What are your strategies for balancing nutrition/calories?

dogpeeps
dogpeeps Posts: 57 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am starting to take notice of more than just the number of calories in my diary. I am consistently over in fiber due to Fiber One. I think I’m OK with that since doc said I need to amp my fiber for health reasons.

As I take a look at today’s snapshot I see I am quite a bit over in the Carbs department. Looking at today I see I have Fiber One, Pasta, Chinese noodles w/Turkey Mock Chow Mein as the large criminals. I will have to be a bit more mindful of the “types” of food I consume in a day to make things more balanced.

This is WAY different that than the WW prescribed method. They tell you to focus on fat & fiber and not really much about carbs and protein. (Although WW makes one shy away from the carbs because they gouge you on points.)

I’m looking for strategies that have worked for others in achieving a balanced day. (I DO keep in mind that not every day is a perfect day.)

Replies

  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I had to customize my macro settings...MFP's defaults are pretty carb heavy and pretty low on protein. One of my big things when I started was wanting to get my carbs down due to high triglycerides and pre-diabetic blood sugar levels...I also wanted to get my sat fats down and my good fats up (high cholesterol).

    I started out doing 50c/25p/25hf and limiting my sat fats to 15g. I previously had a very carb heavy diet and I kind of had to ween myself back. I'm now at 40c/30p/30hf and still limit my sat fats to 15 g.

    Doing this has required that I cut back a lot on those carby snacks I always loved as well as heavily refined breads, rices, etc. Most of my carbs now come from fruit and veg and some grains, but I try to make most of those whole grains and brown rice (though I still refuse to do whole wheat pasta).

    All of this has resulted in a diet that is comprised 60% of lean proteins and heart healthy fats and 40% carbs. My blood sugar levels are now normal and my triglycerides and cholesterol numbers are dropping like rocks.
  • petstorekitty
    petstorekitty Posts: 592 Member
    Changing the Macros to what better suits you is a good start.
    I have often heard that MFP sets protien rather low, for example.

    Personally I started ignoring the Macros and focus on calories and feeling full, energized, etc. instead.

    I know that if I eat more carbs I will be hungry again sooner. More suagr? I will get tired. Not enough cheese? I crave cheese like a crazy person and then I want cheese fries and cheese burritos.


    So, my strategy has been to find out what I can eat that will keep me full and happy and what makes me feel good versus what makes me feel crappy.

    I only recently actually started putting the actual foods in my diary versus just calorie #s but you can feel free to check out what I eat.

    Last night I had rice and seriously couldn't stop eating it. I'm like that with tortillas too. They are like crack! hahaha

    But the cottage cheese I eat all the time helps with my weird cheese cravings and it keeps me full :)
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    I care about total cals, fats and protein. I pay attention to carbs when my training is especially high or when energy levels aren't what they should be. Aside from that, I don't much care about the rest.

    I eat what I like/want as long as it helps me hit my calorie and macro goals. I take a multi and a fish oil as insurance.

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