I try to eat about 50-60 grams of protein (at least 110% RDA), and less than 220 grams of carbs (75% or less RDA) and about 30 grams of fiber. But I really don't get into the numbers too much, otherwise it starts playing games with my head. Mostly I concentrate on getting my fiber and protein in-- carbs are easy.
However, you can take a look at my ticker and see I'm not exactly the "optimal" example of weightloss
I think it depends on the individual. I'm carb sensitive and I've noticed that if my carbs are over 40% of my intake, I don't lose or gain weight. I try to keep my mix at 40% protein/30% carb/30% fat.
I'm quite tall as well as big, and I do a lot of weight training, so I eat around 100 gms. of protein a day. I haven't been using protein powders or egg whites, so my proteins have had some fats included, which makes controlling fat portions difficult. I'm planning to switch this soon, when I've dropped my body fat % below 50%. It's tough for the body to lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously. I want to shred more fat first.
Research shows time and time again that low-fat, HIGH-carb diets are not good for weight loss. You'll feel hungry on the same amount of calories.
Shoot for 40% carbs, 30% fat and 30% protein. To get your protein up, watch what you eat for breakfast, since most people grab carbs for breakfast.
Do NOT be afraid of fat! But make it *healthy* fat - walnuts, almonds, avocado, salmon and olive oil. Avoid fatty cuts of meat and stick with lean meat such as chicken, turkey, fish, etc.
Really? I've lost 98 lbs in six months on Atkins. Cite your research please. I'm extremely curious to read it. Thanks
I think you misread that - Atkins is not a high carb diet... It is a high protein diet, which is exactly what I'm talking about.
Books that come to mind are the "Beck Diet Solution," "Refuse to Regain," "The Zone," "Good Calories, Bad Calories," etc. Also see the studies in the 40s and 50s by Keys and Yudkin.
Quote:
"In 2002, science journalist Gary Taubes published an article entitled "What if It's All Been a Big Fat Lie?" He argued that reputable scientists were coming around to the idea, advanced by diet gurus like Dr. Robert Atkins, that carbohydrates, not fat, are the ultimate dietary villain. If so, he wrote, "the ongoing epidemic of obesity in America and elsewhere is not, as we are constantly told, due simply to a collective lack of will power and a failure to exercise. Rather it occurred . . . because the public health authorities told us unwittingly, but with the best of intentions, to eat precisely those foods that would make us fat, and we did."
The article helped revive the low-carb craze. Bread vanished from restaurant tables, and "dieters" began ordering steaks with a side of bacon. Many lost weight and became believers, but many did not, and the conventional wisdom on how to lose weight shifted only slightly.
In Good Calories, Bad Calories, Taubes tries to bury the idea that a low-fat diet promotes weight loss and better health. Obesity is caused, he argues, not by the quantity of calories you eat but by the quality. Carbohydrates, particularly refined ones like white bread and pasta, raise insulin levels, promoting the storage of fat." -- Good Calories, Bad Calories on Amazon.
Last edited by Athenawithheart; 04-06-2009 at 01:00 PM.
Reason: add something
More recent research (A medium-scale, 2 year long study published in New England Journal of Medicine in Feb 2009) has showed that what counts is calories in vs. calories out, and that different eating styles (Atkins, Low Fat, Mediterranean, Paleo, WHATEVER) that lower your calorie intake will all pretty much work, if they are satisfying enough to you that you can stick with them, thus reducing the number of calories you eat overall. High carb, high fat, low carb, low fat...all the same in terms of weight loss, if the calories were reduced. So it really isn't true that "Low Fat, High Carb" diets aren't good for weight loss...just that, for some people, low-fat, high carb plans aren't as satisfying, and therefore don't provide the same ease in calorie control for someone who is more satisfied by proteins and fats.
