IIFYM is way hard. I need help.

JesT23
JesT23 Posts: 51 Member
in Food and Nutrition
IIFYM is tough :grumble: According to the online calculator, my guidelines are Protein 148g/Fat 58g/Carbs 49g/Fiber 37g/Net Calories 1312 in order to lose 0.6lbs per week. I'm struggling to meet the fiber count without going over carbs. Vegetables, legumes and fruit seem to put me over carbs but I need them for fiber and general nutrition, right? Am I doing this wrong??

Could someone please look at my food log and give some advice on what I should eat today to meet my macros? So far, I've only actually had breakfast and a small lunch. PLEASE NOTE: I entered dinner, drinks, and misc/snacks only because I am trying to plan meals for later today. I can tweak those meals. What's listed is what I was "planning" to eat except it turned out to be way under calories, protein and fiber but at the limit with everything else. Also, if anyone has similar macros and could share some ideas, that would be so great!

I am a 25 year old female who is 57 inches tall (I used to think I was 5 foot but unfortunately the doc corrected me) and 147 lbs as of this morning. I had been losing weight with 1250 calories, yoga, occasional lifting, and light cardio from February through August and was down to 138lbs from a starting point of 184lbs. Unfortunately, I lost motivation after a summer trip and I've been backsliding since August. I wanted to try IIFYM to get back on track at a slightly higher caloric intake. Thank you.

Replies

  • MrsBingley
    MrsBingley Posts: 145
    Excuse my ignorance here, but does "net cals" mean that you get extra carbs from working out? Or would workout cals come in the same ratio? I HOPE moving gives you more carbs, but I genuinely have no idea.

    I find that I am able to burn more/ lift more if I eat a carb heavy snack about 20-30 min before going to the gym

    This site seems to give you more carbs the more you move: http://iifym.com/iifym-calculator/
  • JesT23
    JesT23 Posts: 51 Member
    By "net cals," I just meant that I want to net 1312 after exercise so I might eat more than that if I go jogging tonight. I honestly don't understand how exercise impacts your macros. I'm generally pretty sedentary because I have a long commute to work and sit at a desk all day so when I put my stats in calculators, I always choose sedentary. Exercise obviously requires more macronutrients than being sedentary but I don't know how the percentages get adjusted after exercise.
  • Phoenix_Warrior
    Phoenix_Warrior Posts: 1,633 Member
    Holy low carbs! I have no idea why it's so low? Mine is like 160? I haven't checked in awhile. Carbs have never effected my weight loss, though.

    Also, not sure if the calories are right but with iifym, you don't enter exercise in mgp because it accounts for it
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    The protein and calorie goals are primarily what you need to pay most attention to.

    That number for fiber seems unusually high. Its not THAT important. Just try to get 20g a day. Remember, one think often not counted in a food diary, coffee, actually contains a decent amount of fiber.

    And net calories means that you enter in all your all your exercise calories and "eat them back".

    Unless for some reason you are strictly trying to pay attention to either the carb or fat macro (either to do keto (low carb) or to do high carb for performance reasons), you'll hit them good enough as a result of hitting your calorie goal.

    In order of importance, calories comes first, protein second, and everything else a distant 3rd.
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Also, not sure if the calories are right but with iifym, you don't enter exercise in mgp because it accounts for it

    Not if using net cals.
  • JesT23
    JesT23 Posts: 51 Member
    Holy low carbs! I have no idea why it's so low? Mine is like 160? I haven't checked in awhile. Carbs have never effected my weight loss, though.

    Also, not sure if the calories are right but with iifym, you don't enter exercise in mgp because it accounts for it

    I thought the carbs were depressingly low, too. When I was losing weight before, I was averaging around 90 carbs daily and that was comfortable for me. I normally had 1 or 2 servings of grains or legumes and the rest was all veg. If these macros are right, I'm going to have a pretty drastic change in foods.

    ETA: My fat intake was about the same. My daily protein was just way lower -presumably too low. I will try focusing on getting more protein and staying at my calorie goal.
  • Phoenix_Warrior
    Phoenix_Warrior Posts: 1,633 Member
    Also, not sure if the calories are right but with iifym, you don't enter exercise in mfp because it accounts for it

    Not if using net cals.

