Do macro's really matter (in women)

In the beginning, I had about 65 pounds to lose. Lowering my calories, exercising everyday and eating cleaner worked wonders for dropping the pounds. But really understanding and tracking my Macros was the GAME CHANGER in losing the fat! Once I was clued in to the amount of carbs and sugar I was consuming it was a big wake-up call. MFP has helped me track it all and I am constantly tweeking it. I still have problems eating enough protein. I used to follow the default macro that MFP gave me until I stopped losing. Then I upped my Fat and Protein and lowered Carbs, Sugar and Soduim. I have gone from a size 14-16 to a size 4. Everyone is different so you have to experiment and see what works for you. I used the scale as a trend but my body measurements are what really kept me motivated. I kept shrinking even though it seemed sometimes the scale was not moving.

So for me, YES, the macros mattered as well as eating cleaner and lifting weights...the heavy kind

How long did you eat at those levels? It's almost impossible to lose at 1700 and gain at 1900.

Was fluctuating like crazy on 1700, up .5, down .2, etc. I the past when I fluctuated and I increased calories I lost weight but the bump up to 1900 was just too much. Add to that, two bad weekends (birthday and family visiting) and it through off my weekly totals. I think 1700-1800 might just be maintenance for me. Not positive but it seems to be I have to be around 1500-1600 to lose, slowly

That is very very minimal fluctuation. A normal human body can fluctuate 5 lbs + a day. A normal cycle alone can make you add several lbs. Additionally, when I say how long, I mean, did you eat 1700 calories for a week, two, month, several months?

If a person increase calories suddenly, it is not uncommon to add "water". When most people increase calories, they also generally increase carbs. When you increase carbs your body stores extra glycogen/water as a result.

Are macro's really that important? I always thought they were until I talked to a female body builder at my gym (she is ripped) and she had no idea what a macro was. Now I can't help but wonder, do they matter or is it strictly calories in and calories out? Opinions, thoughts?

Well since she's ripped then no, physique is the most important indicator of knowledge, everyone knows that

*nods emphatically*

In oversimplified terms:

Calories = weight loss
Macros = body composition (protein) energy (carbs) fats (healthy body functions)

Try to get 1g of protein per lb of LBM and 0.35g of fats per lb of total body weight. (these are minimums). The rest of your calories can fall where you want based on preference.

How are you testing your BF%? And why are you looking to go that low on BF%?

Yes they do.

In oversimplified terms:

Calories = weight loss
Macros = body composition (protein) energy (carbs) fats (healthy body functions)

Try to get 1g of protein per lb of LBM and 0.35g of fats per lb of total body weight.

How are you testing your BF%? And why are you looking to go that low on BF%?

This is interesting. I understand the 1g of protein per lb of body weight but I never heard of the 0.35 g of fat per total body weight. I eat almost double that in fat per day.

Sorry - I should have been clearer - these are minimums. Going over is fine.

Edit: I edited my original post to be clearer. ;-)

I had my body fat tested at my gym, they used calipers. I want to go a bit lower because I still have that all around the belly jiggle and I can't stand it. I thought if i could go from 19% to perhaps even 15 or 16 percent I could finally get rid of it. Seems to be the last to go.

Whats your height, age and your workout routine?

I didn't want to bother her too much during her workout because she had a show coming up but she did say she eats healthy. But without calorie counting I'm not sure how she would know even what she is hitting in regards to macros (she did say she eats healthy). I don't eat junk, except for a "cheat window" once a week but am getting so frustrated as to what I am supposed to do. For instance, yesterday I wanted an apple. It would have fit into my calories but the carbs would have thrown off my macros. I do agree that I don't want to eat junk but if it's all healthy foods does it matter if I go high on fats and low on carbs? Or lower on protein one day and higher on carbs. It's getting to be too much and leaning towards an obsession, something I want to avoid.

When I was training for a show, I had a coach. She gave me a workout program and wrote down specifically what I was to eat each and every day. She never once told me about macros but when we sat down to go over our stuff, I noticed her working it out. Being the geek that I am, I logged everything into MFP. She clearly did break down a calorie goal and macros, but just made it simple for me. Had I not previously been aware of it, I likely wouldn't have had a clue either. Lots of competitors hire someone, so it is possible she is doing that as well.
Or she could be following a generic diet that has her hitting the proper macros without her realizing.

Now, I pretty much focus on getting enough protein. The rest usually balance pretty well when I do that anyway. In your case, i would have eaten the apple, it wouldn't have thrown it off too much.

ETA - definitely agree that physique does not always indicate knowledge.