Macro Ratio help and general advice :)
rheab33
Posts: 6 Member
Morning
Just starting out on trying to lose some weight and get my fitness up after being injured for far too long! So trying to get into a good habit of updating MFP and getting there slowly. I think once I suss out the macros etc then it will be easier.
I am just wondering if someone can advise me what a good carb/protein/fat ratio is for losing weight. I am working on 1200 calories and need to lose approx 15-20lbs. There are just so many different suggestions online that I thought I would get some advice on here. OR am i better to just stick to the calories and not worry about that stuff just now?
Also.......if doing exercise (and the extra calories are then added on) would you recommend still sticking to the original cals and not use the extra?
thanks in advance
Just starting out on trying to lose some weight and get my fitness up after being injured for far too long! So trying to get into a good habit of updating MFP and getting there slowly. I think once I suss out the macros etc then it will be easier.
I am just wondering if someone can advise me what a good carb/protein/fat ratio is for losing weight. I am working on 1200 calories and need to lose approx 15-20lbs. There are just so many different suggestions online that I thought I would get some advice on here. OR am i better to just stick to the calories and not worry about that stuff just now?
Also.......if doing exercise (and the extra calories are then added on) would you recommend still sticking to the original cals and not use the extra?
thanks in advance
0
Replies
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40c/30f/30p seems like a conventional split.
You will need to be more macro specific if you are lifting (or you are lean trying to get leaner), but even then that split should work.
On this site it is recommended you eat back half your exercise calories.
Good luck.1 -
Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
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Try setting your Protein to 30%. Set Fat or Carbs to 20% depending on what works best for you. Personally I don't add my CB to my CI, but if I go over by a little I don't worry about it either as long as I stay on target with my macros.1
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Surprised to see people making suggestions on macros without knowing your BF%, weight, BMR or activity level. Your protein should be more or less be the same as your weight in pounds or at least 80% of it, fat is essential to regulate the growth hormones and not to mention all the other health benefits (reproductive organs, brain function, skin health etc). Carbs should fill what calories are left.
So perhaps start by telling us your weight and if you know your body fat percentage.0 -
Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
That is very low fat wise. You really don't need to have your protein set that high.
Why are you only eating 1200? What is your height?
With 15lbs to lose you should set your weight loss goal at 0.5lb loss rate per week. If you are training for a marathon then you need to fuel your work outs. Eat back at least half of your extra calories burnt from your cardio.
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RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
That is very low fat wise. You really don't need to have your protein set that high.
Why are you only eating 1200? What is your height?
With 15lbs to lose you should set your weight loss goal at 0.5lb loss rate per week. If you are training for a marathon then you need to fuel your work outs. Eat back at least half of your extra calories burnt from your cardio.
What does your height have to do with calories?
1 -
RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
That is very low fat wise. You really don't need to have your protein set that high.
Why are you only eating 1200? What is your height?
With 15lbs to lose you should set your weight loss goal at 0.5lb loss rate per week. If you are training for a marathon then you need to fuel your work outs. Eat back at least half of your extra calories burnt from your cardio.
What does your height have to do with calories?
You burn more the taller you are.1 -
RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
That is very low fat wise. You really don't need to have your protein set that high.
Why are you only eating 1200? What is your height?
With 15lbs to lose you should set your weight loss goal at 0.5lb loss rate per week. If you are training for a marathon then you need to fuel your work outs. Eat back at least half of your extra calories burnt from your cardio.
What does your height have to do with calories?
You burn more the taller you are.
I am afraid that is incorrect - your muscle mass is what determines how much calories will be burned.1 -
I am 5' 2" and 37 y.o. I was recommended to cut it down to this by a friend who is a PT as not been training at all due to injury but been piling the weight on. That was just a ratio that I found online so wasn't sure if it was ok, thats why looking for some advice 0
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Despite the hype, I personally think the MFP standard macro split is fine for most all around athletes not training to extremes for any specific goal. Once you reach a certain level of fitness if you stall on improvements tweaking might be in order.
