protein

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I was wondering why this site thinks that we should have more carbs and less protein. I'm confused.

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  • DC0hen
    DC0hen Posts: 47 Member
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    Welcome,

    We all need some carbs to survive and have the correct amount of energy. It also depends on the types of carbs we consume that affects weight.

    Use those amounts as guides only. If you are looking to put on some muscle then add more protein.
  • billtonkin
    billtonkin Posts: 109
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    Honestly, you should figure out your maintenance calories and macros yourself and not go by what this site says.

    Figure your BMR with either the Mifflin-St Jeor or preferably the Katch-McArdle method. Then multiply that by your activity factor.

    1.2 = Sedentary (Little or no exercise + desk job)
    1.3-1.4 = Lightly Active (Little daily activity & light exercise 1-3 days a week)
    1.5-1.6 = Moderately Active (Moderately active daily life & Moderate exercise 3-5 days a week)
    1.7-1.8 = Very Active (Physically demanding lifestyle & Hard exercise or sports 6-7 days a week)
    1.9-2.0 = Extremely Active (Hard daily exercise or sports and physical job)

    That should get you very close to your maintenance calories. Meaning you should neither lose nor gain weight. Warning: you may have to adjust 100 up or down, everybody is different. Once you find your maintenance, you can then add or subtract 300-500 cals to either gain or lose weight.

    And from there, the disagreements start. Personally, I go with the bodybuilding method as that's worked for me.

    1g protein x 1lb of body weight (4 cals per gram)
    .4 - .45g fat x 1lb of body weight (9 cals per gram)
    Leftover cals is divided by 4 to get grams of carbs (4 cals per gram)

    Carbs are important, but unless you are a serious high level athlete, carbs should not account for more than 40% of your calories.
  • UponThisRock
    UponThisRock Posts: 4,522 Member
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    Everything MFP recommends isn't gospel