Focus on things other than cals?

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stephreed11
stephreed11 Posts: 158 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
How many of you really focus on the numbers other than your daily calorie number? As in fat, carbs, etc. I know I really should start, but I've noticed I hardly ever look at those numbers, I just worry about staying in my calories for the day...do you think those other numbers have just as much importance in weight loss as the calories? I know we shouldn't go over our allowance a ton, but is it completely necessary to stay within those other numbers at all times? That would be kind of hard to try to find that right balance...like I have 199 cals left for the day, but am over in the "fat" category...so that would be hard to find what to eat with those 199 if I was super worried about going over in "fat" anymore. Just a random question, wondering what everyone else's thoughts were. Thanks!

Replies

  • beenyweeny
    beenyweeny Posts: 6
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    You really should pay attention to the numbers because how can you lose weight if you keep feeding your thighs saturated fat? I go over a lot too in the fat and the sugar so i try to pay attention to the numbers when i am planning my meals for the day
  • bonnienm
    bonnienm Posts: 329 Member
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    This was discussed earlier today. You might look it up to see what they said. Sorry, but I don't know what it was under though.

    I personally look mostly at the calories too. I do look at the fat in what I eat and the cholesterol but don't stress so much over the totals for the day though I probably shoud:)
  • velix
    velix Posts: 437 Member
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    I also focus on the protein and sodium (added the category - was stunned when I saw the numbers!)
  • elainegsd
    elainegsd Posts: 459 Member
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    Some are more important than others. I always make sure that I get at least 80g of protein and 25g fiber. I eat as little refined sugar as possible (mostly none) and then stop worrying there. If I hit a plateau, then I go back and look at how much fat I'm eating, sometimes adjusting that up or down will break a plateau.
  • modernfemme
    modernfemme Posts: 454 Member
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    I'm with some of these other people. If I go a little over one of them I don't worry too much about it, unless it's fat or sodium. Either one, I try to drink a lot of extra water. I would just be mindful of it, so if you find yourself not losing much weight, you can easily find the culprit. Going over personally hasn't affected my weight loss.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Personally, I feel best (healthiest/most energy/etc.) when I pay attention to the whole picture - unfortunately I can only track 6 things! I'm not fanatical about being spot-on with everything, but I do try and pay attention to most of it. Particularly, I pay attention to calories, fat/carb/protein split (I need more protein than MFP recommends), sugar, sodium, fiber. I would track the vitamins, but those aren't always included on the nutrition labels and many people don't add those values anyways in the food database.

    Sodium and Fiber make a big difference in how succesful I am (less water retention, healthy bowel movements), I feel better and am less hungry when I eat lower carbs and more protein/healthy fat, and of course overall calories are important!

    I need to be better at tracking water, but I'm not great at remembering that.
  • Dafrog
    Dafrog Posts: 353
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    i watch calories, fiber and sodium. some days i am over in sodium so i bump up my water intake. as for protein if you workout a lot your muscles need extra protein. I dont worry about my carbs because most of them come from whole grains or fruit/veggies. I think I am over in fat quite often too.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,117 Member
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    Calories Carbs Fat Protein Potassium Calcium Cholesterol Sodium Sugars Fiber


    These are the ten things I'm currently tracking in my Food Diary.

    I sometimes wish I didn't look at these, because it's really easy to obsess (for me, anyway) over every single nutrient. But if I'm going to spend so much time entering foods and watching my calories, it makes sense to give my body what it needs. Helps with the food cravings and I believe in the long run I've learned to make much healthier choices.
  • Robyn120
    Robyn120 Posts: 249
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    I really only focus on calories..but that's just me.
  • mcohan
    mcohan Posts: 116 Member
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    what about carbs? i am usually below/at my calorie goal but over on carbs (about 25) do you think this is a big deal?
  • ctheslayer
    ctheslayer Posts: 79
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    I watch sodium like a hawk. I find that I retain water more if I eat sodium-rich foods and weight loss grinds to a halt 1 day later. I drink 2 - 3 glasses more of water when the numbers are high.

    I deliberately go over my protein and calcium, mainly from low-fat, high-protein dairy products like nonfat Greek yogurt. Here's an interesting article about that:

    http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/news/20050317/yogurt-may-help-burn-fat-promote-weight-loss

    Not so much on carbs because I find that I generally don't eat carb-rich foods. It sometimes go over but only on rare "special-let's shock the system" moments.

    ... and of course total calories.
  • achbarrow
    achbarrow Posts: 325 Member
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    When I first started this journey I was using an app that only tracked calories. After about 25lbs I hit a plateau and couldn't lose for the life of me. When I switched over to MFP and started paying closer attention to my carbs/fat/sodium/protein intake I started to lose again. I think it's important to pay attention to everything your putting in your body. I try to keep all my little numbers green but if I go over now and then I don't beat myself up.
  • dnsrmr
    dnsrmr Posts: 99 Member
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    I rarely ever look at calories because I only count carbs.
    I try to stay around 20 to 30 carbs a day and follow the Atkins low carb food plan.
    Works for me, keeps my cholestrol down, my clothes fit looser, no bloating or other feelings I was getting from eating high amounts of carbs and going by calories.
    I truly believe in the LOW CARB way AND drinking water before and after every meal to stay hydrated.
    Good question!
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    I track carbs, fat, protein, sodium and fibre. I aim for 40% C, 25% F and 35% protein but don't care if I go over on fat or protein, just carbs. If I have a high sodium day then I try to make sure I am lower the next day. Fibre is important for bowel movements so I also track this.

    I used to track sugar but go over by a lot everyday because of diary so I gave up on that one :P
  • Nixb19
    Nixb19 Posts: 22 Member
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    I personally, pay attention to the cals, carbs and protein. I have to have more protein than the site suggests and need to either have my carbs and protein level or more protein for my body to function properly, of couse I also suffer from Hypothyroidism so that's why watching my carbs is a bit important. When I hit a wall, I'll usually lower my carbs
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
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    If you are trying to lose weight and nothing else, then you could potentially only need to look at calories since weight loss is calories in versus calories out...

    I personally want more than to just lose weight. I want to be healthy, gain lean muscle mass, and lean out to obtain that cut athletic body. For that reason, I pay close attention to the macronutrient ratio of protein, carbs, and fats. I also monitor sugar and cholesterol. I monitor sugars mainly because they increase my appetite which leads to binging. I monitor cholesterol because those issues run wild in my family, and I want to make sure that I don't add any risk factors through what I eat.

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