logging my macros is driving me batty

[PitMaster]

38
5'7
160 before cycle after 4 weeks 172
I'm currently 6 weeks now. Weight unknown. Got pissed, upped calories and havent' weighed myself after 4 weeks and 4 days
sust 250/2 wk 1st cycle
bf% 15 gut(all bloat now) rough estimate

I started my bulk diet about 3.5 months ago. I am currently 6 weeks along in my cycle. I started the bulk diet prior to cycle. Which yielded me about 15 lbs before cycle start. My current weight Is unknown. I havent weighed in almost 2 weeks. I got pissed and upped my caloric intake. That will be a different post. At the beginning I was only mentally adding my macros. This did not work for crap. I started logging and learning more about clean bulking as I went along. I'm still having a problem with putting the write things together for each meal. My first dilemna I would like to address would be when I add my macros up for all meals and then total as I go along. I try to keep my calories from 600-750, protein I keep minimum of 50 sometimes I go to 75 for each meal. My carbs by the end of the day seem to even out and on par with my protein. Usually a lil less at end of day when I total out.This last week is around 3500kc, 300-325p, 250-300 carbs, fat only seems under a 100 for daily. I don't think I'm doing that right. I was gonna post a few days diet but it's so confusing for me and probably will be for u. Sometimes I go 2 days w/o sleep so I just keep eating around the clock every 3 hrs. This week it's been more after 24 hours I crash. I don't know when to start and stop my caloric intake for adding. Do I just add it all up, until I sleep and start all over no matter what time of day it is that I wake? Been struggling with this for a bit, figured I could get some piece of mind by not being so stubborn and just jumping into the lions den and asking. All the info right on this site, so should be easy....diet=not easy. I can't take OTC for sleep and Warm Milk doesn't do sh*t, I can't take benzos etc... So I'll deal with it, No biggie. It's getting better. I just need help with How much should I actually calculate into a day even if I'm awake when I should be sleeping...Confused yet? I am. I guess some days if I just keep adding before I sleep I'm up around 4000 kc and , you get the picture..

[gbrice75]

Although your body has no concept of time, i.e. it doesn't wait until the end of the day to add nutrients up, doing things in X amount of time is what's intuitive to us as humans, and allows us to maintain order with the things we do in our lives.

With that said, I find it easiest to log your food intake over a 24 hour period. Most people log their 'daily' macros, daily being whatever time they're awake and therefore eating. They sleep throughout the night so there's no need to track eating obviously. If you are up eating throughout the night, you need to continue your 'daily' logging.

Two points though:

1) Make sure that if your daily goal is 4000 calories (for example), you are getting 4000 calories in that 24 hour period. Not 4000 calories before you go to bed, then wake up and eat throughout the night, then start at zero again the following morning. This brings me on to the second and more important point...

2) You have a bigger issue to work out with this sleep situation, as you already know. Without sleep, you're cheating your body out of rest/recovery/growth. On top of that, since you can't 'predict' not being able to sleep, you may consume 4000 calories by 10pm (for example), go to bed, wake up at 1am and not be able to fall back asleep. If you continue to eat throughout the night, you'll be overeating obviously.

Solve the sleep problem, and the food problem goes away by default. Look into melatonin, GABA, Theanine, etc. Keep your sugar intake low throughout the day, and especially into the evening. Lay off any stimulants you might be taking (caffeine, clen, ECA, etc). Try and establish a sleep pattern.

I know this is easier said than done. This is coming from a person who has sleep issues, severe at times, so I know what you're dealing with. We have to do our best to figure it out and make it work.

[LatissimusaurousRex]

Unless I read this wrong it seems like you're more or less wingin' it everyday trying to reach your macro goals. You'll find it a lot easier to physically write out a meal plan on paper and plan them throughout your day. Also, it's a lot easier to cook these meals in advance if you are able to. This takes a big weight off of your shoulders as far as always thinking "I got to eat this by this time" or whatever, throughout your day.

Also, it makes things easier on the readers of this forum if you space your text out as opposed to lumping it all in one giant paragraph. The enter key is your friend!!

[SlimmerMe]

Unless I read this wrong it seems like you're more or less wingin' it everyday trying to reach your macro goals. You'll find it a lot easier to physically write out a meal plan on paper and plan them throughout your day. Also, it's a lot easier to cook these meals in advance if you are able to. This takes a big weight off of your shoulders as far as always thinking "I got to eat this by this time" or whatever, throughout your day.

Also, it makes things easier on the readers of this forum if you space your text out as opposed to lumping it all in one giant paragraph. The enter key is your friend!!

agree.....

[gbrice75]

agree.....

lol x3 - I hope I didn't miss the whole point of the post because I did skim through TBH.

[jtuner77]

Use myfitnesspal, they also have a Iphone, Android and Blackberry app. that helps me track my macros....

[jasc]

what tuner said... get MyFitnessPal
The day I started using that my life got soo much easier...no more trying to remember or write in a log book... plus no more google searches whenever I eat.
Just plug it in there, records macros, sodium, vitamins, all that good stuff. Plus u can just search the database n select your food and its already got the nutrituon info

[PitMaster]

Although your body has no concept of time, i.e. it doesn't wait until the end of the day to add nutrients up, doing things in X amount of time is what's intuitive to us as humans, and allows us to maintain order with the things we do in our lives.

With that said, I find it easiest to log your food intake over a 24 hour period. Most people log their 'daily' macros, daily being whatever time they're awake and therefore eating. They sleep throughout the night so there's no need to track eating obviously. If you are up eating throughout the night, you need to continue your 'daily' logging.

