newbie question

justjennnie

hello!!

I am a bit confused about how much I should be worried about my current macros.

If I am currently under my daily calorie count do I still have to worry about my macros?

I'm sometimes a teeny bit over in some areas.

mrsnecincy

Hi!

I think it's an individual thing you get the hang of and play around with yourself. I don't pay too much attention. I tend to go over on sugar as I consume a lot in the form of fruit and dairy.

I tend to be under on carbs as that's just what works for me.

I see the protein macro as a guide sometimes I'm under sometimes over. Never worry about that one.

I do try and watch fat and salt though but that can be hard too!

Lyadeia

For weight/fat loss, macros are less important than total amount of calories. For health, they are very important. Fats (which do not cause you to BE fat) are important for healthy organ and tissue functioning. You should get a minimum of 0.35 grams of fat per pound of total body weight. Proteins are important for muscle repair, and if you are not eating a sufficient amount of protein, this can actually cause muscle loss while you are eating a calorie deficit and losing weight. You should eat protein to prevent lean mass loss so your majority of losses come from fat stores. Most places recommend eating a minimum of 1 gram of protein per pound of lean body mass. The fat and protein goals listed are minimums, and it is perfectly OK to go over them as long as you are meeting your calorie goal and staying in a deficit. The rest of your calories can be fats, proteins, or carbs...your choice really.

And the default values for macros on MFP are NOT consistent with what research is saying you should be getting. They have the protein level ungodly low and the carb level higher than what most people have success with. I changed mine shortly after joining MFP.

SuMcP

They are not that important for weight loss, but for your general health the MFP ones are a bit out. The most common recommendation is that you reset them to carbs 40% protein 30% and fats 30%. Hope this helps!

helpfit101

I think you don't need to be worried about those at all as long as they are not very different from what you've configured.