Macros - how do I work it out?

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jo_marnes
jo_marnes Posts: 1,601 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So, the age old question.... what SHOULD my macros be? My goal is to gain muscle.... change my workouts from cardio to either primarily resistance or a half n half mix of both. I want to incorporate a reasonable amount of cardio as I want to go sub 60 mins in my 12km run (not til Sept) and will need some training maintenance for that!

If you are peeking at my diary to offer advice, go back to Dec - this month has been a break from logging/ holiday food etc

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  • bathsheba_c
    bathsheba_c Posts: 1,873 Member
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    The MFP defaults are based off of US government guidelines. Since you are active, you may want to replace some of your carbs with protein. A lot of people on here seem to like 40% carbs, 30% fat, 30% protein (default is 55/30/15).
  • da_bears10089
    da_bears10089 Posts: 1,791 Member
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    The MFP defaults are based off of US government guidelines. Since you are active, you may want to replace some of your carbs with protein. A lot of people on here seem to like 40% carbs, 30% fat, 30% protein (default is 55/30/15).

    i just set mine to the 40/30/30 last week, and i need to start getting some more protein in my body!
  • toomuchbootyindapants
    toomuchbootyindapants Posts: 811 Member
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    ^^this. 40/30/30 is good for most people looking.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    40/30/30 is a good palce to start.

    i then tweaked it to 125g protein per day (roughly my bodyweight in g) which was 25% of my 2000 cals

    35% fat, as i struggled with 30% and it was bugging me that i couldnt eat ANYTHING that wasnt clean without going way over) i dont want to be able to eat 6 doughnuts a day, but if you cant have a spoonful of peanut butter every now and then and a nice cheese & mushroom omelette, whats the point!?

    and then the rest was carbs, so i am at 40/25/35 which works pretty well for me.
  • 5stringjeff
    5stringjeff Posts: 790 Member
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    If you're looking to build muscle mass, you should be eating about 1g of protein for every pound of lean mass you have. 40c/30p/30f *generally* fits that, but you'll want to do the calculations for your current lean mass to double-check.
  • jo_marnes
    jo_marnes Posts: 1,601 Member
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    If I change to 40/30/30, my protein changes to 140g.... on my weight (112 lbs) that seems excessive!
  • 5stringjeff
    5stringjeff Posts: 790 Member
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    If I change to 40/30/30, my protein changes to 140g.... on my weight (112 lbs) that seems excessive!

    I'm no professional, but here's how I'd figure it out if I was you:

    You weigh 112 lbs. You'll need to know your body fat percentage, but we'll use 20% for the sake of the example. At 20% BF, your lean body mass would be 112 * (1-20%) = 112 * 80% = 89.6 lbs. So you'd need to eat 89.6 grams (rounded up to 90 g) of protein each day if you're looking to build muscle mass.

    Play with the macros until you find the percentage that gets you closest to 90g. Might be 25%.
  • jo_marnes
    jo_marnes Posts: 1,601 Member
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    Ok, so my lean body mass works out at approx 95lbs, so 95g protein = 20% protein. So what do I adjust the fat and carbs to? And 20% seems low for trying to increase muscle? Not saying you're wrong, just want to understand! :-)
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    Ok, so my lean body mass works out at approx 95lbs, so 95g protein = 20% protein. So what do I adjust the fat and carbs to? And 20% seems low for trying to increase muscle? Not saying you're wrong, just want to understand! :-)

    if 30% seems high, and 20% seems low, why not go for 25%?
  • trigger2354
    trigger2354 Posts: 25 Member
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    Lyle McDonald has written an excellent primer on training and eating for muscle gain for power and endurance athletes. Check it out. http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/muscle-gain/muscle-gain-mistakes.html

    And if you really want to get into the nitty gritty details of setting your macros, Lyle breaks it all down here http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/diet-percentages-part-1.html. Make sure you read this and Part 2.

    Lyle is my go-to source when I need well-researched information on all things related to diet and training. Poke around his website. You'll find a treasure trove of helpful info.

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