Need Help with Dieting: Count Grams or Keep Ratios?

[VeggieLifterChick]

I've improved my diet a TON since I last asked a question about how to do it right, last week, because the ladies on this board give some awesome advice! I'm just confused one on issue...is it more important when dieting to stick to a certain amount of grams of cho/protein/fat or is the ratio more important?

My goal is fat loss. I was aiming for 40/40/20. I'm eating between 1370 and 1644 kcal (10-12x bodyweight), but I need only about 108 g protein (.8 x bodyweight according to Muscle&Fitness magazine). That messes up my ratios - it puts my protein at about 30% or less if I eat more than my minimum of calories. My intuition is that the grams matter more, but I'm confused. I also am unclear about how many grams of carbs to aim for. any formulas? See, eating how I have this past week, its been turning out to be more like a ratio of 50/25/25. I AM CONFUSED!!!!!!!

 

[diamonddiceclay]

I think grams are more important to count

 

[VeggieLifterChick]

bump for replies

 

[new@gettinbig]

I would focus on getting 1-1.5 grams of protein in per lb...I usually go by grams as well...estimate on the calories...i make sure they are clean foods....you wont get fat eating too much protein or veggies...I would not get so hung up on the ratios...just try a few things and stick to it for 4-6 weeks and see how you do...

 

[MS]

Protein and total calories are the two most important things to keep track of when dieting to preserve lean mass. I don't know how much you weigh, but I'm 100% certain that 108 grams of protein is not enough for a dieting bodybuilding female. 3 grams per kilo is a good amount of protein to aim for. Fill out the rest of your calories with "clean" carbs and fats.

 

[VeggieLifterChick]

Okay, so I need much more than the .80 of my weight in protein to build/maintain muscle while dieting, and that's why the general idea of ratios works. Sorry if this seemed like a repetitive question, but after putting it into practice, it seemed like a lot of protein. So I was just trying to understand why I needed so much protein and if I didn't how to manipulate the ratios.

 

[wyst]

I don't keep count. I just always eat more protein and less carbs than I'd like, and it's seemed to work out for me. Every once in a while I look at what I've eaten at the end of a day to make sure I'm on track, and readjust accordingly, though, just to keep myself honest. I should mention that I have in the past spent a lot of time on diet issues with running and all that, so I have a pretty good rule of thumb sense for what I'm eating. I did the whole counting thing at first, too. But I find that when I'm less obsessive, I tend to be more successful. I think when I get closer to my goals, I'll probably have to break down and start writing it all down again, but for now I'm doing pretty well just eyeballing it.

Wyst

 

[NorwayFitness]

I ALWAYS count calories and grams ! If I didn´t do that I would never stick to my diet for a longer period of time...
I feel that I need to have control of my calorie intake and writing it all down seems like MY only way...

I agree with that 108 g of protein is far too low...My protein intake is at least 200 g / day and my current weight is about 130 lb. Unfortunately I tend to drink a couple of shakes in a day, but I´m trying to switch to some real food, but the shakes are so convenient...

I wish everybody good luck with their diets and a really nice workout !!! I´m going to read some of the old threads to find new inspiration !

Hugs from Norway

 

[BatZgirl]

RE:

Counting is a great but sometimes difficult what i do is count PORTIONS

I eat a portion of Carbs and a portion of protein 6 time a day (for cutting and muscle increase)

A portion would be the size of your clenched fist (like for measuring tuna) or the size of your palm (like for measureing the size of a chicken breast) but the trick is not to add more than A PORTION