Weight loss and macros (aka how much protein?)
jenwil1999
Posts: 38 Member
I'm here primarily for weight loss, but am trying to understand/balance my macros too. I realize I definitely do not eat enough protein, but the estimation on MFP seems really high.
Starting weight (3.5 weeks ago): 227
Current Weight : 212 lbs
Height: 5"4'
Activity level: Low
MFP goals: lose 1.5 lbs per week (2 lbs gave me 1200 cals and I can't manage that, but am still averaging 2 lbs per week on 1350 cals)
MFP suggests
Calories: 1350
Carbs: 169 g
Prot: 68 g
Fat: 45 g
Other factors: For now, I am NOT trying to exercise more. Just focusing on food, portions, and nutrition.
For the past few years, I've probably averaged less than 20 g of protein per day. I'm not vegetarian, but living abroad, meat was served in smaller portions and I just naturally cut back. While I know protein is in a lot of things, I was never intentional about getting it (never have liked beans and nuts) and really only ate meat (3-5 oz) once or twice a week.
For the past 3 weeks of logging, I've really tried to get my protein up and fat down. I struggled for the first week just to get my protein higher than my fat. Now I'm happy if I can get protein over 50 g, and keep fat under 50 g. I know that may not be perfect, but it's a lot better than I was doing. So my question is, what should I realistically be aiming for? Do I really need 68 g of protein? I hear some people on here talk about trying to get 100 g. I know there are calculations, but they seem to depend on ideal weight. But it also seems to be related to how much you're working out and the goal of muscle building.
Finally, since my top priority is weight loss, the only goal I'm absolutely hitting every day is calories. Protein is my second and I usually hit the goal of 50+ g. But if it slips I don't worry about it, as long as the calories are right. Fat is my third goal, and it slips pretty often (1-2 times per week I exceed 50 g). Are these the right goals for me now? I'm not going to budge on calories as number one, but if I can only have one other goal, should it be protein or fat or carbs? Should it be a maximum or minimum?
Ps - I don't know if it's relevant, but....
Goal weight is undecided. Just focusing on getting under 200 lbs, then probably set another goal. Honestly be happy with staying under 150, but ideal weight is probably around 130.
Any and all help appreciated. Thanks!
Starting weight (3.5 weeks ago): 227
Current Weight : 212 lbs
Height: 5"4'
Activity level: Low
MFP goals: lose 1.5 lbs per week (2 lbs gave me 1200 cals and I can't manage that, but am still averaging 2 lbs per week on 1350 cals)
MFP suggests
Calories: 1350
Carbs: 169 g
Prot: 68 g
Fat: 45 g
Other factors: For now, I am NOT trying to exercise more. Just focusing on food, portions, and nutrition.
For the past few years, I've probably averaged less than 20 g of protein per day. I'm not vegetarian, but living abroad, meat was served in smaller portions and I just naturally cut back. While I know protein is in a lot of things, I was never intentional about getting it (never have liked beans and nuts) and really only ate meat (3-5 oz) once or twice a week.
For the past 3 weeks of logging, I've really tried to get my protein up and fat down. I struggled for the first week just to get my protein higher than my fat. Now I'm happy if I can get protein over 50 g, and keep fat under 50 g. I know that may not be perfect, but it's a lot better than I was doing. So my question is, what should I realistically be aiming for? Do I really need 68 g of protein? I hear some people on here talk about trying to get 100 g. I know there are calculations, but they seem to depend on ideal weight. But it also seems to be related to how much you're working out and the goal of muscle building.
Finally, since my top priority is weight loss, the only goal I'm absolutely hitting every day is calories. Protein is my second and I usually hit the goal of 50+ g. But if it slips I don't worry about it, as long as the calories are right. Fat is my third goal, and it slips pretty often (1-2 times per week I exceed 50 g). Are these the right goals for me now? I'm not going to budge on calories as number one, but if I can only have one other goal, should it be protein or fat or carbs? Should it be a maximum or minimum?
Ps - I don't know if it's relevant, but....
Goal weight is undecided. Just focusing on getting under 200 lbs, then probably set another goal. Honestly be happy with staying under 150, but ideal weight is probably around 130.
Any and all help appreciated. Thanks!
2
Replies
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Great post that walks you through how to set up your macros: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p11
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MFP's settings are fine. Try pre-logging to hit your macros1
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20g of protein a day is pretty low, I'd say MFP's settings are just fine.
