Hey I was wondering if any of you knew how many of your calories should be fat? I heard somewhere that your fat cal. should be kept under 20% of your calorie intake, is this true? Does it really matter? Im confused

We all know that it comes down to calories in vs calories out in the end, but aiming for a reasonable amount of fat is a good thing. Fats are very rich in calories comparative to the other macronutrients (1g of fat = 9 calories, 1g of protein or carbohydrate = 4 calories). So if you are getting a lot of calories from fat, you will be eating a considerably smaller bulk of food if you are still to lose weight, and that will leave you awfully hungry. I think anywhere from 20-30% calories from fat is fine, but I wouldn’t go much higher than that. That leaves plenty of room for foods rich in protein and fiber which will help you feel fuller on fewer calories.

"The United States Department of Agriculture suggests that approximately 50% of your calories come from carbohydrates, about 30% from fats, and approximately 20% from protein sources. 1 gram of protein has about 4 calories, 1 gram of fat has about 9 calories, and 1 gram of carbohydrate has about 4 calories. "


go here: http://nutrition.about.com/library/bl_nutrition_guide.htm

most people average 40% carbs/30% fat/30% protein. But it is not only fat but you want to use good fats (low saturated and transfats).

I don't count fat grams or % I just ensure that I have 2 tsp of healthy fat a day....