Macros for Fat Loss

onikonor
onikonor Posts: 473 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
What are the optimal macros for fat loss? I was contemplating 40c/40p/20f or 40c/30p/30f?

Should I watch anything else like sugar or sodium or anything like that?
«1

Replies

  • strikerjb007
    strikerjb007 Posts: 443 Member
    It varies. For me, it was 50p/30c/20f.
  • robharlan
    robharlan Posts: 14 Member
    Good question, I usually try to do a 30/30/30 then let the other 10 fall where it may, usually most of it ends up in the protein though.
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    Hmm.. with 50% protein wouldn't you have to up the fiber somehow too? I thought most fiber comes from carb rich foods.
  • wisegirl_k
    wisegirl_k Posts: 38 Member
    I'm currently doing 40/40/20 and 1300 cal/day, in accordance with a plan I am following from bodybuilding.com. I know a few others that follow this ration also. Check out Bodybuilding.com, it's a great site.
  • judyelawson
    judyelawson Posts: 3
    Non starchy vegetables have fiber and minimal carbohydrates. Fat loss will happen quicker if you eliminate blood sugar spikes from simple sugars such as sodas, juices, candy, chips, white bread products, white flour pastas, etc. These cause an increase in blood sugar which cause a spike in insulin. Output of insulin causes the body to hang on to fat around the waist. As a female our hormones are effected by simple sugars also, which eventually have the same effect as excess insulin production. I do 45/30/25 just making sure my carbs are complex grains, non starchy vegetables and 2 fruits per day. I am a registered dietitian and was certified by ACSM as a personal trainer. Therefore, I am always researching the newest research and discerning what is real and what is not.
  • strikerjb007
    strikerjb007 Posts: 443 Member
    Hmm.. with 50% protein wouldn't you have to up the fiber somehow too? I thought most fiber comes from carb rich foods.

    No. You are trying to lose weight not gain. Besides, you won't be on this for too long. Fat will melt fast. But you have get your fibers from veggies and such. If you choose the right carbs, you won't need additional fiber.

    My fiancee goes more like 45-40% protein 30%carbs and 20% fats. She drops weight weekly. And the right weight too. Meaning, fat.
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    Non starchy vegetables have fiber and minimal carbohydrates. Fat loss will happen quicker if you eliminate blood sugar spikes from simple sugars such as sodas, juices, candy, chips, white bread products, white flour pastas, etc. These cause an increase in blood sugar which cause a spike in insulin. Output of insulin causes the body to hang on to fat around the waist. As a female our hormones are effected by simple sugars also, which eventually have the same effect as excess insulin production. I do 45/30/20 just making sure my carbs are complex grains, non starchy vegetables and 2 fruits per day.

    Yeah I've already cut out that stuff for the most part and it made a difference so far. I had 2 cups of blueberries last night and that added so much sugar and carbs!! I think fruit is simple carbs right?
  • strikerjb007
    strikerjb007 Posts: 443 Member
    Non starchy vegetables have fiber and minimal carbohydrates. Fat loss will happen quicker if you eliminate blood sugar spikes from simple sugars such as sodas, juices, candy, chips, white bread products, white flour pastas, etc. These cause an increase in blood sugar which cause a spike in insulin. Output of insulin causes the body to hang on to fat around the waist.

    And that is all everyone on this thread really need to know about weight loss. I agree with you 200%.
  • judyelawson
    judyelawson Posts: 3
    You are right, two cups of blueberries is too much for one meal or snack. Each cup has about 18 - 20 grams of carbohydrate almost all of which are simple sugars and some fiber. They have great antiaging antioxidants so dont cut them out completely.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    Non starchy vegetables have fiber and minimal carbohydrates. Fat loss will happen quicker if you eliminate blood sugar spikes from simple sugars such as sodas, juices, candy, chips, white bread products, white flour pastas, etc. These cause an increase in blood sugar which cause a spike in insulin. Output of insulin causes the body to hang on to fat around the waist. As a female our hormones are effected by simple sugars also, which eventually have the same effect as excess insulin production. I do 45/30/25 just making sure my carbs are complex grains, non starchy vegetables and 2 fruits per day. I am a registered dietitian and was certified by ACSM as a personal trainer. Therefore, I am always researching the newest research and discerning what is real and what is not.

