MACROS

When I started on MFP I learned about "trigger food" - in my case bread - a loaf or two over lunch time was no problem. So I decided to take it easy with carbs - stay away from bread as much as possible and stick to vegetables / salads / fruits. Initially my carbs / far / protein was around 20% / 40% / 40% and over time my carbs slightly increased. Now, after 570 days and a weight loss of 43 kg (95 pounds) my body is very happy with about 1/3 /1/3 / 1/3. I have no food cravings and don't need any cheat meals. I'd say - listen to your body and over time you will get to your unique macros composition and body requirements which you can happily live with.

Start with the MFP recommended breakdown. If you are feeling hungry and not able to stick to realistic calorie goals try reducing carbs and upping fats and proteins as they are generally more filling. If you are lacking energy try a few more carbs. It’s about finding the right balance for you over time. If you have entered your stats correctly and a realistic goal into MFP that’s the best place to start

Honestly, MFP's simple default 50-30-20 (carbs-fat-protein) is an OK starting point, if a bit old school. Try that out for a while, and then tweak it to suit your own preferences. A lot of people eat less carbs than that nowadays, and end up modifying the goals. So for instance I do 35-35-30 and it suits my eating habits and preferences quite well. I know there's at least a few other people here who also do 35-35-30.

Macros don't matter much as long as you're eating generally well balanced meals and are getting enough protein to fuel your workouts.

I don't remember which are which but mine are 35,35,30. They may not even be the same each time I go back through the guided set-up. I think protein is always a 35 but the other two probably swap around. I care mostly about protein and fiber and on my heavy fish days I keep an eye on fat.

Only calories matter for weight loss (especially in the short run), but nutrition is important for long term health, energy level, body composition, and satiation. Macros are the foundation of nutrition (but not the whole story).

I'd suggest dialing in your calorie level first, then working toward the MFP default macros (as others have said, they're decent for most people). I'd note that close on macros is fine: It doesn't need to be exact, or identical every day, as long as you're not consistently far under on protein or fats (both of which are essential nutrients . . . many people here don't pay much attention to fats, but I'd be under them very often, if I didn't).

Personally, after a few years of tracking, my goals (at any calorie level) are 0.6-0.8g protein for each pound (yes, I mean pound, not kg) of healthy goal weight, 0.35-0.45g fats per ditto (preferring healthy sources like avocados, nuts, olive oil, etc.), and a minimum of 5+ daily servings (10+ better) of varied, colorful veggies and fruits. For convenience, I round that up to 100g protein, 50g fats as minimum, and count 80g (raw) veggies/fruits as a serving. If, when I get close enough to my calorie goal, my MFP totals are a mix of red and green when I hit/exceed those, I just pretend it's Christmas.

It's fine to gradually work toward better nutrition in your way of eating: Everything doesn't need to be perfect all at once. It can be more achievable to gradually modify eating, to keep things manageable and practical, rather than trying to revolutionize it to perfection all in one jump (stressful! ). Humans are adaptive omnivores. Unless you have some acute health problem at the start that's a priority, you have time to get to better nutrition by gradually changing things over a period of weeks or few months.

If that appeals to you as an approach, there's a more detailed discussion of it here:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10636388/free-customized-personal-weight-loss-eating-plan-not-spam-or-mlm/p1

Best wishes!