Carbs, Protein, Fats percentages

pixelled

Hey all! I am setting my goals and trying to find the right mix of carbs, proteins and fats in my daily intake. I am trying to burn fat but also build muscle as I strength train 3-5 days a week plus yoga. I also do HIIT cardio so I do need some carbs as well.

I was thinking the following but would love input:

Carbs: 40%
Protein: 30%
Fats: 30%

Wondering if I should up the protein and lower the fat?

ladyraven68

Hey all! I am setting my goals and trying to find the right mix of carbs, proteins and fats in my daily intake. I am trying to burn fat but also build muscle as I strength train 3-5 days a week plus yoga. I also do HIIT cardio so I do need some carbs as well.

I was thinking the following but would love input:

Carbs: 40%
Protein: 30%
Fats: 30%

Wondering if I should up the protein and lower the fat?

That's hard to say without knowing what your calorie intake is - ideally you should be aiming for a set number of protein calories, not a %.


Have a read of this - http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

pixelled

The goal setting in MFP allows for percentages of daily intake and that is the way I've always thought of it.. pieces of the daily pie.. not calorie numbers. More of a ratio.

bpe101

Up fat and protein....lower carbs. But those extra points in fat need to be healthy fats...not greasy, bad fats. You need to keep your healthy fats up when dieting! And eat lots of protein and veggies to maintain muscle mass while dieting!

ladyraven68

The goal setting in MFP allows for percentages of daily intake and that is the way I've always thought of it.. pieces of the daily pie.. not calorie numbers. More of a ratio.

To allow for retention of lean mass, you need a certain amount of protein calories - lets say for me it's 100g. (400 calories)

If my calorie goal is 1200, then that 100g of protein is 33% (rounded up to 35% as MFP only works in multiples of 5,
If my calorie goal is 2000, then that 100g of protein is only 20% of my calories.

So you can tweak your macros depending on your targets.
Depending on your calorie goal, 30% may not be enough for you.

TomTomato

When I first signed up to MFP, the breakdown default was 55% carb, 15% protein, and 30% fat. I was hitting the goals every day! Then I read an article that recommended 40-30-30 and I adjusted to that. Unfortunately, I'm having trouble getting all that protein and usually exceed my carb goal. But from what I have read, 40-30-30 is a healthy goal.

XanderT

You should 'play around' with the different percentages to see what works best for you and your daily activity level/goals. When I started, I would use one set of 'goals' a week and see what worked best. I finally found that C 40, P 30, F30 worked best for me when I wanted to maintain muscle and lose body fat. I have lost 85#s over the last two + years. In those years though, I have added a little back when weight training for muscle growth. In this scheme, I would do C 40, P40, F 20 and that seemed to work best. Everyone's body uses calories differently, you must figure out what works best for you.

JacksMom12

I do 40/30/30 and it works for me! My protein is still over and carbs are under though when I am doing my best. I eat sandwiches open-faced. Stick to one measured serving of rice or potatoes a day usually, most of my carbs come from veggies, I do huge omelete for breakfast-never cereal and I don't eat carby processed snacks. It's pretty easy for me to stick to the 40/30/30 except I've been going over on fat lately because I like fattier meats and nuts too much, so I'm trying to cut that back.

tomg33

If I could I'd set them to 40/32./27.5 C/P/F but it doesn't really matter. As long as I hit my protein and fat minimums then I generally let my macros fall where they lie and I get close enough without much effort.

Bettyeditor

Hey all! I am setting my goals and trying to find the right mix of carbs, proteins and fats in my daily intake. I am trying to burn fat but also build muscle as I strength train 3-5 days a week plus yoga. I also do HIIT cardio so I do need some carbs as well.

I was thinking the following but would love input:

Carbs: 40%
Protein: 30%
Fats: 30%

Wondering if I should up the protein and lower the fat?

When I upped my protein but tried to keep my fat low, I got constipation. I have heard a lot of sources say that what you propose, 40/30/30, is very healthy. As long as your fat is good fat, I'm sure you will be fine. I have just this week started ramping up my fat by adding lots of salmon, almonds, walnuts, flax seeds, chia seeds, avacados, etc. to my diet. I'm feeling MUCH better so I'm not going to dip below 30% fat again. It seems to be working for me!

pixelled

Excellent thanks for all the input!! I'll start at 40/30/30 and monitor for a few weeks to see how this works for me. Just wanted a baseline to experiment with.

jaygreen55

I shoot for 40-30-30 as a base for days when I am normally active. If I do heavy or extended workouts I up my carbs to replace the glycogen I've depleted and some protein for muscle repair and building . Any extra fat I might burn can come from my stores of body fat. Since I workout and/or hike most days of the week I end up at 45-50 percent carbs and 20-25 on the other 2

eatcleanNtraindirty

Hey all! I am setting my goals and trying to find the right mix of carbs, proteins and fats in my daily intake. I am trying to burn fat but also build muscle as I strength train 3-5 days a week plus yoga. I also do HIIT cardio so I do need some carbs as well.

I was thinking the following but would love input:

Carbs: 40%
Protein: 30%
Fats: 30%

Wondering if I should up the protein and lower the fat?

That's what I was doing for the past 10 weeks. Really liked it. The fat percentage was the hardest for me to get to each day.