    Stop making things up

    Also protein spikes insulin...
  • tlamarch
    tlamarch Posts: 105
    I have mine set to 60% P 25% C 15% F ......not sure if this is a good rate but I lift weights alot and dont want to lose muscle
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    I'm currently doing 40/40/20 and 1300 cal/day, in accordance with a plan I am following from bodybuilding.com. I know a few others that follow this ration also. Check out Bodybuilding.com, it's a great site.

    Yeah I'm trying for a similar ratio but always end up going on fat. I have to see what I can cut out from those foods. I'm also on around 1350 cal/day but I another ~300-500 daily from exercise which I don't always eat back.
  • JDMPWR
    JDMPWR Posts: 1,863 Member
    Non starchy vegetables have fiber and minimal carbohydrates. Fat loss will happen quicker if you eliminate blood sugar spikes from simple sugars such as sodas, juices, candy, chips, white bread products, white flour pastas, etc. These cause an increase in blood sugar which cause a spike in insulin. Output of insulin causes the body to hang on to fat around the waist. As a female our hormones are effected by simple sugars also, which eventually have the same effect as excess insulin production. I do 45/30/25 just making sure my carbs are complex grains, non starchy vegetables and 2 fruits per day. I am a registered dietitian and was certified by ACSM as a personal trainer. Therefore, I am always researching the newest research and discerning what is real and what is not.

    Stop making things up

    Also protein spikes insulin...

    Thank you.
  • badgerbadger1
    badgerbadger1 Posts: 954 Member
    Non starchy vegetables have fiber and minimal carbohydrates. Fat loss will happen quicker if you eliminate blood sugar spikes from simple sugars such as sodas, juices, candy, chips, white bread products, white flour pastas, etc. These cause an increase in blood sugar which cause a spike in insulin. Output of insulin causes the body to hang on to fat around the waist. As a female our hormones are effected by simple sugars also, which eventually have the same effect as excess insulin production. I do 45/30/25 just making sure my carbs are complex grains, non starchy vegetables and 2 fruits per day. I am a registered dietitian and was certified by ACSM as a personal trainer. Therefore, I am always researching the newest research and discerning what is real and what is not.

    Stop making things up

    Also protein spikes insulin...

    Yeah, well, I happen to be a real rocket surgeon, so there.
  • tangal88
    tangal88 Posts: 689
    "real rocket surgeon" - is that any relation to a "Rocket Scientist" ?

    or was that "tongue in cheek" - just wondering.....
  • LennyInFlorida
    LennyInFlorida Posts: 202
    In my research of people that lost weight (and kept it off) I couldn't find one macro that everyone agreed upon.

    I found out that the best thing to do is whatever feels good enough for you to stick to a reduced calorie diet is the best thing...

    For me it's been 60c/20p/20f, been doing that for 3 years while maintaining this loss and still have gained lean body mass.

    When I drop lower on carbs I find I want to kill people and diet is the least of my worries. :)

    But again, each person is different, I would suggest you experiment with a few, start with 40c/40p/20f
  • Matiara
    Matiara Posts: 377 Member
    "real rocket surgeon" - is that any relation to a "Rocket Scientist" ?

    or was that "tongue in cheek" - just wondering.....

    Some people will say, "It doesn't take a rocket scientist..." and others "It doesn't take a brain surgeon...", so the jokey way is to say "rocket surgeon".
  • tangal88
    tangal88 Posts: 689
    "real rocket surgeon" - is that any relation to a "Rocket Scientist" ?

    or was that "tongue in cheek" - just wondering.....

    Some people will say, "It doesn't take a rocket scientist..." and others "It doesn't take a brain surgeon...", so the jokey way is to say "rocket surgeon".

    ahh...gotcha - thanks.

    I have heard the Rocket Scientist version - but not the Brain Surgeon version. :)
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    Seems I did good on my ratios today even though somehow I'm off the totals assigned by MFP

    MFP set to 40c/40p/20f or 169c/169p/37f

    I ended up with 44c/41p/15f or 145c/136p/50f

    Now my ratios are good but I'm over in grams on the fat again??? Which number is more important ratio or total grams? Help please :(
  • Jynus
    Jynus Posts: 519 Member
    1) Meet your calories for the day.

    2) Meet your protein for the day. (1g/ goal weight lbs is the rule I like)

    After that, ratio matters jack for weight loss. high carb, low carb, balanced carb, whatever. Long as your calories and protein needs are met, your body will take care of the rest. Read Lyle Mcdonald on this subject, goes into detail on this quite a lot. And there has yet to be a study showing 'optimal fat loss ratio' that I've seen other than the above 2 rules.

    Exception being some sort of medical issue... But thats rare.
  • mustgetmuscles1
    mustgetmuscles1 Posts: 3,346 Member
    I found this video very helpful for figuring out cutting macros.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bakMu9ddQ5I
  • Karalopolous
    Karalopolous Posts: 574
    What are the optimal macros for fat loss? I was contemplating 40c/40p/20f or 40c/30p/30f?

    Should I watch anything else like sugar or sodium or anything like that?

    I do 40c/30p/30f

    I try to limit the sugar, but if you are eating whole grain/whole wheat carbs that should help eliminate some of the sugar issue
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    1) Meet your calories for the day.

    2) Meet your protein for the day. (1g/ goal weight lbs is the rule I like)

    After that, ratio matters jack for weight loss. high carb, low carb, balanced carb, whatever. Long as your calories and protein needs are met, your body will take care of the rest. Read Lyle Mcdonald on this subject, goes into detail on this quite a lot. And there has yet to be a study showing 'optimal fat loss ratio' that I've seen other than the above 2 rules.

    Exception being some sort of medical issue... But thats rare.


    Well I'm just confused because there are several things I've gathered so far. Reduce fat intake to increase fat loss (along with calories of course).

    Maintain adequate protein intake (my goal weight is 140 so im good there at 136 for today)

    MFP goal on fat is very low and people have advised that women should consume around <60 g a day.

    I just don't understand why MFP is setting my protein goals/carb goals so high and fat so low. Is there something I can adjust for how many calories come from fats to bump up the number? I've already set it to 40/40/20 and the numbers it spit out still don't make sense.
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    I found this video very helpful for figuring out cutting macros.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bakMu9ddQ5I

    Watching thanks.
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    Well that's interesting, in the video he recommended 1/4 grams of fat per body weight which would put it closer to MFP target of 35 g. This seems so low to me.
  • mustgetmuscles1
    mustgetmuscles1 Posts: 3,346 Member
    Well that's interesting, in the video he recommended 1/4 grams of fat per body weight which would put it closer to MFP target of 35 g. This seems so low to me.

    That is really a minimum you need to make sure you get your protein and fats. The rest of your calories can really be made up from carbs or a combination of more fats carbs and protein. For females 1 gram per pound for protein is not as necessary so you could calculate .8 per pound for protein and then increase fats a little.
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    Well that's interesting, in the video he recommended 1/4 grams of fat per body weight which would put it closer to MFP target of 35 g. This seems so low to me.

    That is really a minimum you need to make sure you get your protein and fats. The rest of your calories can really be made up from carbs or a combination of more fats carbs and protein. For females 1 gram per pound for protein is not as necessary so you could calculate .8 per pound for protein and then increase fats a little.

    Thans great video!
  • hbunting86
    hbunting86 Posts: 952 Member
    I think macros are important (of course) - but not the be all and end all. Depends what your training schedule is and your overall goals are I guess.

    What you lack/eat less of one day, just be sure to compensate or account for it in the next.

    I think your overall calories and the quality of the food you are eating is what matters most to begin with.

    Could be wrong, but that's my two cents worth!
  • onikonor
    onikonor Posts: 473 Member
    Qualify of food is very important! I completely agree with you there.

    I sometimes opt for a quick canned tuna, which is definelty not as good as fresh fish but we always have to balance work, personal life, etc.

    I train (cardio mostly) 6 days a week about 40-60 min and try to walk at least 30-1hour min 4-5 days a week.

    I failed in the past by exercising and thinking I could eat whatever I wanted and still trim down. I'm really hoping I won't fail this time.
  • joneskaw
    joneskaw Posts: 27
    bump

Categories