Needing Fat

Basilin
Basilin Posts: 360 Member
edited October 2014 in Food and Nutrition
I've been experimenting with the ratios of macros that is right for me. When I started, I would normally eat about 70 g of fat at day, about 40 g of protein, about 200 g of carbs (rough estimate). In the last week I've increased protein and lowered fat while keeping carbs more or less the same by switching out my normal foods for low-fat options and concentrating on protein rich foods. Total cals more or less the same and I averaged about 80 g protein and 20 - 40 g of fat.

This appears to have been a terrible decision. After the third day I feel awful; weak, hungry all the time, foggy. And I feel better when I eat higher fat foods during the day. So. Scratch that. I think. Unless I've done something else wrong.

What are your experiences/thoughts about the ratio of protein to fat in your diet?

Replies

  • Unknown
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  • avskk
    avskk Posts: 1,787 Member
    I definitely do better with low-ish carbs, high protein and veggies, and a good amount of fat. I tend to succeed most when I snack on almonds, add a little sesame oil to my sauteed veggies, have some cheese with my fruit, get in some good oily fish each week, etc. My protein:fat ratio usually comes out around 2:1, which seems pretty reasonable to me. If we add carbs in (protein:fat:carbs) it's probably 2:1:1.
  • shaumom
    shaumom Posts: 1,003 Member
    I'd think you need more fat, yes. The body needs it to function, so if you don't get enough, your body is going to be in trouble.

    A recent study on low fat diets vs. low carb diets would seem to agree with you that low fat may not be the best. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/05/low-carb-diet-study-low-fat_n_5763718.html)

    And depending on how much protein you are eating, you might actually be in the beginning of what is sometimes colloquially called 'rabbit starvation' - called this because rabbits are so lean that in famines, people trying to live off of rabbits only would get not enough fat and too much protein. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabbit_starvation)

    The liver and kidneys can be affected by too low fat with higher protein, and the level of fat you mention does seem quite low. For a 1200 calories diet, which would be quite low, the recommended fat level for a 'low fat' diet is 27g-47g. And this is the recommended fat in the study mentioned above, if I recall correctly, which had people losing more fat when eating more fat (weirdly), and losing more muscle mass when eating low fat
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
    __drmerc__ wrote: »
    I would have decreased carbs and increased protein and left fat the same

    ditto - I find this much better

  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    I do best on 40% carb, 30% fat and 30% protein (or 45/30/25), but most of all, the quality of carbs matters just as much as the rest - high fiber whole grains and veggies vs refined sugars etc.
  • Basilin
    Basilin Posts: 360 Member
    edited October 2014
    __drmerc__ wrote: »
    I would have decreased carbs and increased protein and left fat the same

    Good point. Perhaps I'll try this next. It's a more difficult diet to work towards, though.

    I'm with avskk that when I snack on nuts, 'healthy' oils, cheese, etc. with veggies and fruits, and lots of fish like tuna and salmon and tilipia makes me feel really good: satiated, higher energy and everything.

    shaumom, really great links. Thank you!

  • findingmyw1ngs
    findingmyw1ngs Posts: 107 Member
    My diet is not ideal and I'm working on adding protein, but I've had carbs take up most of my diet and then had fat and protein about the same. If/when I can get more protein I take it out of the carbs percentage instead of the fat
  • PRMinx
    PRMinx Posts: 4,585 Member
    When I'm fiercely on my logging, I go 40-30-30 (protein, carb, fat). When I'm lazy, it's probably 30-30-40.
  • DAM5412
    DAM5412 Posts: 660 Member
    It takes more then 3 days for your body to adjust to change. Increased protein can be hard on your body, especially doubling your normal intake. I would give it another few days, and see how you feel. Every body is different though. Just be careful about quick changes, you really do need to figure out what works best for you, and that will take a few days.
  • Basilin
    Basilin Posts: 360 Member
    DAM5412, that makes sense. I was pretty foolish to be so sudden about it.

    Ok, I will try this:

    Start with 45% carb, 30% fat, 25% protein, and increase protein to be 30% and carb to be 40% over two weeks and see how that goes. Of course, concentrating on obtaining carbs from mostly fruit/veg and whole grains, and fats from mostly veg sources and some animal sources, as well and complete proteins. Phew.
  • Pebbles5280
    Pebbles5280 Posts: 24 Member
    40-30-30 works well for me too. I eat lean meats and use protein powder in my smoothies; carbs are fruits and veggies (no grains or bread); fats are mostly nuts and olive oil. My biggest problem is eating 5 times a day, I'm just not hungry.
  • msalamun
    msalamun Posts: 116 Member
    There aren't a lot of vegetable sources of fat. I would look for fat in oil, nuts, and seeds. Olive oil and coconut oil are great. Also almonds, cashews, chestnuts are good sources of healthy fat (and they make great snacks for throughtout the day!). Along the same lines, try nut butters like peanut butter and almond butter - but get the all-natural kind. If it has more than peanuts/almonds and salt, do not buy it! Also, not sure about you, but I love avocados, and those are great for healthy fats as well.

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