For weight loss, just focus on calories. The more you log, the easier it is to bias towards certain macros as you become more familiar with the macro ratios in foods you eat.2 -
robertw486 wrote: »Despite the hype, I personally think the MFP standard macro split is fine for most all around athletes not training to extremes for any specific goal. Once you reach a certain level of fitness if you stall on improvements tweaking might be in order.
For weight loss, just focus on calories. The more you log, the easier it is to bias towards certain macros as you become more familiar with the macro ratios in foods you eat.
Thanks Robert Think might try that to start with then and see how it goes, if start to hit a wall then can start tweaking it all. 0 -
Ooops.... forgot the calories question.
IF you find ways to reasonably accurately count your exercise calories, you can eat them all back. Just take some time to sort out reasonable vs crazy high calorie burns. Adjust as needed using your feedback loop of where your weight is moving.2 -
RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
That is very low fat wise. You really don't need to have your protein set that high.
Why are you only eating 1200? What is your height?
With 15lbs to lose you should set your weight loss goal at 0.5lb loss rate per week. If you are training for a marathon then you need to fuel your work outs. Eat back at least half of your extra calories burnt from your cardio.
What does your height have to do with calories?
You burn more the taller you are.
I am afraid that is incorrect - your muscle mass is what determines how much calories will be burned.
Muscle mass is just one thing that determines it. Weight, height, age, sex. They all play a part. That is why every BMR calculator asks for your height.
1 -
I wouldn't overly stress about the split I second what @ignite_ has told you.. I'd do .8 to 1 gram of protein per pound. I do 20-25% fat and fill the rest in with carbs. You will hear some say that's too low on the fat, but I disagree.. If you don't like how that works.. add in some fats and take away from carbs.. Make it work for you so you can stick with it. Overall I keep my calorie deficit at 20% when I'm cutting weight.1
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RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
That is very low fat wise. You really don't need to have your protein set that high.
Why are you only eating 1200? What is your height?
With 15lbs to lose you should set your weight loss goal at 0.5lb loss rate per week. If you are training for a marathon then you need to fuel your work outs. Eat back at least half of your extra calories burnt from your cardio.
What does your height have to do with calories?
You burn more the taller you are.
I am afraid that is incorrect - your muscle mass is what determines how much calories will be burned.
It's only very short and sedentary women who need to only eat 1200 calories in order to lose weight.
As we can't get DEXA scans on demand, and other measurements of muscle mass are flawed, height is a better metric than muscle mass to use for calculating calories.2 -
kshama2001 wrote: »RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »RuNaRoUnDaFiEld wrote: »Thanks Dhimann. Yes started lifting again and slowly building up my training as running London Marathon next year. Does a 35/45/20 (carb/protein/fat) split sound ok or do i need to tweak that slightly do you think?
That is very low fat wise. You really don't need to have your protein set that high.
Why are you only eating 1200? What is your height?
With 15lbs to lose you should set your weight loss goal at 0.5lb loss rate per week. If you are training for a marathon then you need to fuel your work outs. Eat back at least half of your extra calories burnt from your cardio.
What does your height have to do with calories?
You burn more the taller you are.
I am afraid that is incorrect - your muscle mass is what determines how much calories will be burned.
It's only very short and sedentary women who need to only eat 1200 calories in order to lose weight.
As we can't get DEXA scans on demand, and other measurements of muscle mass are flawed, height is a better metric than muscle mass to use for calculating calories.
Well I'm pretty short and been super sedentary recently so sounds about right
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CasperNaegle wrote: »I wouldn't overly stress about the split I second what @ignite_ has told you.. I'd do .8 to 1 gram of protein per pound. I do 20-25% fat and fill the rest in with carbs. You will hear some say that's too low on the fat, but I disagree.. If you don't like how that works.. add in some fats and take away from carbs.. Make it work for you so you can stick with it. Overall I keep my calorie deficit at 20% when I'm cutting weight.
Thanks CasperNaegle. Sounds good to me so will give it a go and tweak where necessary. Thank you 0
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