If it fits your macros.....

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witchy_wife
witchy_wife Posts: 792 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
How many people on here follow this idea and does it work out ok for you?

I had been eating low carb and it does work for me, really helps keep the appetite low and the weight definitely seems to come off quicker for me.

But I was getting real bored of it so decided I would have a break. I'm still sticking to my calorie goals as set by MFP (to lose 1lb a week) and exercising (eat about 80% of those back). But does it really matter WHAT you eat?

Today I have eaten two portions of fruit, wholegrain pasta, yoghurt, dinner tonight with be stir fry with chicken and veggies. So there is plenty of good stuff in there, so if I have calories left today should it be ok that I just ate some crisps (potato chips for those in US) and some chocolate?

What are people's thoughts?
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Replies

  • DanaDark
    DanaDark Posts: 2,187 Member
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    I subscribe to the if its within your macros idea.

    There really is no bad food or good food. It all depends on what you need at that specific time.

    The benefits you are seeing from the low carb diet is simply due to you increased protein intake. Protein helps you feel full longer. Most carbs do not offer the same benefit as protein in the satiety area. Fibrous carbs do offer that but others don't.

    For thousands of years humans have been eating carbs, fats, and proteins. I highly doubt that in the past 60 years one of those food groups suddenly made us all get fat. Truthfully, it is the AMOUNT we eat that gets us larger.
  • witchy_wife
    witchy_wife Posts: 792 Member
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    I was following high fat, low carb, moderate protein but between the fat and protein I definitely felt less hungry on lower carbs so you are right there. And carbs certainly don't fill me up as much as fat / protein which is why I am asking the question I guess :) Thanks for your reply.
  • DanaDark
    DanaDark Posts: 2,187 Member
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    I was following high fat, low carb, moderate protein but between the fat and protein I definitely felt less hungry on lower carbs so you are right there. And carbs certainly don't fill me up as much as fat / protein which is why I am asking the question I guess :) Thanks for your reply.

    And since most carbs don't fill us up as much, we tend to eat more of them! Thus, it is more the amount than it is the type.

    So long as what you are doing provides you with your proper nutrients, ample protein, and is sustainable, then however you choose to split your macros is fine.
  • jynxxxed
    jynxxxed Posts: 1,010 Member
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    Works well for me.
  • cedarghost
    cedarghost Posts: 621 Member
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    I follow it and it works great. Now if I could just quit changing my macros......lol
  • krickeyuu
    krickeyuu Posts: 344 Member
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    Yeah, I basically follow this just to make sure I am eating at least 80% healthy foods for most of my calories. Then I exercise and enjoy wine or chocolate or both. But honestly, I lost most of my 21 lbs by just cutting calories, not paying any attention to what I was eating or drinking. It was fairly recently that I decided I needed to eat healthier foods. Mostly when I lowered my sodium to try and get off my HBP meds.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    I follow it and I'm very glad I do.
  • MidwestAngel
    MidwestAngel Posts: 1,897 Member
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    I follow it and it's been working for me so far.
  • zachatta
    zachatta Posts: 1,340 Member
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    Works fine.
  • shanolap
    shanolap Posts: 1,204 Member
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    Yep, works for me. :drinker:
  • testease
    testease Posts: 220
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    Its a winning strategy.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    How many people on here follow this idea and does it work out ok for you?

    I had been eating low carb and it does work for me, really helps keep the appetite low and the weight definitely seems to come off quicker for me.

    But I was getting real bored of it so decided I would have a break. I'm still sticking to my calorie goals as set by MFP (to lose 1lb a week) and exercising (eat about 80% of those back). But does it really matter WHAT you eat?

    Today I have eaten two portions of fruit, wholegrain pasta, yoghurt, dinner tonight with be stir fry with chicken and veggies. So there is plenty of good stuff in there, so if I have calories left today should it be ok that I just ate some crisps (potato chips for those in US) and some chocolate?

    What are people's thoughts?

    It's the best strategy ever for a healthy diet that is sustainable for a lifetime. It's working splendidly for me!
  • Cranktastic
    Cranktastic Posts: 1,517 Member
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    AHmnomNOmnom
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
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    I follow it, and it works well for me.

    Thought I'd mention though that nobody's two goals are the same, so you set your macros based on your own personal goals. If you function best on low carb for instance, crisps would probably not fit your macros, if you've eaten other carbohydrates that day.

    I don't go low carb, just have minimum goals for protein, and fibre. As well as minimum for fat (but I don't worry about that so much because I nearly always hit it!) Therefore, if I reach these targets (regardless of which foods I ate) then I'm happy and should reach my goal. When I'm losing weight this will also include staying under my calories.
  • rebeccap13
    rebeccap13 Posts: 754 Member
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    I do :) Used to be pretty restrictive with what I ate which uncovered some food sensitivities but now I follow IIFYM and just keep those sensitivities in mind. It's worked great for me, especially to build a better relationship with food.
  • AlabasterVerve
    AlabasterVerve Posts: 3,171 Member
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    It's always worked for me in the past. I prefer the diet I eat now and can't see myself ever going back to the IIFYM mindset but the majority of people lose weight just fine with that approach.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
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    It's always worked for me in the past. I prefer the diet I eat now and can't see myself ever going back to the IIFYM mindset but the majority of people lose weight just fine with that approach.

    And the ones that don't probably just have the wrong macros set up, or have some sort of adherence issue.
  • minsooky
    minsooky Posts: 59
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    The main rule of IIFYM is that you should fill your macronutrient needs with wholesome, micronutrient rich food. Once you achieve that, and if you have any calories left to spare, you can fill up the rest with anyone you want. For me, that's usually an extra 200-300 cals. Doesn't mean eat whatever you want to meet your needs...only after you meet those needs can you do that ;)
  • minsooky
    minsooky Posts: 59
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    Must say it is a bit refreshing to see people who actually understand and don't think it's horrible because it's not clean eating/paleo. I used to post on the Bodybuilding.com forums and they all thought it meant you could eat pop tarts all day lol.
  • witchy_wife
    witchy_wife Posts: 792 Member
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    Very cool! Thanks for the replies everyone :)

    At the moment I am eating between 1600-1700 calories a day plus around 80% of exercise calories (don't trust MFP for calculations, no way do I burn nearly 500 calories swimming for 35 minutes!). I'm 5ft 4inch woman, 31yrs old and currently weigh 200lbs. Bearing in mind that I do tend to lose weight better when I restrict carbs, could anyone please recommend a % split that I can set my macros to in mfp to help track this? I exercise 5 x a week (strength routine x 3 and fast walking on treadmill x 2). Thanks x

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