What the macros?!

orange_hoodie · December 2015

I've been using MFP for the past few months. Mostly I've been logging to better understand my calorie intake and deficit, and just to help with my general accountability.

That said, my plan is to shift my focus from fat loss to building strength. I've seen a huge emphasis on these boards for tracking macros. I'm reluctant because of the commitment it takes to measure everything, and I question both the accuracy of tracking and the benefit. So:
- what are your experiences tracking vs. not tracking macros?
- are there other methods aside from tracking macros that work for you?

General concern: there are so many approaches to determining what macros should be, just figuring out where to start/what's right for me is confusing.

So far my general intake goals have been: eat a veggie and a protein at every meal; drink plenty of water; limit refined products; eat something orange (like squash) and some raw green leafy thing every day. It's simple. No measuring. But I don't know if this approach is sufficient to get me where I want to be.

DaddieCat · December 2015

Sufficient? More or less.

Ideal? Not at all.

Ok... so here goes.

.6-.85 (minimum) grams of protein per lb of lean mass or goal weight, your choice.
at minimum, .4-.6 grams of fat per lb of lean mass or goal weight.
The rest in carbs.

That's a good generic starting point for most. You'll want to tweak over time as you find how that works for you.

Eat up to protein and fat, don't worry about going over too much. Eat the rest of your calorie goal in carbs.

Keep protein high, fat is not your enemy, and carbs are your energy.

ew_david · December 2015

BecomingBane wrote: »

Sufficient? More or less.

Ideal? Not at all.

Ok... so here goes.

.6-.85 (minimum) grams of protein per lb of lean mass or goal weight, your choice.
at minimum, .4-.6 grams of fat per lb of lean mass or goal weight.
The rest in carbs.

That's a good generic starting point for most. You'll want to tweak over time as you find how that works for you.

Eat up to protein and fat, don't worry about going over too much. Eat the rest of your calorie goal in carbs.

Keep protein high, fat is not your enemy, and carbs are your energy.

This, but to answer the other two questions:

Tracking vs. Not Tracking - I'm still in a place where tracking is essential for my goals. When I don't track, I go off the rails and eat everything. Then I feel like crap and my workouts suffer. I'm trying to maintain a deficit still, so I need to weigh, measure, and track. One day, I hope to be comfortable enough to not have to live and die by this diary, but I'm not there yet.

Other methods besides tracking macros? - not for me.

OyGeeBiv · December 2015

Weighing, measuring and tracking are so much easier than I expected. I got a $12 digital scale from Amazon. For things I don't weigh, I use measuring spoons and cups.

With a digital scale, you put your plate or bowl on the scale and zero out the scale. Put one food or ingredient on the plate and write down the weight. Leave that on the plate, zero out the scale, and put another food or ingredient on the plate. Repeat as necessary. Sometimes I even put a small pot on the scale and add ingredients right to the pot.

You can put entire recipes into MFP, and specify the number of servings. MFP does the rest.

Using a smart device, you can scan UPC symbols and the nutrient info goes right into MFP.

To view how you're doing with macros throughout the day (this works on iPhone, not sure about others) turn your phone 90 degrees (so it's in landscape mode) and you'll see the macros for every food you log, plus a total for each meal and for the day. If you're using a computer, the macro breakdown is right there where you log your food.

The more you weigh and measure, the better you'll get at estimating when you're away from home. I actually play a little game with myself to see if I can guess how much something weighs before I put it on the scale. Sometimes I'm pretty close, and sometimes I'm surprised!

Christine_72 · December 2015

I'm not sure how you would track your macros (or calories ) accurately without weighing your food. The end result will be a rough ballpark figure

allyphoe · December 2015

As long as you have some feedback mechanism, there's no problem with rough ballpark figures. Plus they're entirely unavoidable, unless you blend all your food and run a sample through your calorimeter before eating. People worry about weighing their prepackaged food, but no one worries that their package got the extra-fatty piece of meat. And don't forget to live in a metabolic chamber so you can measure your caloric expenditure.

If weighing food works for you, that's great. I have an enormous complicated spreadsheet that gives me enough feedback that I'm fine eyeballing portions.

For the OP: I feel better when I eat more protein (I aim for about 0.6g / lb, and rarely am significantly under) and more fat (I eat relatively high fat, sometimes as much as 50%, so don't worry about minimums). I don't worry about carbs.

chelsea7162 · December 2015

I personally eat 50/30/20 ish (carbs/fat/protein) because it works for me and my needs. Sometimes it's more like 45/45/20 but just worry about staying under your calorie goals and eating plenty of protein. I weigh and measure everything because I'm a diabetic and need to know exact carb counts for dosing insulin but it does help a lot for figuring calorie counts. A cheap scale is really helpful for cooking your own meals, and everyone should have measuring spoons and measuring cups anyways

vinnyluu · December 2015

What worked for me when I first started is that I just made sure i got at least .8 g to 1 g of protein x body weight. Then let the carbs and fats fall into the rest of the calories. From there i slowly adjusted to my current 30% protein/50% carbs/ 20% fat split. I've found that keeping my carbs as high as possible helps me with mood, keeps me satiated, and helps me mentally. Adjust macros on how you feel through out the day, personal preference, workouts, what keeps you sane, etc.

It also depends if you eat out often or if you cook at home more. If you eat out regularly, then your fats will most likely be a lot higher. Since I cook at home and rarely eat out, i can better manipulate my macros to help me feel more satiated. I've also found that fats don't keep me as satiated as protein or carbs.

kshama2001 · December 2015

I use a digital food scale and don't find logging burdensome. And then the macros are right there. A coworker suggested I eat more protein and less carbs, and this works very well in keeping me satisfied and thus easier to stay in a calorie deficit. I shoot for 40% carbs, 30% fat, and 30% protein. Coincidentally, these are also the Zone Diet macros.

I have vegan friends who do great on much higher carbs, and lower fat and protein. It's all about finding what works for you, which is easier to do when you are logging your food and have the data at your fingertips. For example, if I were to notice that I have the munchies (which is unusual for me these days), I could look at my food diary, see I've had much less protein than usual, and remedy that.

rosebarnalice · December 2015

I started by just being observant. I wasn't specifically trying to hit macro targets, just checking my nutrition balance at the end of the day. Then, I started making little changes to address the most serious overages and deficits (for me lowering carbs, then increasing protein and iron).

It took a couple of months, but it was much less drastic than trying to overhaul my eating patterns all at once.

orange_hoodie · December 2015

Thank you all for your replies and feedback. I really appreciate the opportunity to learn from your experiences and perspectives. I'll definitely start paying more attention to macros. Cheers!

What the macros?!

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