It's protein and fibre that keep you feeling full and therefore help to curb the snacking in-between meals that we are all guilty of. Have a read up on sources of protein and then work out your favourites and how to incorporate them into your diet more.0 -
It's protein and fibre that keep you feeling full and therefore help to curb the snacking in-between meals that we are all guilty of. Have a read up on sources of protein and then work out your favourites and how to incorporate them into your diet more.
and fat, for me at least. hence my peanut butter addiction!1 -
Your macros aren't terribly important for weight loss; total calories is the key thing. However, eating enough protein will help you feel full, not lose muscle (you want to lose fat not muscle), and may minimize adaptive thermogenesis. Lifting weights will also help with the last two things.
I also struggle with getting enough protein. I just don't like the taste of a lot of meat! Seafood is the healthiest meat, and also the purest source of protein, so focus your meat eating there. Canned meats are convenient and cheap. I eat a lot of canned tuna, salmon, sardines, and have been making clam chowder. Low fat dairy, particularly cottage cheese and Greek yogurt, are protein rich, as are eggs. Soy is the best veggie source of protein. Many seeds, grains, and vegetables have protein too.0 -
Fat is very filling per unit volume, but it is also very caloric! It is NOT filling per calorie for that reason. Usually when people talk of a macro being satiating, they mean per calorie, not per volume.TavistockToad wrote: »
It's protein and fibre that keep you feeling full and therefore help to curb the snacking in-between meals that we are all guilty of. Have a read up on sources of protein and then work out your favourites and how to incorporate them into your diet more.
and fat, for me at least. hence my peanut butter addiction!
Another point of confusion is that fat is important for making food palatable, but being palatable is not the same as being satiating (filling). Palatability is how tasty the food is, and how much you can stomach at a sitting. Satiation is how long you can go after the meal, before getting hungry again.
Peanut butter is addictive because it is palatable, not because it is filling. And this is due to the fat content. But, 50 calories of peanut butter is not going to keep you full for as long as 50 calories of lean meat. Because 50 calories of meat has more volume.
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Fat is very filling per unit volume, but it is also very caloric! It is NOT filling per calorie for that reason. Usually when people talk of a macro being satiating, they mean per calorie, not per volume.TavistockToad wrote: »
It's protein and fibre that keep you feeling full and therefore help to curb the snacking in-between meals that we are all guilty of. Have a read up on sources of protein and then work out your favourites and how to incorporate them into your diet more.
and fat, for me at least. hence my peanut butter addiction!
Another point of confusion is that fat is important for making food palatable, but being palatable is not the same as being satiating (filling). Palatability is how tasty the food is, and how much you can stomach at a sitting. Satiation is how long you can go after the meal, before getting hungry again.
Peanut butter is addictive because it is palatable, not because it is filling. And this is due to the fat content.
Some people do find fat filling... to each their own, no?
And saying it was 'addictive' was a joke...2 -
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KickboxFanatic wrote: »
Seafood has healthier fats than other meat - it's high in omega 3 fats. While red meat had been implicated in heart disease and cancer, seafood has consistently been shown to reduce your risk of both. And poultry is generally a wash.
Yes, purified protein has more protein than seafood. I should have clarified that it's the purest source of protein from unprocessed foods.0 -
68g is not high! I usually get between 70-100g daily on @ 1600 cals. Most comes from: chicken, fish, greek yogurt, milk, eggs, lentils, beans, string cheese. and protein powder. Every week I buy a rotisserie chicken (most gets shredded or chopped and stored to be thrown in with pretty much anything I eat) and 7 greek yogurt cups. Some weeks I go through a dozen eggs, sometimes it takes a little longer. Hard boiled eggs are great to keep in the fridge as a snack.
Protein is needed for cell repair, including hair, skin, and nails. Even if you aren't trying to "build" muscle, your muscles are still challenged by day to day movements and need to repair themselves. Some people (including me!) find protein helps with satiety, though this doesn't work for everyone. It was much harder for me to stick to my calorie goal when my protein was @ 50 grams.
In general, I think the MFP standard protein and fat goals should be seen as minimums for a person with no health issues.
