Macros vs calories?!
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LauraSrock18
Posts: 125 Member
Out of curiosity, who focuses on macros as a main priority & who focuses on overall calorie intake?!
Please share experiences and opinions!
Please share experiences and opinions!
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Replies
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To me calorie intake is the driving force for what happens with my weight so they have to be priority when it comes to my goals. Next I focus on my protein intake. Fat I don't worry about because I am usually in a good range and carbs fall where they fall.4
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To me calorie intake is the driving force for what happens with my weight so they have to be priority when it comes to my goals. Next I focus on my protein intake. Fat I don't worry about because I am usually in a good range and carbs fall where they fall.
Did you use the MFP recommended calories & macros when losing?
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LauraSrock18 wrote: »To me calorie intake is the driving force for what happens with my weight so they have to be priority when it comes to my goals. Next I focus on my protein intake. Fat I don't worry about because I am usually in a good range and carbs fall where they fall.
Did you use the MFP recommended calories & macros when losing?
I did when I started but had to adjust based on how much I was losing. Now I don't track at all but use past data as a reference.2 -
I’d rather just track calories via tracking macros so I know I’m getting optimal macronutrient intake as well as hitting my desired calories through that0
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Calories are king but I have been doing this long enough to know that I will easily meet my minimums for protein and fat and don't care where carbs sit.
Minimum protein for weight loss is generally 1.5 grams per kilo of body weight or 0.8 grams per pound of GOAL body weight (or current lean muscle mass which is hard to work out).
Fat minimums are 0.3 grams per pound of body weight.
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I tend to do macros first but only because when I keep my macros at a certain point, I am much less hungry and I eat less so I don't need to count calories in order to lose or maintain weight.3
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I think it's best to dial in calories first, then macros. After that, you can worry about other stuff if you want.
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I focus on calories for weight control (because calories are king when it comes to weight), and aim to hit/exceed my protein goal every day. I get plenty of fats in my diet, so no need to worry about that (fats are essential, though - it's good to get enough of them) and I let carbs fall wherever they fall.
Great guide for setting up your calorie/macro goals here: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p14 -
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I focus on macros - emphasizing protein and fat and fiber (to the point that I significantly restrict carbs and am ketogenic) i find that the appetite control of a ketogenic diet is a major benefit.
Here's a study ( https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25402637# )
"Very-low-energy diets (VLEDs) and ketogenic low-carbohydrate diets (KLCDs) are two dietary strategies that have been associated with a suppression of appetite. However, the results of clinical trials investigating the effect of ketogenic diets on appetite are inconsistent. To evaluate quantitatively the effect of ketogenic diets on subjective appetite ratings, we conducted a systematic literature search and meta-analysis of studies that assessed appetite with visual analogue scales before (in energy balance) and during (while in ketosis) adherence to VLED or KLCD. Individuals were less hungry and exhibited greater fullness/satiety while adhering to VLED, and individuals adhering to KLCD were less hungry and had a reduced desire to eat. Although these absolute changes in appetite were small, they occurred within the context of energy restriction, which is known to increase appetite in obese people. Thus, the clinical benefit of a ketogenic diet is in preventing an increase in appetite, despite weight loss, although individuals may indeed feel slightly less hungry (or more full or satisfied). Ketosis appears to provide a plausible explanation for this suppression of appetite. Future studies should investigate the minimum level of ketosis required to achieve appetite suppression during ketogenic weight loss diets, as this could enable inclusion of a greater variety of healthy carbohydrate-containing foods into the diet.9 -
For weight loss purposes, macros effectively are equivalent to calories, in the sense that if you count macros it translates to approximately X amount of calories.
For weight management purposes, I track calories; for health I target a minimum number of grams of protein and fat daily (plus a minimum number of veggie/fruit servings). Since I'm only targeting 2 macros specifically, any extra remaining calories can be spent on carbs, alcohol, or additional protein or fats, depending on how I feel about it on any given day.6 -
To me calorie intake is the driving force for what happens with my weight so they have to be priority when it comes to my goals. Next I focus on my protein intake. Fat I don't worry about because I am usually in a good range and carbs fall where they fall.
Could not have said it better!
The only other thing I try to watch is my sodium, but its more like I actively manage calories then I look at the end of the day just to see how my macros fell, and that's only every now and again. I don't manage my macros daily, just peek here or there if i think about it.0 -
Both. Focus on calories, then try to get enough protein, and then make sure that my sodium is under budget. All three are equally important to me.1
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LauraSrock18 wrote: »Out of curiosity, who focuses on macros as a main priority & who focuses on overall calorie intake?!
Please share experiences and opinions!
I track macros first and foremost. I use a macro calculator for my needs and set it for weight loss and the calculator counts for calories already. If you follow your macros to the tee it will be in deficit. But you know you are balancing your macros and won’t feel deprived. I’m losing weight. I eat what i want. It’s not restricting at all.
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I watch both my calories and carbs closely. I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic last summer (back in the normal range now by watching the carbs)...I don’t want to go back, or worse, let it escalate into full blown diabetes.2
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For me I focus on hitting my macros I try to hit the exact numbers or at least -10 or +10 away from the goal. I feel it’s more structured I wouldn’t want most of my intake to solemnly be carbs since I am trying to get lean I know my macros in carbs would have to be low and protein high and fat to be moderate. You can have something be 150 calories or so and be high in fat and carbs and knock you off if your trying to achieve a certain physique.7
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I watch calories first (because they are the most important thing to weight loss/maintenance), and then if need be i tweak things to make sure my protein and fat is where it needs to be, carbs usually fall into place after doing this.0
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Dang, all these people worried about their sodium budget and I’m worried about NOT exceeding mine! 6-8+ grams a day crew!!0
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Calories is king (for my weight loss or gain goal), followed by protein (in order to build muscles on a bulk and maintain them as much as possible on a caloric deficit)...I don't follow fat or carbs closely. I do make sure though that fat is not ridiculously low, but that hardly ever happens.0
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Calories are made from the macros.
fat has 9cal per gram
protein and carb have 4cal per gram
So watching your macros (in grams) is exactly the same thing as watching your calories.
(Watching your calories is not the same as watching your macros)
Example:
200gr carb = 800cal
100gr prot = 400cal
80gr fat = 720cal
Total 1920 cal
I watch (when I do) my calories only and try to eat less than 40gr fat as per doc orders. I'm not a big fan of proteins (I eat meat but I don't like it much) so I eat lots of carbs.
I've noticed that if I don't watch my macros, more often than not, they are spot on as percentage.
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