New and Need Advice
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myrnacpagan
Posts: 19 Member
I started doing Paleo/Primal 2 weeks ago. Basically, dropped all the processed stuff, switched to honey(only in coffee in AM), changed to almond milk instead of soy/milk(for hormone reasons since I am 41), increased veggies and fruits, and eat yogurt and cheese(aged) 3 to 4 times a week. I am also an avid athlete: swim 12 km a week, circuit weight traning 3X week and play tennis 4 to 6 hrs. a week. I also like to do the eilliptical 1 to 2 hours a week. I switched to this lifestyle due to horrible intestinal pain, constant headaches and lack of progress in weight loss using calorie counting. I have lost 20 pounds prior to starting paleo but have plateaud since then. I still have 25 pounds that I would like to loose. Also, I live in Mexico where I cannot find all the organic, amminos and grass-fed stuff and I LOVE TO COOK. So here are my questions:
*myftinesspal says that I should be eating 1,360 calories a day. This morning alone I ate 485 (2 eggs, 2 portobellos, coconut oil to fry the eggs, feta cheese(1oz), 2 slices bacon, coffeee with almond milk and honey). How much do I have to rely on keeping it to 1,360 calories? Does that number take into consideration my activity level?
* what are the ideal % for carbs, protein, fat for this lifestyle? Can you really loose weight eating more fat(bacon, butter, coconut oil, nuts, etc?
* should I limit the number of fruits I eat in a day?
Thanks in advance for answering these questions.
*myftinesspal says that I should be eating 1,360 calories a day. This morning alone I ate 485 (2 eggs, 2 portobellos, coconut oil to fry the eggs, feta cheese(1oz), 2 slices bacon, coffeee with almond milk and honey). How much do I have to rely on keeping it to 1,360 calories? Does that number take into consideration my activity level?
* what are the ideal % for carbs, protein, fat for this lifestyle? Can you really loose weight eating more fat(bacon, butter, coconut oil, nuts, etc?
* should I limit the number of fruits I eat in a day?
Thanks in advance for answering these questions.
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Replies
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Are you logging any of your exercise calories? I think that if you did, mfp would give you a much higher allowance per a day that would let you eat all the calories from bacon, oil, etc.
Also, as to any diet lifestyles (vegitarian, adkins, south beach), there are high and low calorie ways to go about it. Maybe if you log all your exercise calories and still find that you are going over, you could try to limit the nuts and oils and higher calorie fruits. But I'm sure you won't need to if you are so active. The 1360 is probably what your setting is for a sedantary/ no exercise day.
I will follow this thread because I too am curious about the % for carbs, protien, and fat0 -
Thanks for the information. Today is my first day and I have not logged any exercise. I rest on Sundays and Mondays...so I will see what my calorie intake is on Tuesday when I do exercise.0
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Honestly, I would NOT rely on MFP's calorie recommendations. The general guideline is 10-12 times your body weight for weight loss. So, if you weigh 150 pounds you should be eating roughly 1500-1800 calories (usually the lower end of the scale if not very active and the upper end if more active).
Obviously there are a lot of variables such as activity level, body fat percentage, etc, and the QUALITY of the calories are what counts more than anything.
Personally, I limit my fruit intake to keep my carbs low. If I do have some, it's usually post workout to replenish glycogen levels.
I upped my net calorie level from 1600 to 2000 a week ago and changed my macros from 50% Fat/30% Protein/20% Carbs to 70/30/10 and the difference it has made to my hunger levels is incredible...so much more satisfied. My tummy has flattened a lot in just a week and my pants are a LOT looser.
For the record, my weight has not changed much since November but I've actually dropped 4% body fat and gained 2kg of muscle. Don't rely on scales, use a body fat monitor/fat calipers!0 -
15C 35P 50F works for me.......0
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I started out on MFP in January 2012 and used the goal settings suggested. It was great for the first 7 months (lost approx 55 lbs) but soon after platued. I have tried to change my settings but have not been happy with the weight loss since (dropped an additional 8 lbs). I just recently, this past weekend, increased my calories from 1200 to 1640 and set my goals to 65%F, 15%P, 20%C. With the help of a fellow MFP peep (Cerebrus189), I found out my BMI, LBM thru a website calculator. I will see how things go for the next 7 days, and if necessary will tweek. My suggestion is you find out what your BMI and LBM are and set your goals accordingly.0
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In terms of calories, I feel mfp is pretty low, mostly because it doesn't really account for exercise unless you're putting it in. For another calorie calculator I would recommend : http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
Although truthfully I eat somewhere in the middle of those two recommendations. I think so long as you're listening to your body it should be good.
I have my macros set up as 20% carbs/20% protein, and 60% fat. I tend not to worry if I go over on protein or fat, the only problem is that if I go over in carbs I seem to start to have problems, so your macros seem good to me.
Also I want to echo that it's not all about the scale. When I'm good about what I'm eating, my waist-line shrinks, but the scale seems to do things in it's own sweet time.
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oh and about fruits, I do sort of pay attention to them, but honestly I rarely want to eat more than one piece of fruit a day. I do watch out for bananas just because they tend to be pretty carb heavy and I do love them so. I try to keep it to one or two a week.0
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Considering your activity level, my suggestion would be something like 20c/35p/45f as your macros. (I play hockey, ball hockey, volleyball, curling, and my macros are at about 15c/35p/50f)
As others have mentioned, definitely track your exercise since that will have an impact on how much you should eat throughout the day.
For fruit, berries are generally best.
Also, to answer your other question about fat - yes, you can definitely lose a lot fo weight while eating fat. My biggest predictor of weight gain is definitely carbs rather than fat. If I veer off track with my carb consumption, I end up overeating and gaining a bunch of weight.
It might be early still to try this, but I also find that doing Intermittent Fasting really helps with calorie restriction. I generally don't eat until noon and finish by 8pm. I find that if I eat breakfast I end up being much hungrier all day.
And this way, I can have two very large meals and stay within my calorie limit.0