Two points though:

1) Make sure that if your daily goal is 4000 calories (for example), you are getting 4000 calories in that 24 hour period. Not 4000 calories before you go to bed, then wake up and eat throughout the night, then start at zero again the following morning. This brings me on to the second and more important point...

2) You have a bigger issue to work out with this sleep situation, as you already know. Without sleep, you're cheating your body out of rest/recovery/growth. On top of that, since you can't 'predict' not being able to sleep, you may consume 4000 calories by 10pm (for example), go to bed, wake up at 1am and not be able to fall back asleep. If you continue to eat throughout the night, you'll be overeating obviously.

Solve the sleep problem, and the food problem goes away by default. Look into melatonin, GABA, Theanine, etc. Keep your sugar intake low throughout the day, and especially into the evening. Lay off any stimulants you might be taking (caffeine, clen, ECA, etc). Try and establish a sleep pattern.

I know this is easier said than done. This is coming from a person who has sleep issues, severe at times, so I know what you're dealing with. We have to do our best to figure it out and make it work.

O.k. I will just log from when I wake to when I sleep regardless of when I actually do sleep. I try to plan for sleep so I'll try and reach my caloric intake by meal 5 or 6 and then find I don't sleep so I keep eating every 3 hrs. until I do. I will look into the sleep aids as mentioned. I have seen them suggested before, I'm just stubborn and assume such things will not work for me. I'll have a closer look. Thank you

Unless I read this wrong it seems like you're more or less wingin' it everyday trying to reach your macro goals. You'll find it a lot easier to physically write out a meal plan on paper and plan them throughout your day. Also, it's a lot easier to cook these meals in advance if you are able to. This takes a big weight off of your shoulders as far as always thinking "I got to eat this by this time" or whatever, throughout your day.

Also, it makes things easier on the readers of this forum if you space your text out as opposed to lumping it all in one giant paragraph. The enter key is your friend!!

This diet is definitely consuming me. It will get easier as I progress, it already has as far as x amount of meals go.
I don't usually eat the same things every time except for basics, eggs,oats,meat,br. rice. I'm terrible at organizing and will get better at it. I log as I eat so If I'm short in any macros, I'll add a lil to it. Making up my macros is not the hard part. It's what I mix together. I see a lot of sample diets, I just like to complicate things and do it my way.

Sorry bout that. I didn't realize I did that, I guess i was just wound up.

agree.....

Use myfitnesspal, they also have a Iphone, Android and Blackberry app. that helps me track my macros....

I see that this was suggested elsewhere. I will look into it. Just stubborn. Thx.

[Sicko]

Seriously... the most commonly overlooked sleep aid is some good sex..or even bad sex if that is all ya got..tell your wife or gf you need it for medical reasons...heheheh

[MR-FQ320]

yep myfitnesspal.com even has a barcode reader now, dead easy, and pie charts for macro splits weekly and daily.

[PitMaster]

Seriously... the most commonly overlooked sleep aid is some good sex..or even bad sex if that is all ya got..tell your wife or gf you need it for medical reasons...heheheh

sex is off the menu right now....

yep myfitnesspal.com even has a barcode reader now, dead easy, and pie charts for macro splits weekly and daily.

thx. for heads up. I'm actually having the problem of not what to eat so much but what to eat what with. I realize pro/carbs or pro/fat but everything has a lil of all of it.
For example:
6:15 A.M
8 oz. skim milk 80kc,8p,13c
oats 150kc, 5p, 28c, 2.5 F
.5 banana .........gotta get the macros for this
Mackeral (canned) 300kc, 22p, 18c, 15F..........Super high in sodium over a 1000 and 16 in sugar. I rinsed the shit outta it, still tasted so sweet.
4oz. whey 130kc,25p,3c
I'll be grocery shopping soon so hopefully I won't have to resort to dirty eating.
So is that a pro/carb or pro/fat meal....Oats got more carbs than pro but still some fat. Fish got it all. I would ususally do 5 eggs and whole grain bread instead of the fish, but ran out. I also drop the shake in the a.m. unless I need it. And again the bread has 10g pro for 2 slices and about 42g carbs..so I'm complicating the shit out of it.

[SlimmerMe]

sex is off the menu right now....



thx. for heads up. I'm actually having the problem of not what to eat so much but what to eat what with. I realize pro/carbs or pro/fat but everything has a lil of all of it.
For example:
6:15 A.M
8 oz. skim milk 80kc,8p,13c
oats 150kc, 5p, 28c, 2.5 F
.5 banana .........gotta get the macros for this
Mackeral (canned) 300kc, 22p, 18c, 15F..........Super high in sodium over a 1000 and 16 in sugar. I rinsed the shit outta it, still tasted so sweet.
4oz. whey 130kc,25p,3c
I'll be grocery shopping soon so hopefully I won't have to resort to dirty eating.
So is that a pro/carb or pro/fat meal....Oats got more carbs than pro but still some fat. Fish got it all. I would ususally do 5 eggs and whole grain bread instead of the fish, but ran out. I also drop the shake in the a.m. unless I need it. And again the bread has 10g pro for 2 slices and about 42g carbs..so I'm complicating the shit out of it.

Secret to all of this in bold above~

[PitMaster]

Secret to all of this in bold above~

Boy I'm slow, I didn't catch this the first time around. : )

[SlimmerMe]

^^^ 'tis true and makes all the difference in the world.....

[Sicko]

"sex is off the menu right now....
"
That in itself could be the root of you problem with sleep... All joking aside lack of sex creates anxiety and tension which certainly can contribute to insomnia..

[PitMaster]

Your tellin me...I figured that out in my 20's