Question about macros

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dovahtin
dovahtin Posts: 3 Member
edited July 2018 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey guys,

I'm new to the calorie counting community. I am currently a 24 year old male weighing in at 219 pounds. I am looking to get down to 185. I cycle for about 30 to 45 minutes a day, averaging 11 km per session (6 times per week). I have all my macros balanced at the moment, with protein being a little higher than carbs and fat. I was wondering if this was a good start? or should i lower my carbs more? I started calorie counting about 2 weeks ago and already i lost 4 pounds (from 223).

Any feedback is greatly appreciated guys.

Replies

  • LiftHeavyThings27105
    LiftHeavyThings27105 Posts: 2,086 Member
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    dovahtin wrote: »
    Hey guys,

    I'm new to the calorie counting community. I am currently a 24 year old male weighing in at 219 pounds. I am looking to get down to 185. I cycle for about 30 to 45 minutes a day, averaging 11 km per session. I have all my macros balanced at the moment, with protein being a little higher than carbs and fat. I was wondering if this was a good start? or should i lower my carbs more? I started calorie counting about 2 weeks ago and already i lost 4 pounds (from 223).

    Any feedback is greatly appreciated guys.

    Awesome! Welcome to MFP. Are you using MFP to determine your caloric intake? Meaning, have you set MFP to help you with your weight loss journey? If you are not, that might be a good start! MFP will break down your macros, too (based on a fixed percentage for each of the three macros).

    Do you do any resistance training (lifting weights, for example)?
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    Barring medical reasons, macros are a personal preference. As long as you're getting enough protein (minimum .8 grams per pound of lean mass) and fat (minimum .35 grams per pound of weight), you're good.

    I followed the default macro percentages and lost with no problems.
  • dovahtin
    dovahtin Posts: 3 Member
    edited July 2018
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    .

    Awesome! Welcome to MFP. Are you using MFP to determine your caloric intake? Meaning, have you set MFP to help you with your weight loss journey? If you are not, that might be a good start! MFP will break down your macros, too (based on a fixed percentage for each of the three macros).

    Do you do any resistance training (lifting weights, for example)?

    Hey thanks for your quick response!

    I fit in about 40 push ups a day and will start lifting weights by tonight. I have already set my account up, which is telling me to stay at 1850 calories a day before work outs. i have been consistently hitting my target every day, most days I am under by one to three hundred calories.
  • LiftHeavyThings27105
    LiftHeavyThings27105 Posts: 2,086 Member
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    dovahtin wrote: »
    Hey guys,

    I'm new to the calorie counting community. I am currently a 24 year old male weighing in at 219 pounds. I am looking to get down to 185. I cycle for about 30 to 45 minutes a day, averaging 11 km per session (6 times per week). I have all my macros balanced at the moment, with protein being a little higher than carbs and fat. I was wondering if this was a good start? or should i lower my carbs more? I started calorie counting about 2 weeks ago and already i lost 4 pounds (from 223).

    Any feedback is greatly appreciated guys.

    Additionally, I would suggest that macros *could* be based on your body weight instead of a % of your caloric intake.

    Most people would suggest the following:

    Protein - 0.8g/lb - 1.2g/lb of body weight
    Fats - 0.25g/lb - 0.40g/lb of body weight
    Carbs - the rest

    If you are in a caloric deficit (aka, a cut.....aka, losing weight) then you might want to ensure that protein intake is maybe a little bit towards the higher end...to help maintain any muscle mass that you might already have | minimize muscle mass loss during the cut.

    That is VERY generic and a little bit different from how MFP does things.....
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    Macros are personal preference. They don't affect weight loss directly, but can affect satiety and different levels work for different people. You can start with the mfp minimums and view protein and fat as a min to be exceeded and let carbs fall where they may. Then make changes based on learning by how you feel and how that correlates with what you're eating.

    Calories are most important for weight loss. Congrats on getting started and good luck!
  • dovahtin
    dovahtin Posts: 3 Member
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    amazing! i love how quick the responses are. I am keeping my carbs under 200 g a day as I am afraid that my body will burn them instead of fat. Is this the reality or a myth?
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
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    dovahtin wrote: »
    amazing! i love how quick the responses are. I am keeping my carbs under 200 g a day as I am afraid that my body will burn them instead of fat. Is this the reality or a myth?

    If you're in a deficit, you're in a deficit - your body needs more energy than you're giving it, regardless of the source of the calories, so it will use bodyfat (and perhaps some muscle) to do what it needs to do.
  • LiftHeavyThings27105
    LiftHeavyThings27105 Posts: 2,086 Member
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    kimny72 wrote: »
    Macros are personal preference. They don't affect weight loss directly, but can affect satiety and different levels work for different people. You can start with the mfp minimums and view protein and fat as a min to be exceeded and let carbs fall where they may. Then make changes based on learning by how you feel and how that correlates with what you're eating.

    Calories are most important for weight loss. Congrats on getting started and good luck!

    ^^^what she says!

    Hitting your caloric intake should be first and foremost the goal. Do your best to hit them every day and your journey will be easier!

    Macros - at the end of the day - are indeed a preference. So, start with whatever you start with and see how those numbers work for you. if you need to change, do it. If not, don't.

    Also when you are new to the counting thing, logging will - generally speaking - be really important. And I would suggest that a scale will assist you in logging more accurately (not saying that you are not - just saying that just about all of us are not so great in the beginning....it is a learned skill....and a food scale will help you immensely).

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