Why macros matter

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muscleandbeard
muscleandbeard Posts: 117 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Found this article which simplifies the importance of macros in a diet and why CICO isn't the holy grail. You lose weight when you consume less calories we all know that but what kind of weight you lose depends on what type of food you eat.

http://comfortpit.com/the-truth-about-calories/
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Replies

  • scfarrant
    scfarrant Posts: 30 Member
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    Thanks for sharing, this is really interesting!

    One of the things I love about MFP is the ability to easily see your macro %'s by day and week -- I check it every so often to ensure I'm on the right track.
  • Yi5hedr3
    Yi5hedr3 Posts: 2,696 Member
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    Yes - keeping carbs low is your best bet for sure!
  • Michael190lbs
    Michael190lbs Posts: 1,510 Member
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    One of the best articles I have read- Thank you- The alcohol link in the article was a great read too..
  • muscleandbeard
    muscleandbeard Posts: 117 Member
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    Glad you enjoyed it. I see posts in which people constantly ask about macros and don't understand the importance of them. Too many times I see comments like "eat whatever you want, just stay in deficit" and it's such horrible advice.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
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    Generally, that advice is given to someone who isn't interested in optimal body composition but just wants to lose weight. Oftentimes they think that if their macros aren't on point they won't lose weight even if they have a deficit.
    So people reassure them that yes, they will still lose weight.

    It's also frequently explained that it's important to get enough fat for healthy hair, joint and hormone health and that getting enough protein is imperative for conserving muscle if that matters to the OP.

    I've never seen anyone say, just ignore macros because you'll get the same results regardless.
    I usually see, "if all you care about is weight loss, CICO is all that matters. If you want to conserve muscle and have good body composition, that's where macros come into play."

    Thing is, not everyone on MFP cares whether or not they lose muscle or have good body composition. Many just want to lose twenty pounds and that's all there is to it. If eating protein saves them some muscle, so what? Pass the spaghetti because they don't care enough to worry about it.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
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    I think macros are important, but for a lot of people, they just need to focus on calories first...worry about macros late once they get the hang of just hitting their calorie targets...I think that's where that particular advise comes from.

    I also think macros are important to a certain degree...a lot of people do a lot of unnecessary hand wringing over them though.
  • muscleandbeard
    muscleandbeard Posts: 117 Member
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    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    Generally, that advice is given to someone who isn't interested in optimal body composition but just wants to lose weight. Oftentimes they think that if their macros aren't on point they won't lose weight even if they have a deficit.
    So people reassure them that yes, they will still lose weight.

    It's also frequently explained that it's important to get enough fat for healthy hair, joint and hormone health and that getting enough protein is imperative for conserving muscle if that matters to the OP.

    I've never seen anyone say, just ignore macros because you'll get the same results regardless.
    I usually see, "if all you care about is weight loss, CICO is all that matters. If you want to conserve muscle and have good body composition, that's where macros come into play."

    Thing is, not everyone on MFP cares whether or not they lose muscle or have good body composition. Many just want to lose twenty pounds and that's all there is to it. If eating protein saves them some muscle, so what? Pass the spaghetti because they don't care enough to worry about it.
    Good point, I like your take on it.

  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I think macros are important, but for a lot of people, they just need to focus on calories first...worry about macros late once they get the hang of just hitting their calorie targets...I think that's where that particular advise comes from.

    I also think macros are important to a certain degree...a lot of people do a lot of unnecessary hand wringing over them though.

    Agreed.

    Most advice I've seen is along the lines of
    - cals first, then macros
    or
    - cals for weight loss, cals + macros for body comp.
  • juggernaut1974
    juggernaut1974 Posts: 6,212 Member
    edited January 2016
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    jacksonpt wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    I think macros are important, but for a lot of people, they just need to focus on calories first...worry about macros late once they get the hang of just hitting their calorie targets...I think that's where that particular advise comes from.

    I also think macros are important to a certain degree...a lot of people do a lot of unnecessary hand wringing over them though.

    Agreed.

    Most advice I've seen is along the lines of
    - cals first, then macros
    or
    - cals for weight loss, cals + macros for body comp.

    Yep.

