Do You Guys Fret Over Unbalanced Meals?

Not really, but I mainly keep an eye on sugar and fat. Also, for my main meal I try to balance the plate as Half Vegetables, Quarter Meat, and Quarter Starch.

Not if it's not consistent. I've had the occasional go over sodium or fats, I go over sugar almost daily but I've managed to at least bring that number way down. I'd more worry if it ends up being a consistent pattern, or you could look back and see if maybe there's an alternative to a specific food item that can easily push you over a number (I cut out the Delissio-style pizzas after seeing the sodium content, homemade is a lot less sodium and more filling).

If it only happens a few times a week I'm guessing it won't have much affect. I don't fret over 1 or 2 unbalanced days a week because I'm getting proper nutrition overall. I guess in the end I'd say look at the bigger picture: Is your day balanced? is your week pretty close to normal? If you're trying to lose weight then the macros don't matter as long as you keep a deficit. It may just affect how you feel.

I watch my carbs per meal because I'm a diabetic, but apart from that I don't worry about macros. The pop up warnings annoy me and I wish I could turn them off. MFP's sodium recommendation in particular is too low - it's based on the current USDA recommendation which research says is actually low enough to be unhealthy. I have my settings customized but it still pings me every time I eat sushi.

I fret a little. Protein is the most difficult to increase for me while fat seems to add up quickly (to be fair, it's healthy fats, not saturated). I like variety, but I'll sometimes have the exact same breakfast 4 days in a row. So the same situation occurs.

No. There are 3 (or more) meals in the day, and possibly more than 20 meals in a week. One unbalanced meal means nothing, unless you are eating nothing but that meal for every meal every single day for several weeks/months.

I never fret over my meal quality. There was a time where I had funnel cake for dinner. Nothing happened. I didn't suddenly drop dead. I know my diet is varied enough to have enough nutrients and that deficiencies take time to develop.

I'm sometimes lower than I would like on protein, but as long as I'm trying to hit my protein target whenever possible and sustainable I'm good. Fretting over that would have caused me to quit long time ago.

I only worry about my daily calorie threshold and my protein goal.

If I started noticing my fats were consistently low on a day to day basis, I'd rethink that, but it's not, so I don't.

"Balanced" is subjective. I'm training for 3rd powerlifting competition in August. My protein is high and carbs are a lot higher than my usual goal. My current macro goals aren't going to appropriate for others; and won't be appropriate when my training goals change.

If your goal is fat loss, calories should be your first priority. For me (for fat loss), my second priority is protein.

Nope I balance it out by the week.

No...I think people get way too worked up about macros...they're a nice thing to be aware of, but we've all survived for hundreds of thousands of years without tracking macros.

Also, one's macro ratios would be a very individual thing..."balance" would be pretty relative. A competitive marathon runner would likely have a very different macro blend than a competitive body builder for example.

I tend to focus on trying to get my balance of macros over the course of the day in total rather than worrying about individual meals.

I don't. My fat is usually higher than my goal, but since I'm still losing weight, I'm probably going to just adjust the goal. My sodium is over half the time and I always have at least two days in a week that my sugar is too high, but my bloodwork is perfect so I don't worry about it.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

No...I think people get way too worked up about macros...they're a nice thing to be aware of, but we've all survived for hundreds of thousands of years without tracking macros.

Also, one's macro ratios would be a very individual thing..."balance" would be pretty relative. A competitive marathon runner would likely have a very different macro blend than a competitive body builder for example.

I totally agree. There are minimums that people need to hit for health purposes, but they are low enough that almost anyone can hit them even on VLCD. Anything above that is personal tweaking and can handle a lot of leeway.

annabel92 wrote: »

It depends if you're just trying to lose weight or if you're trying to get fit/healthy, and how consistent it is.

If you're trying to lose weight, if you're under your calorie count it doesn't really matter too much. However, if you're wanting to get fitter and healthier, it's more important to make sure your macros are right - particularly protein (for fitness especially) and fibre, of course!

However, if it's only occassional you really don't need to worry.

I lost 50lbs and improved all my health markers by only focusing on calories -never tracked or paid attention to macros. A few years into maintenance I still don't pay attention to macros, still in excellent health and have a current bmi of around a 20.