IIFYM Question

Nuts.. almonds are a fave of mine

Tuna, cottage cheese, and nuts are all great. For snacks I'll also go for a Kind bar or a Quest bar because they're sweet and high protein/low sugar. Nut butters (fresh or with little to no sugar added) are also great. I also cook a lot using olive or coconut oils, which are fairly healthy for you and (obviously) high in fat.

related question...if it comes down to it at the end of the day and you haven't hit your goal for one or more of your macros, but doing so would put you over your calorie goal, which do you prioritize?

for example...I often have a hard time hitting my protein goal (currently about 120g/day), and sometimes end up in a situation where I can't decide if I'm better off eating more to hit that target, and going slightly over my calorie goal, or just sticking to the calories and being a bit short on protein.

obviously in an ideal world I would be on target for both, and I manage it a decent amount of the time, but I can never decide which way to go if I need to choose.

I'll probably just invest in some protein powder soon so that I can more easily hit my goal there without a lot of associated calories, but for the time being I have been erring on the side of staying under my calorie goal since my more immediate goal right now is weight loss.

thoughts?

related question...if it comes down to it at the end of the day and you haven't hit your goal for one or more of your macros, but doing so would put you over your calorie goal, which do you prioritize?

for example...I often have a hard time hitting my protein goal (currently about 120g/day), and sometimes end up in a situation where I can't decide if I'm better off eating more to hit that target, and going slightly over my calorie goal, or just sticking to the calories and being a bit short on protein.

obviously in an ideal world I would be on target for both, and I manage it a decent amount of the time, but I can never decide which way to go if I need to choose.

I'll probably just invest in some protein powder soon so that I can more easily hit my goal there without a lot of associated calories, but for the time being I have been erring on the side of staying under my calorie goal since my more immediate goal right now is weight loss.

thoughts?

It would depend on how far off I was and which macro. If I'm just under, I'd let it go. If I'm under a lot, and it's carb or fat, I'd let it go this once and make a mental note to make some adjustments. If I'm under a lot, and it's protein, I'd eat the protein. Making sure I'm maintaining LBM >> hitting my calorie deficit right on.

related question...if it comes down to it at the end of the day and you haven't hit your goal for one or more of your macros, but doing so would put you over your calorie goal, which do you prioritize?

for example...I often have a hard time hitting my protein goal (currently about 120g/day), and sometimes end up in a situation where I can't decide if I'm better off eating more to hit that target, and going slightly over my calorie goal, or just sticking to the calories and being a bit short on protein.

obviously in an ideal world I would be on target for both, and I manage it a decent amount of the time, but I can never decide which way to go if I need to choose.

I'll probably just invest in some protein powder soon so that I can more easily hit my goal there without a lot of associated calories, but for the time being I have been erring on the side of staying under my calorie goal since my more immediate goal right now is weight loss.

thoughts?

Calories are what is important for losing weight. Having macro goals can help you have a more balanced diet and help you get more/better nutrition. It is not important at all that you're bang on with your macros...unless you have some really specific fitness goals, being in the general vicinity of a reasonable macro ratio is going to help you have a more well balanced nutritional profile...there is no magic in your macro ratios for weight loss really other than you burn slightly more calories through TEF with a higher protein intake.

I'm not saying that they are not at all important, but people worry way too much about hitting whatever % exactly bang on and it's a bit ridiculous.

my diary is open