Personally, I would start looking back at each days' meals and determine which ones left you feeling satisfied and which you felt hungry an hour after you ate. Then look at the macros and see if there is a pattern. I find I do best with pretty balanced macros (nothing high, nothing low), and if any macro dips too low I am constantly hungry. Other people find one thing - like protein, fat, fiber, even carbs - needs to be a little high to work best. Once you figure it out, adjust your macros accordingly. I wouldn't aim for less than the standard MFP goal for fat and protein though. Just my 2 cents, hope it helps :drinker:1 -
Seafood has healthier fats than other meat - it's high in omega 3 fats. While red meat had been implicated in heart disease and cancer, seafood has consistently been shown to reduce your risk of both. And poultry is generally a wash.
Yes, purified protein has more protein than seafood. I should have clarified that it's the purest source of protein from unprocessed foods.
The problem here is that "healthy" is beyond subjective and "pure source" doesn't really mean anything. Purity of what?1 -
20 grs of protein ,wow I am surprised how can anyone eat so little protein, and I'm a vegan, maybe you did eat too little in general. 68 grs is not high at all either, well I am on an average of 80-95 ,or try to.0
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KickboxFanatic wrote: »
Seafood has healthier fats than other meat - it's high in omega 3 fats. While red meat had been implicated in heart disease and cancer, seafood has consistently been shown to reduce your risk of both. And poultry is generally a wash.
Yes, purified protein has more protein than seafood. I should have clarified that it's the purest source of protein from unprocessed foods.
The vast majority of studies that implicate red meat in heart disease and cancer neglect to look at the overall diet...most of those studies are on people eating the SAD which is a piss poor diet...it includes a lot of red meat, but it also includes a whole host of other *kitten* and tends to be lacking in vegetables and fruits as well as other fibrous complex carbohydrates...the SAD is a nutrient deficient diet and causes a whole host of problems.
Conversely, those who consume sea food on a regular basis also tend to have overall healthier diets...yes, it's a great way to get your omega 3...and I mostly eat fish...but you have to be really careful when looking at those studies. Correlation studies are notoriously shoddy.
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I've been messing with my macro ratio lately too, I'm not awful at protein but it's not naturally my first choice so planning is key. I prelog my day, and for example today's original dinner plans was less protein and more carbs than I needed so I adjusted it and now I see today will hit all the macros without going over. I just suggest adding chicken to as many meals as you can. It's the easiest for me because I can buy big bags of frozen chicken and cook it whenever. I'm considering this week my ramp up to more concentrated efforts in the coming weeks and the chicken will be very key to me from what I've logged so far this week.
Other protein sources are fine with me but chicken is EASY so it actually happens. Can't tell you how many times I planned to cook fish and ended up eating something else last minute because there was effort involved and I lack experience. Silly I know BUT this whole process is about finding what will work for you long term- you will find it
keep on trying! 0 -
Weight loss aside, your body needs proper amounts of protein to function properly. Protein is not just for muscle, it is also an important building block of bones, cartilage, blood and skin, it is required to make hormones and enzymes in the body and is essential for proper repair of tissues. Unlike Carb's and fat, the body does not store protein so it has no reservoir to draw from. Protein is a Macronutrient meaning you need larger amounts of it to stay healthy. This doesn't mean you have to eat giant quantities but I would at least hit the MFP guidelines, I actually find these to be quite low. Protein for weight loss is also quite helpful as it helps preserve lean mass while loosing weight. Lean mass is important as this contributes to the resting basil metabolic rate, as opposed to fat, meaning you burn more calories at rest. It also helps with satiety. You can get protein from other sources than meat... such as eggs and dairy to start.0
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KickboxFanatic wrote: »
Seafood has healthier fats than other meat - it's high in omega 3 fats. While red meat had been implicated in heart disease and cancer, seafood has consistently been shown to reduce your risk of both. And poultry is generally a wash.
Yes, purified protein has more protein than seafood. I should have clarified that it's the purest source of protein from unprocessed foods.
The problem here is that "healthy" is beyond subjective and "pure source" doesn't really mean anything. Purity of what?
Risk of heart disease and cancer is subjective? OK...
Pure as in it's nearly all protein and not much else. What else would it mean? For instance bluefin tuna's calories are 70% protein, 30% fat, and 0% carb. A blade roast of beef, trimmed to 0" fat, is 67% fat, 33% protein, 0% carb. Numbers from nutritiondata.com.1 -
KickboxFanatic wrote: »
Certainly not all fish is farmed. I avoid farm raised fish myself because of environmental concerns. Even so, farm raised fish has higher levels of omega 3 fat than pasture raised beef.0 -
Certainly not all fish is farmed. I avoid farm raised fish myself because of environmental concerns. Even so, farm raised fish has higher levels of omega 3 fat than pasture raised beef.