    Okay, I think I misunderstood. She's using her BMR and not TDEE -20, then?
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    What calculator did you use? this: Carbs 49g/Fiber 37g is pretty insane.

    A good deal of fiber passes through your system unabsorbed so you will getting only a miniscule amounts of carbs. The only way you are likely to meet that is with fiber supplements like Metamusil or Benefiber.
  • waldo56
    waldo56 Posts: 1,861 Member
    Holy low carbs! I have no idea why it's so low? Mine is like 160? I haven't checked in awhile. Carbs have never effected my weight loss, though.

    Also, not sure if the calories are right but with iifym, you don't enter exercise in mgp because it accounts for it

    I thought the carbs were depressingly low, too. When I was losing weight before, I was averaging around 90 carbs daily and that was comfortable for me. I normally had 1 or 2 servings of grains or legumes and the rest was all veg. If these macros are right, I'm going to have a pretty drastic change in foods.

    Its because it is assuming you are laying on the couch all day doing nothing. By exercising you increase your daily calorie amount which in turn raises the amount of carbs you can eat.
  • BusyRaeNOTBusty
    BusyRaeNOTBusty Posts: 7,166 Member
    Yeah, what calculator? Those numbers seem "off".
  • JesT23
    JesT23 Posts: 51 Member
    I get what Waldo56 is saying. I used the IIFYM.com calculator. Feel free to double check me. I'd gladly hear that I can have more carbs :smile:
  • Phoenix_Warrior
    Phoenix_Warrior Posts: 1,633 Member
    I get what Waldo56 is saying. I used the IIFYM.com calculator. Feel free to double check me. I'd gladly hear that I can have more carbs :smile:

    If you're using TDEE -20%

    1416 cal
    96 carb
    58 fat
    29-37 fiber

    or 1505 cal for -15%

    that method calculated with 3x exercise a week. You would not eat back exercise.

    your BMR is 1287, which is the one you'd eat back exercise.
  • AngelsFan91106
    AngelsFan91106 Posts: 111 Member
    Right now, your macros are set at 45% protein, 40% fat, and 15% carbs. I'm not a dietician, and unless you have special medical issues, those seem pretty extreme.

    Lots of people (including myself) have done well losing weight eating at 40% carbs, 30% fat, and 30% protein. For what it's worth, I believe that's also the Zone Diet macros. The Mayo clinic states women should have 25g of fiber every day, so that's what I strive for.

    If you're eating 1312 calories a day (and I don't know if that's what's best for you, I'm simply doing the math), you eat 131g of carbs, 44g of fat, and 98g of protein using the 40/30/30 macros.

    IIFYM should be easy. Good luck!
  • MaryDreamer
    MaryDreamer Posts: 439
    Daily carbs 49 is low. I try to stay between 100-150 carbs day. Right under 100 is my goal but 150 is the worst I want. I do 35% carbs, 35% protein and 30% fat.
  • JesT23
    JesT23 Posts: 51 Member
    Thanks everyone. I will change the macro ratio a bit for more carbs. I'm not trying to do keto or anything like that on purpose. My exercises don't really burn too many calories so I will probably stay around 1300.
  • kerikae
    kerikae Posts: 1 Member
    Currently, I'm working out 6-7 days/week, so I incorporated that into my macro goals for IIFYM. But I realized that since MFP automatically incorporates your accumulated exercise calories into an updated daily goal, it's double-counting for exercise. Should I be using my TDEE -20 with the settings left to coach potato and then letting MFP auto-adjust the caloric and macro goals as I exercise?
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Currently, I'm working out 6-7 days/week, so I incorporated that into my macro goals for IIFYM. But I realized that since MFP automatically incorporates your accumulated exercise calories into an updated daily goal, it's double-counting for exercise. Should I be using my TDEE -20 with the settings left to coach potato and then letting MFP auto-adjust the caloric and macro goals as I exercise?

    That or you can just not enter exercise (it's what I do).

    I'd have started a new thread though, everyone's going to reply to the OP.

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