Not enough fat, especially on high cardio days. Ideas?

wolfsoul121
wolfsoul121 Posts: 8 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have noticed that on most days MFP says that I'm below target level for fat intake. Sometimes just a little bit, but on days when I'm doing a lot of cardio, On those days I am often quite a bit below the MFP stated target, like 70+ grams below (an example is that on one 5632 calorie goal day MFP said I should intake 188 grams of fat and I only had 97 grams, a deficit of 91 grams!) On that same day, I was also well below my calorie goal (by 2145 calories), which I'm sure plays some part in the low fat intake numbers, but I generally get enough carbs and protein, even on my heavy cardio days.

The thing is, on those days I don't feel hungry, and in fact I splurge a bit, yet my fat numbers are too low. So my question to everyone is, do you have any suggestions for a healthy food that can boost my fat numbers without being some monster meal. I should also say that I am a vegetarian. I'm not vegan, but I do try to limit my dairy intake to a certain extent.

So if anyone wants to throw out some suggestions, I'm all ears.

Thanks,

Brian

Replies

  • SomeoneSomeplace
    SomeoneSomeplace Posts: 1,094 Member
    Peanut Butter. Avocado. Mixed nuts (Unsalted or Lightly Salted) THere is like 12 grams of fat in 1/4th cup of alomounds. Also full fat yogurt with granola

    PB is my personal fav because it's high in protein sometime I just eat a couple spoonfuls sometimes I put it in my protein shake or on a low carb tortilla.

    Avacado is high in healthy fats!

    I'm a pretty much a vegetarian too I'm currently trying to cut chicken out of my diet...which is low in fat anyway so I have issue with my fat intake as well since i eat no other meat but these are my go to foods.

    Also olives are high in fat & cheese but I don't like either of those but they could work for you
  • ChristineS_51
    ChristineS_51 Posts: 872 Member
    Almonds!
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    Good oils too. A splash of olive oil to salads, on pasta etc or cook with more of it. Or coconut oil. .can cook with it (it responds better to frying than olive oil but has a distinct flavour) its also good to bake with and you can add a spoon of it to shakes.
  • amanda6393
    amanda6393 Posts: 176 Member
    Bulletproof coffee. Avocados. Coconut Milk. Mmmmm.
  • geebusuk
    geebusuk Posts: 3,348 Member
    Me, I'd just chuck cheese on what ever I'm eating, but not everyone considers that 'healthy' :).

    Do you actually need more fat as per percentages?
    General consensus is that for protein focusing on an absolute figure is more important than a percentage figure - so I go for around 1g per lb of bodyweight regardless of other figures.
  • Martucha123
    Martucha123 Posts: 1,089 Member
    You can set your own % for macros and have more carbs if you prefer. Make sure that you eat at least 0.35g of fat per lbs of your body weight
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    You can set your own % for macros and have more carbs if you prefer. Make sure that you eat at least 0.35g of fat per lbs of your body weight

    ^ This.

    I don't think your need for fat increases incrementally as you add activity. You could just add carbs.
  • Bentley2718
    Bentley2718 Posts: 1,689 Member
    As others have said, avocado, nuts and peanuts, nut/peanut butters, tofu, coconut milk.
  • LosingItWithAnn
    LosingItWithAnn Posts: 4 Member
    I am by no means an expert or professional, but the personal trainer and the dietician that I do rely on for professional advice have both told me that on high carb days, I should have low fat. On days with higher fat, then I should have low carbs. Like a teeter-totter, with protein in the middle -always getting in plenty of good protein. It has something to do with insulin and fat utilization, blah, blah, blah. I just do what I am told...
  • wolfsoul121
    wolfsoul121 Posts: 8 Member
    Thanks for all of the great replies! I will try some of those suggestions. I especially like the coconut milk one. :-) Actually, the best suggestion (peanut butter) is one that I would LOVE to do, but I essentially OD'd on peanut butter in college and now my body doesn't like to digest it well (or peanuts for that matter). I can do almond butter, but I try to limit eating it to backpacking and hiking food so that I don't end up with the same problem with it that I have with peanut butter. I hate not being able to eat peanut butter. Food of the gods! (Which may go a long way to explaining why I can't eat it!)

    I never thought of adding good oils to my pasta. I'm a marinara kinda guy. I don't think it would taste bad to add a good oil to the mix though.

    As for fat intake going up with calorie expenditure, all I know is what My good ol' fitness pal tells me. ;-) My understanding is that it's about having the right ratio, not the right absolute amount, so what MFP was telling me didn't challenge any pre-conceived notions I had about fat intake.

    Martucha123, I also didn't know about the ability to set macros. I'll have to check that out! Thanks!

    Losingitwithann, I hadn't heard about the fat/carb teeter toter. That's really interesting though. I'll have to do some research on that.
  • fldiver97
    fldiver97 Posts: 341 Member
    Avocado.....and if you get tired of the avocado you can make it more like a treat by mixing a little bit of honey or agave with a good cocoa powder and blend it with avocado.....you may have to tinker a bit with the amount of cocoa but it's like a chocolate pudding or thick chocolate sauce treat.

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