Avoiding farm raised fish was not part or your original statement. You made a blanket statement that seafood is the best and to focus our protein efforts there. Seafood isn't always the healthiest source of protein depending on where that seafood is coming from.
Not all seafood is high in omega 3s, cold water fish is. Still for any benefit you'd need to ingest quite a bit cold water fish on a daily basis. Nothing wrong with that, just not as easy as having 4oz of salmon or cod a day and saying, "I'm at less risk for cancer and heart disease."1 -
Can't tell you how many times I planned to cook fish and ended up eating something else last minute because there was effort involved and I lack experience. Silly I know BUT this whole process is about finding what will work for you long term- you will find it keep on trying!
Same for me! This is why i eat a lot of canned seafood. I'd love to eat more fresh local seafood, living in Seattle and all, but (1) it's expensive, and (2) i usually fail at cooking it.
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I'm 5'3", 151 (maintaining) and my daily protein in 125g (1g per pound of goal lean muscle mass)
46g is the RDA for protein1 -
cwolfman13 wrote: »KickboxFanatic wrote: »
Seafood has healthier fats than other meat - it's high in omega 3 fats. While red meat had been implicated in heart disease and cancer, seafood has consistently been shown to reduce your risk of both. And poultry is generally a wash.
Yes, purified protein has more protein than seafood. I should have clarified that it's the purest source of protein from unprocessed foods.
The vast majority of studies that implicate red meat in heart disease and cancer neglect to look at the overall diet...most of those studies are on people eating the SAD which is a piss poor diet...it includes a lot of red meat, but it also includes a whole host of other *kitten* and tends to be lacking in vegetables and fruits as well as other fibrous complex carbohydrates...the SAD is a nutrient deficient diet and causes a whole host of problems.
Conversely, those who consume sea food on a regular basis also tend to have overall healthier diets...yes, it's a great way to get your omega 3...and I mostly eat fish...but you have to be really careful when looking at those studies. Correlation studies are notoriously shoddy.
Yes definitely. But there are enough studies that have attempted to control for these factors, and get the same correlations, that it convinces me. And it convinces major health organizations, like the WHO, the American Heart Association, and the American Cancer Society, who all recommend choosing fish before red meat.0 -
KickboxFanatic wrote: »Certainly not all fish is farmed. I avoid farm raised fish myself because of environmental concerns. Even so, farm raised fish has higher levels of omega 3 fat than pasture raised beef.
Avoiding farm raised fish was not part or your original statement. You made a blanket statement that seafood is the best and to focus our protein efforts there. Seafood isn't always the healthiest source of protein depending on where that seafood is coming from.
Not all seafood is high in omega 3s, cold water fish is. Still for any benefit you'd need to ingest quite a bit cold water fish on a daily basis. Nothing wrong with that, just not as easy as having 4oz of salmon or cod a day and saying, "I'm at less risk for cancer and heart disease."
Farm raised fish wasn't part of my original statement, because in terms of health, farm raised fish is, on average, still healthier than other meats, on average. Not only cold water fish are high in omega 3 fats, although those fish have some of the highest amounts. Farmed fish are sometimes deliberately given high-omega-3 diets and can be very high in omega 3. I don't eat farm raised fish because of its impact on the environment, not because i believe it's unhealthy for you.
Omega 3 fats per ounce (from nutritiondata.com):
Farmed atlantic salmon: 700mg
Wild Atlantic salmon: 566mg
Tilapia (farmed): 62mg
Chicken: 53mg
Ground grass fed beef: 27mg
Ground beef, 30% fat: 17mg
According to a Mayo Clinic report, taking a fish oil equivalent to 2.2 oz farmed atlantic salmon a day can reduce your risk of heart disease. http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/omega-3-fatty-acids-fish-oil-alpha-linolenic-acid/dosing/HRB-20059372 Unfortunately they don't give references and i don't have the time to dig around for the study right now. But yes, it possibly can be that easy.