    The only time I've ever advised someone on here to ignore macros was a gal who was 377 lbs looking to get to 300 as her first goal. She was concerned because she was off by 5-10% from the MFP default macros. At that point, precise macro management isn't a concern. And even then, the overriding advice was to eat a balanced diet, such that she would probably get a pretty fair balance just from that.
  • muscleandbeard
    muscleandbeard Posts: 117 Member
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    Often times I forget that not everyone here is trying to be toned or built or shredded...whatever. So yes, in that case CICA is the most important if you want to drop weight. I came over from bodybuilding.com forums and if you ever said that "macros aren't important" or "eat whatever you want" you would be bashed till the end of time and probably banned for stupidity.
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,642 Member
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    yeah, that's why BB.com is better for information that actually works. Here, we're tolerant of all walks of life and opinions about food.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
    edited January 2016
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    muscleandbeard wrote: »
    Often times I forget that not everyone here is trying to be toned or built or shredded...whatever. So yes, in that case CICA is the most important if you want to drop weight. I came over from bodybuilding.com forums and if you ever said that "macros aren't important" or "eat whatever you want" you would be bashed till the end of time and probably banned for stupidity.

    And in a forum dedicated to building strong, muscular physiques, rightfully so.
    Here though, you've got everything from powerlifters training for their next meet to little grandmas who just want to lose 30 pounds because the doctor said so and everyone in between.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
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    Btw, is that you in your avi?
  • muscleandbeard
    muscleandbeard Posts: 117 Member
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    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    Btw, is that you in your avi?
    Yes and no. It's me but from two years ago. I don't think I'm as lean anymore so I decided to track my calories using this app. I competed back in my 20's, now I'm just a cop with a poor diet.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
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    muscleandbeard wrote: »
    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    Btw, is that you in your avi?
    Yes and no. It's me but from two years ago. I don't think I'm as lean anymore so I decided to track my calories using this app. I competed back in my 20's, now I'm just a cop with a poor diet.

    Respect.
  • muscleandbeard
    muscleandbeard Posts: 117 Member
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    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    muscleandbeard wrote: »
    Often times I forget that not everyone here is trying to be toned or built or shredded...whatever. So yes, in that case CICA is the most important if you want to drop weight. I came over from bodybuilding.com forums and if you ever said that "macros aren't important" or "eat whatever you want" you would be bashed till the end of time and probably banned for stupidity.

    And in a forum dedicated to building strong, muscular physiques, rightfully so.
    Here though, you've got everything from powerlifters training for their next meet to little grandmas who just want to lose 30 pounds because the doctor said so and everyone in between.
    I should have considered that.
  • Carlos_421
    Carlos_421 Posts: 5,132 Member
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    muscleandbeard wrote: »
    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    muscleandbeard wrote: »
    Often times I forget that not everyone here is trying to be toned or built or shredded...whatever. So yes, in that case CICA is the most important if you want to drop weight. I came over from bodybuilding.com forums and if you ever said that "macros aren't important" or "eat whatever you want" you would be bashed till the end of time and probably banned for stupidity.

    And in a forum dedicated to building strong, muscular physiques, rightfully so.
    Here though, you've got everything from powerlifters training for their next meet to little grandmas who just want to lose 30 pounds because the doctor said so and everyone in between.
    I should have considered that.

    And btw, welcome aboard. Glad to have you here.
  • hope516
    hope516 Posts: 1,133 Member
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    bump to read later
  • muscleandbeard
    muscleandbeard Posts: 117 Member
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    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    muscleandbeard wrote: »
    Carlos_421 wrote: »
    muscleandbeard wrote: »
    Often times I forget that not everyone here is trying to be toned or built or shredded...whatever. So yes, in that case CICA is the most important if you want to drop weight. I came over from bodybuilding.com forums and if you ever said that "macros aren't important" or "eat whatever you want" you would be bashed till the end of time and probably banned for stupidity.

    And in a forum dedicated to building strong, muscular physiques, rightfully so.
    Here though, you've got everything from powerlifters training for their next meet to little grandmas who just want to lose 30 pounds because the doctor said so and everyone in between.
    I should have considered that.

    And btw, welcome aboard. Glad to have you here.

    Thank you kind Sir. Good luck with your goals
  • RaeB1013
    RaeB1013 Posts: 265 Member
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    I just have to quickly say that I'm very impressed with the maturity on this board and the OP's willingness to admit his "fault". Unfortunately I do not see that around here much. Welcome, @muscleandbeard

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