Novice Needs Help with Nutrition - Percentage of Macro Nutrients

[superflyanimal]

Hi guys,

The last thing I researched was "Do carbs turn into fat?", where I learnt a lot and I discovered that there are 2 ways to bulk and cut, which basically come down to caloric surplus and caloric deficit states and you cannot bulk without gaining some fat, you just have to keep that excess fat to a minimum.

That thread can be found here for anyone thats interested:
Do carbs turn into fat?

I'm back to find out more on dieting. There are lots of articles of percentage of proteins, carbs and fats so its all a bit confusing. I know I can't gain muscle and lose fat at the same time so I want to maintain my gains while cutting down my body fat.

What is a good percentage ratio for doing this? (Carbs 40%, Protein 40%, Healthy Fats 20%)?

Here are some stats/info which might help:

BMR = 1661.8
TDEE = 2285
Body type = Ectomorph
Natty = Yes
Height = 5ft 9in
Weight = 68 kg
Bodybuilding = 1.75 years
Weekly schedule = Weights 3 times, football 1 time
Job = Office job

[Khazima]

What's your bodyfat %?

Macro splits don't make sense, you need roughly 1g protein per lb (about 150 for you), .4-.6g fat per lb (between 60-90g for you) and the rest of your calories from carbs.

[AllKindsOGains]

I would stick to a 40-40-20 split for simplicity. All macros in excess will be deposited as fat. Fat grams are simply easier at doing so, and carbs are what you should manipulate as far as what your goals are (cutting/bulking). I agree that unless your on gear you don't need an ass load of protein though.

[superflyanimal]

What's your bodyfat %?

Macro splits don't make sense, you need roughly 1g protein per lb (about 150 for you), .4-.6g fat per lb (between 60-90g for you) and the rest of your calories from carbs.

My bodyfat percentage is 13%. I recently came across a website that calculates it all based on factors like my endomorphic body type and workout intensity. It gives slightly higher stats than you mentioned above.

Given your (khazima) recommendation you would suggest:

Carbs (g) Protein (g) Fat (g) Total Calories
-318g -150 -75 -2285 (TDEE)

The website recommends:

Carbs (g) Protein (g) Fat (g) Total Calories
High -398 -210 -95 -3282
Medium -329 -234 -84 -3047
Low -329 -210 -84 -2813
Non–training day -234 -234 -75 -2532


Note: For your recommendation, how do I work out how many grams that should be? I always get confused between converting grams to calories and vice versa. They say:

4g per calorie for protein/carbs
9g per calorie for fat

So should that be 318g Carbs?

[Khazima]

You said you TDEE is 2300? So i'd start by eating at 2300 for a few weeks to find out if that's actually your maintenance or not, if you gain weight it's too much if you lose weight then your TDEE is above 2300 (how much above will be determined by how much weight you lost).

Eating 2300 calories with 150g protein and 75g fat leavs 1025 calories for carbs which is about 250g.

[superflyanimal]

You said you TDEE is 2300? So i'd start by eating at 2300 for a few weeks to find out if that's actually your maintenance or not, if you gain weight it's too much if you lose weight then your TDEE is above 2300 (how much above will be determined by how much weight you lost).

Eating 2300 calories with 150g protein and 75g fat leaves 1025 calories for carbs which is about 250g.

So I recorded my food intake for yesterday and the stats were:

Calories: 2,978
Protein: 125.8 (28%)
Carbs: 229.6 (51%)
Fat: 93.4 (21%)

I am roughly 700 calories over my TDEE which could explain the excess fat. But as you mentioned, I should monitor my TDEE and try to consume a steady level of calories each day to see which way my weight fluctuates. I was going to try and go for a 40/40/20 split so if I record this food intake daily, I will be able to tweek my diet.

It really does help having a daily food diary, so you can see in front of you what your diet is actually like rather than just guessing it, because as we all know, our food consumption estimate tends to be biased. It is a scientific fact that people lie to themselves, but the figures don't lie. This is interesting, I think this food diary will really help me with my self improvement and development.

[Mr.BB]

So I recorded my food intake for yesterday and the stats were:

Calories: 2,978
Protein: 125.8 (28%)
Carbs: 229.6 (51%)
Fat: 93.4 (21%)

I am roughly 700 calories over my TDEE which could explain the excess fat. But as you mentioned, I should monitor my TDEE and try to consume a steady level of calories each day to see which way my weight fluctuates. I was going to try and go for a 40/40/20 split so if I record this food intake daily, I will be able to tweek my diet.

It really does help having a daily food diary, so you can see in front of you what your diet is actually like rather than just guessing it, because as we all know, our food consumption estimate tends to be biased. It is a scientific fact that people lie to themselves, but the figures don't lie. This is interesting, I think this food diary will really help me with my self improvement and development.

Your calculations are wrong:

125,8grs protein = 503cals = 22,2%
229,6grs carbs = 918,4cals = 40,6%
93,4grs fat = 840,6 cals = 37,16%

Total 2262cals. Underating and way too much fat

How did sum the amounts of carbs, protein and fat?

[superflyanimal]

Your calculations are wrong:

125,8grs protein = 503cals = 22,2%
229,6grs carbs = 918,4cals = 40,6%
93,4grs fat = 840,6 cals = 37,16%

Total 2262cals. Underating and way too much fat

How did sum the amounts of carbs, protein and fat?

I think I had a set amount of grams of protein, carbs and fat as a target. I've the stuff written in work, I'll reply to this tomorrow. Damn, that couldn't be right. I really need to sort that out if thats the percentages, lol.

[Khazima]

I think I had a set amount of grams of protein, carbs and fat as a target. I've the stuff written in work, I'll reply to this tomorrow. Damn, that couldn't be right. I really need to sort that out if thats the percentages, lol.

If you used myfitnesspal, there's a few foods that don't register the nutrients but it still counts the calories, which could make up for the missing nutrients from the total calories. I try to pick the options that have all the protein/carbs/fats.

[superflyanimal]

Your calculations are wrong:

125,8grs protein = 503cals = 22,2%
229,6grs carbs = 918,4cals = 40,6%
93,4grs fat = 840,6 cals = 37,16%

Total 2262cals. Underating and way too much fat

How did sum the amounts of carbs, protein and fat?

The way I calculated it was to add up the total grams of protein, carbs, fat
= 125.8 + 229.6 + 93.4
= 444.8

Then take a percentage for this, so for protein...
= (125.8/44.8) * 100
= 22.2%


So the correct way to do it is what you done and convert these to calories then work out the percentages. Damn, my diet is far worse than I thought then.

[superflyanimal]

Yesterdays results:

Total grams...

P: 147.8g (591.2 calories) 21.4%
C: 271.0 (1084.0 calories) 39.2%
F: 120.4 (1083.6 calories) 39.2%

Total calories = 2758.8 calories
TDEE = 2285 calories
Balance = +473.8 calories

I guess I need to start looking into more healthier meals with more protein and less fat

[Mr.BB]

P: 147.8*4=591.2cals ----> thats the only thing wrong, all the rest is correct

yes, you should eat much cleaner, and try to reach 3000