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Duplicate0
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My weightloss really picked up when I had someone with experience and knowledge adjust my macros. I am 42 work out 3-5 time per week cardio weight lifting etc I have a pretty sedentary job although I work from home I sit a lot. My cals are 1200 per day which suits me just fine my macros are 50%protein 30 fat and 20 carbs. On the days I don't exercise I try and keep my carbs on the low side. This works magically for me and I am never hungry. Macros do make a difference at least they do for me note I did not have too much to loose but sometimes that makes weightloss even slower.0
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Sorry to disappear, I'm not a daily forum user.
I've ready all your thoughts and appreciate the answers. Thank you to the people that actually addressed my question. Several of you said 68 g is not very high. Considering it's double what I comfortably eat, I have no idea how you manage to do 100 g.
Today was a great example of a normal day for me: I hit 33 g of protein and that was only because I realized I was at the end of the day and only had 20g. (Breakfast 7g, Lunch 5g, Dinner 5g, Snack 3g). Then I ate greek yogurt that I didn't want just for the extra 13 g of protein. Until looking at macros this month, I would have considered this a normal, pretty healthy day (most veggies, low cal) and I would've stopped at 20 g.
Part of the reason I asked this question is because the calculations give me numbers that seem absurd. MFP says 68 g, but some calculations would have me doing up to 168 g (0.8*212, current weight, although I understand that's wrong). But on the other hand there's this RDA of 46 g, which seems much more achievable.
By the way, I'm NOT asking how to get more protein, I'm just trying to understand the macros for someone who's quite overweight. In addition, it seems impossible to eat enough to meet the macros and still keep the calories low enough to lose.
Anyway, I will keep trying to do at least 50 g per day. Eventually I might try for 68 g. But for now, at least 1-2 days a week will be somewhere closer to 30 g. Thanks for the input!0 -
My weightloss really picked up when I had someone with experience and knowledge adjust my macros. I am 42 work out 3-5 time per week cardio weight lifting etc I have a pretty sedentary job although I work from home I sit a lot. My cals are 1200 per day which suits me just fine my macros are 50%protein 30 fat and 20 carbs. On the days I don't exercise I try and keep my carbs on the low side. This works magically for me and I am never hungry. Macros do make a difference at least they do for me note I did not have too much to loose but sometimes that makes weightloss even slower.
I'm glad to know that macros make a difference. How did you find someone to adjust them for you? I think this is more what I was looking for when I started this thread - understanding what my macros should be.0 -
jenwil1999 wrote: »Sorry to disappear, I'm not a daily forum user.
I've ready all your thoughts and appreciate the answers. Thank you to the people that actually addressed my question. Several of you said 68 g is not very high. Considering it's double what I comfortably eat, I have no idea how you manage to do 100 g.
Today was a great example of a normal day for me: I hit 33 g of protein and that was only because I realized I was at the end of the day and only had 20g. (Breakfast 7g, Lunch 5g, Dinner 5g, Snack 3g). Then I ate greek yogurt that I didn't want just for the extra 13 g of protein. Until looking at macros this month, I would have considered this a normal, pretty healthy day (most veggies, low cal) and I would've stopped at 20 g.
Part of the reason I asked this question is because the calculations give me numbers that seem absurd. MFP says 68 g, but some calculations would have me doing up to 168 g (0.8*212, current weight, although I understand that's wrong). But on the other hand there's this RDA of 46 g, which seems much more achievable.
By the way, I'm NOT asking how to get more protein, I'm just trying to understand the macros for someone who's quite overweight. In addition, it seems impossible to eat enough to meet the macros and still keep the calories low enough to lose.
Anyway, I will keep trying to do at least 50 g per day. Eventually I might try for 68 g. But for now, at least 1-2 days a week will be somewhere closer to 30 g. Thanks for the input!
Can you open your diary - I am a meat lover so I can't imagine so little protein? I'm really curious!!1 -
96 kg-30%bf=67,2 x 1,3g protein= 87,36g prot. = 349,44Cal.( x 1g protein= 67,2g protein= 268,8 cal )0
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Protein is the material your body uses to repair your cells - skin, hair, muscle, organs, etc. Your cells constantly need to be repaired and replaced. Also when you are losing weight, you will lose some fat and some muscle. It's possible eating some extra protein and doing resistance training can minimize the amount of muscle you lose.
Most experts I've read suggest 0.6 to 0.8 grams of protein per lb of body weight. At the very least, aim for the RDA. I can't imagine how you can eat any meat at all and only get 20 grams protein for the day. I've eaten vegetarian days and gotten up over 50 grams without trying. Perhaps you are using incorrect entries?1
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