger1

1) calories
2) protein
3) fibre
4) everything else (although I keep my sodium limit fairly tight).

Jeannie1946

Hi ,

I mostly watch Calories, Fat, Protein, and Carbs. I keep a total of it all .



Jeannie

Jnine25

also, if you are feeding yourself a lot of non-healthy foods, you may be more hungry. I had this day yesterday. For some reason I was having a major sweet tooth. I started "snacking" on my daughter's Dove chocolate hearts. Thought i was doing good by eating one here and one there. Before I knew it, I had eaten a whole serving of them (6) and that was 200+ calories. I know for a fact that's why I was so hungry last night. I wasted my precious calories on JUNK!

ki4yxo

Sodium.

foremant86

Calories and Protein, the rest may fall where it falls.

I simply watch protein closely to make sure i'm getting plenty of it!

ahealthy4u

1) Carbohydrates
2) Calories
3) Fiber
4) Fat
5) Sugar
6) Sodium

I try to watch everything I can, exercise is part of that but of late I have been figuring in that last after I am all done with my food intake of the day. I want to see where I am before and after and see if I am on target or way off.

laddyboy

I've been trying to stay under my calorie goal of 1200, but was recently told the carbs are more important to watch.

In order, I try to maintain:

1) carbohydrates
2) calories
3) daily exercise
3) fat
4) sugar
5) sodium
Would love to know what other people's dietary priorities are.
~katie

WHY, a deficit is already figured in for you based on the amount you want to lose weekly. Going under may send you in the wrong direction.

dee74

1) calories
2) daily exercise
3) fat
4) protein

mlang1955

Joined 19 days ago and my first priority was watching sugar and calories. Although I stay away from almost all processed foods, my sugar grams was over 90g per day on day 1 because of all the fruit I was eating. By lowering my sugar as much as possible, I have now lost 7.6 pounds. I am now going to start watching my fat and sodium to try and lower them a little although I am running only a little over. Going over on protein which I often do is not a concern of mine.

LesliePierceRN

I used to watch my carbs and iron, but I was a long distance runner. Now I watch my protein and fiber, because I'm weight lifting. Oh, and I watched the scale when I was running, but not now with the weight lifting.

nk17

I watch
1. Calories
2. Carbs
3. Exercise
4. Sodium (too much retains water)
5. Iron (I seem to always be low.)

janegalt37

1. Calories - I'm doing the Spike Diet, so I get to have more fun with my food throughout the week.
2. Protein - I've been building a LOT of muscle, so I try hard to hit 35% of calories from protein.
3. Exercise - Both strength and cardio. As much as I can handle. Push to the limit, but sure has heck know where that limit is.
4. Carbs - I often get less than my goal of 35% of calories from carbs, and my workouts suffer when I'm under that. Need carbs!
5. Fiber - So great at keeping me feeling full and regular. 25 grams at least, a day.

Since I have no health concerns I don't really worry about anything else. I make sure to get a good portion of my fats from healthy sources and I take a great multivitamin and extra calcium + D, so my bases are covered there.

Even though I've not lost weight, my measurements are looking pretty awesome in a short period of time, so I know I'm doing something right.

Oh, and WATER WATER WATER WATER!

70davis

bump

paignt

For me, it's calories, fiber, protein, cholesterol, sodium, and fat.

thefuzz1290

Calories and Protein, though I'll go over calories slightly if protein is involved.

sauerkrautpolka

Carbs
Sugar
Sodium
Fiber (trying to get more of it in a day)
Calories

jimmie25

Different things work for different people. I count calories with an emphasis on keeping my carbs relatively low and protein high.

That!

trud72

calories,exersice and then protein :bigsmile: