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Been the fat guy my whole life. Great wife (too good looking to be with me. Must be her poor eyesight) who loves me and is after me pretty regularly. I’ve never felt I HAD to lose weight despite always wishing I knew what it was like to be skinny, but I saw 373 on the scale and I’m the most disgusted at myself that I’ve ever been.
I grew up with parents who grew up on the farm and lived in poverty. With that comes the hearty dinners and the mindset of “you put it on your plate you better eat it!” And “Don’t let that go to waste”… should have been “don’t let it go to waist” but I digress. Pair all that with constant food cravings and a general love of food (the taste, the smell, the mouth feel, not to mention the art) and here I am.
I have 2 kids that I want to live longer for and seeing that weight, already being on high blood pressure meds, it’s really pushed me to make a change.
I’ve done diets before, most successful being on keto where I went from 340 down to 300, but I plateaued and eventually the colder months came around, as did the hearty foods and with that the diet left. Keto is great but it’s simply not sustainable for me.
How much of an emphasis do you folks put on your macros? Is your mindset “a calorie is a calorie, whether it’s from ice cream or broccoli”? Or do you try to focus on a macro and is there a specific goal I should be reaching for to make this diet more successful?
Picture is what I ate today
by SomeSabresFan
11 Comments
To me a calorie is a calorie. Just track And stay in a deficit. I see too many people trying to lose weight taking a protein shake just because. In many cases that’s just 250 calories that slow progress.
If it helps you stay on your diet – then definitely focus on macros but don’t add calories you wouldn’t normally just to increase protein or something.
Just my personal opinion. Everyone is different though, so do whatever works for you. But… Definitely track calories. You can’t change what you can’t measure.
Yes focusing on macronutrients is important – getting good protein in helps maintain muscle mass as well as promote satiety. Getting the right amount of carbohydrates also helps regulate blood sugar, energy, whilst also decreasing water retention. Etc.
However, at the start, when it’s so new, I’d just focus on the calories in the beginning to avoid getting overwhelmed and burning out.
You will see a huge change just from calories alone, and that reward should keep you going. Once you start adding in exercise and feeling more in control of your diet, starting to shape your calories around the right macronutrient profiles will then take you to a whole other level.
But my advice for now is to start small for big rewards to keep you going in the long run.
Best of luck!
I pay attention to them but don’t get too fussed if I don’t hit each macro goal every single day. I probably pay more attention to fiber than anything else.
It’s all about calories in and calories out and finding the right balance for you. I track my calories, and I try to prioritize protein, and fiber. I don’t really care too much about carbs, or fats when tracking, but my calorie tracking app does it for me, so I do keep an eye on it. I try to make sure I’m not using excess oil, mayo, or butter like before, but I still use it in salads, and cooking. I try to choose carbs that are more nutrient dense. For example if I’m going to eat a tortilla I’ll swap it for a wrap higher in fiber, and protein (carb balance tortilla, or xtreme wellness wrap). I try to have a balance diet, so I don’t restrict things anymore I’ve been trying to add what I need not take away everything. It’s really helped me get bingeing and my weight back under control. It’s been great changing my perspective of food.
I will echo earlier comments.
1. Calorie deficit is more important than calorie mix. Target 1700 to 1800 max.
2. Protein is more important than fat and carbs, as long as you dont go over 1800 calories. I target 225 daily. I range between 180 and 240. On big seafood days I can hit 300.
3. Fat is more important that carbs but they cost 2x more calories than protein. I target 50 and range between 45 and 75.
4. Carbs are least important, and go straight to fat storage. I target under 50, and sometimes go ad high as 75.
5. The more protein you consume…the more muscle you retain and fuller you feel for longer.
6. Vitamins, minerals, coffee, tea, water are all diet neutral as are some 0cal drinks.
7. After 3 weeks of dropping carbs the surgery cravings should diminish and it all gets easier.
8. Practice properly…you can’t diet forever. I target 6 days in deficiet, 1 day at calorie maintenance…your 2200 number. Even god rested.
9. Look at the year and figure out holidays and vacations, for me…2 weeks vacation plus 6 big holidays…so 365 days in year…20 I eat and drink whatetver…no counting. 45 days eat calorie maintenance 2200 and 300 days 1700 cals or less.
As a general rule, since I’m losing and not bodybuilding (where macros DO matter a lot more), I just make an effort to reach my protein goal (100+ per day) and let my fat/carbs go wherever the wind takes me that day; and even then macro mixing is really not that strict as long as it’s all contained in the calorie deficit (gotta have my pancake/buffet days, after all).
That said it’s pretty easy to let fats/carbs go to high hell if you don’t monitor it, so stuff like cheese and caesar dressing should have a little more scrutiny if you’re not outright replacing them. At your age, I would also look into fiber-rich sources for general health needs and to feel fuller between meals; oats, whole veggies, and certain specialty baked goods are nice ways to do so.
I would try to prioritize protein and focus on deficit. It’s so hard to do everything so just do those two. If you don’t, it’s hard to feel satiated when you are at a deficit. Otherwise you’ll lose muscle!
I focus on getting enough protein and fibre, and trying to get close to my nutrient targets while staying in my calorie range. As a result, the fat and carbs fall into place.
The only macro I pay attention to is protein because it’s hard to get enough when I’m eating in a deficit, and if you don’t get enough you will lose more muscle
unrelated but do some research to make sure 1500 calories is enough for you, dropping weight super fast can be really hard on your body
It could be helpful to see where most of your calories are going, especially if you’re trying to hit a certain macro goal. In my case, I have to keep my protein in moderation (doctor’s advice), and I often rely on fiber and fat to keep me satiated. I also like to know that I’m not overloading myself all the time with one macro or another.
But in general, I focus on staying in a calorie deficit. I try not to micromanage my macros (hah) because life happens. Sometimes I eat the piece of pie 🤷🏻♀️ It’s a marathon, not a sprint!
Personally I track everything. I check for protein, saturated fats, and carbs. And then I look at my monthly vitamin and mineral intake, it’s quite hard to get enough of some of them on a 1400 (for me) budget. I focus on three meals and one snack a day, lots of vegetables. Normal division between protein, fats and carbs. Keto wouldn’t work for me, I need a good amount of carbs.
For some people tracking calories doesn’t work because it makes them sad/angry/any other emotion or even to controlling but for me I feel like it’s a nice guideline.
For me not all calories are equal, I try to keep unhealthy food at a minimum. Maybe twice a month when I eat with friends or family, or sometimes an ice cream