Well Im trying to follow a low- fat diet to help me in my weightloss journey...but Im unsure of how many grams of fat I should be eating a day to lose aprox. 2 - 3lbs a week.... I am also working out...
I've decided to allow myself 40 grams of fat per day.... Does this seem low?!
If anyone knows where I can find some information regarding a low-fat diet... Please let me know.
I think they say no more than 30% of your calories should come from fat. 20% if you are really trying to go lean. So it would largely depend on how many calories you are eating.
So let's say you were eating 1600 calories, 30% would be 480 calories. A fat gram is 9 calories, so that would be 53 grams a day.
Counting fat grams is great, but it's really the calories that count. If you're eating a lot of low fat foods, but still taking in more calories than you're burning off, then you won't lose weight.
I'm sure someone else will have more info for you on how to get more information about a low fat diet, I just wanted to stop in and say hi and good luck. I'm sure you'll do great.
So, you guys would think counting calories is more important?! Im not too great at this weight loss thing and I just really want to succeed... What did you find worked best for you?!
How would I find out how many calories I should be having in a day?!
An easy guide to the number of calories is your weight *13 if your inactive and weight*15 if your active. Then multiply this number by 7 (days/week)- 3600 calores*# lbs you want to lose/week) then take that number divide by 7 and that gives you a guide line for the number of calories/day.
EX.
I weigh 210 lbs and want to lose 2.5 lbs/week
210*15=3150 calories*7=22050 calories*week
22050-(3600*2.5)=13050 calories*week to lose 2.5 lbs
13050/7=1864 calories/day
Thats how I do it, and the first two weeks I will cut the sugar back a bit just to get my cravings in check.
There are many school of thought out there. Most of them prescribe to the theory of burning more than you're taking in, which comes down to calories.
However, I am of the belief that it's also the quality of your diet not just the calories. You could lose weight by eating 1,200 calories worth of mallobars everyday and nothing else, however you're not going to feel good about it. By eating low-fat, you're also setting yourself up for low cholestrol, and a lesser chance of heart disease. What a great idea! Good for you! Make sure you do your homework though, all fat is not not created equal. There are bad fats and good fats. I suggest Dr. Andrew Weil's books on healthy eating to get you started in that realm.
As for calories, there are some hard and fast formulas out there but you also need to consider if you're active or sedentary, and your own willpower.
Many people on this board have started with an intake of 2,000 calories and lost weight (gradually moving it down). When I'm not cheating like a bandit, I keep mine around 1500. On my high cardio days, I move it up accordingly.
I have been using fitday.com. It's really easy to use and keeps track of all of your calories, fat grams, etc. You can use the programs there to calculate what your nutrition requirements should be to lose weight. I have found it to be very helpful.
I've always went by never lower than 1200 calories and no lower than 15 grams of fat. My doctor says 40 is a good fat gram number. I do 1600 calories a day and try to stay under 40 grams of fat but am not real strict with the fat. I would count calories before fat for the reasons above. And if you are counting calories it is hard to go over 40 grams of fat when your eating 1600 calories.
Some people (myself included) have had a lot of luck with low carb diets. The main rule of thumb is to lower your carbs (I aim for 20-40 per day) and not necessarily worry about the rest.
Obviously total calories is what matters in the end but I find with low carb, my cravings go away and my blood sugar is very stable so I don't snack as much or overeat so my calories are also down.
Check out the low carb forums on 3FC, there are lots of very knowledgable posters.
Her theory is that you count the fat grams for each food you eat. It is your decision on how low you go. I believe she eats 10 percent. I lost about 70 pounds a few years ago by eating 20 percent. I had read Stop The Insanity. I recently read her newest book and did not find it nearly as moving as her first one.
It does work though. By eating things low in fat (whole, natural food like fruits and veggies and low fat meats like skinless chicken and fish) you will keep your total calories low because the calories are low on these items anyway. You can get into trouble though if you eat too many processed, sugar packed, manufactured foods. Some of those are really calorie packed.
Hope the website is of some use to you and good luck!
Hope we haven't overwhelmed you Brook. I think its kinda of cute how our individual personalities kind of stand out in our answers. Who would ever guess that I would want to calculate my own numbers, thats why I have a spreadsheet that I am very attached to instead of an online tracker. LOL!
Help Please - Fat Grams!?
and I just really want to succeed... What did you find worked best for you?!