What HAS been shown is that eating high amounts of REFINED carbs (think Snackwell's cookies...fat free, but full of refined sugar and flour) can trigger metabolic responses that trigger food cravings to handle rising and falling blood sugar levels. This can make it harder to stay on a reduced calorie plan, and thus harder to lose weight. Eating a relatively high amount of non-refined carbs doesn't have the same effect on some people, though it still does have an effect on others. I do really well with appetite control on lots of whole grains, veggies, and fruits, but not so well when I start adding in refined flour and sugar.
I sometimes wonder if the reason people get so vehement defending their plan of choice is that, for them, this was SO empowering and "lightbulb-moment"-esque...they finally found the plan that, FOR THEM, was satisfying enough that they could stick with it. It's a revelation! You want to share it with the world! Except for the person standing next to you, it might not be your particular plan that satisfies them.
I lost 130 lbs on what most people would consider to be a fairly low-fat, fairly high carb plan (averaging 25-30% protein, 15-20% fat, and around 50-55% carbs...what satisfies ME is vegetables (and lots of them!). For someone satisfied by higher amounts of fat, my plan would never work in a million years...that person wouldn't be satisfied and would have food cravings, causing them to eat more calories than they might have otherwise. But a low carb plan would never work in a million years for me, because I wouldn't be satisfied either, and would be diving headfirst into too much food.
I know lots of people who have lost weight on Atkins and other low-carb plans. Those people, invariably, feel satisfied with what they're eating. I have tried it, and I am not one of those people...so, not the plan for me. And that's OK!
So Trazey, what makes you feel most satisfied? I know that for me, it took 6 months or so of tweaking to find the levels that kept me full, happy, and not diving into the ice cream bars. Some experimentation will help you figure out those happy levels...then I recommend that you stick there! I know that cardiac researchers would prefer you stick under 30% fat, but losing weight on a plan that satisfies you will do more for your heart health than that guideline, you know?
I lost 130 lbs on what most people would consider to be a fairly low-fat, fairly high carb plan (averaging 25-30% protein, 15-20% fat, and around 50-55% carbs...what satisfies ME is vegetables (and lots of them!). For someone satisfied by higher amounts of fat, my plan would never work in a million years...that person wouldn't be satisfied and would have food cravings, causing them to eat more calories than they might have otherwise. But a low carb plan would never work in a million years for me, because I wouldn't be satisfied either, and would be diving headfirst into too much food.
This is pretty much my experience as well.
That being said, the only numbers I really, really track are my calories.
But of course wanting to get the very most from each and every precious one, I choose those calories very, very carefully. Being so choosy keeps all my other numbers "correct". And I need/require VOLUME.
I do eat fats, but I limit them as they have 9 calories per gram as opposed to the 4 grams that proteins and carbs have. When I do eat my fat - I make sure it's healthy fat. Salmon, avocado, olive oil, the occasional nuts sprinkled on a salad. I don't eat beef. But I was never a beef eater.
I eat tons of carbs. Tons. But they're the complex ones. My carbs have to work for me, not against me. My carbs come from tomatoes, cauliflower, turnips, carrots, cabbage and all the other tons of vegetables I eat on a daily basis as well as from fruit.
The simple carbs - the stripped down ones (pasta, rice, bread, muffins, crackers, cereal, etc.) leave me craving for more carbs.
Then there's the protein. The chicken and turkey breast, the no fat yogurt, beans, fish, the occasional soy product.
Wanting to get the most bang for my buck calorie wise, I need to choose foods that satisfy me, keep me full, keep my sugar levels in check, provide me with the most volume and nutrients. Veggies. Veggies. Veggies. Protein. Protein and Fruit.
I guess each person/body is different, I just wondered if there was some optimal number to reach towards -- I'm finding that my carbs are a little high I think, even tho they are the 'good kind' for sure. I never ever waste my food budget on 100 calorie packs of processed junk, i'd much rather have a real orange for those 100 cals. But they work for some people, I know folks who'd die without that little prepackaged bag at lunch LOL
Basically I'm eating:
cottage cheese, granola bar, piece of fruit -- breakfast thru the week
w.w. english muffin, lowfat cheese, egg & piece of fruit - breakie on the w/e
lunch is usually smaller portion of the meal the night before, or some veggie soup and 1/2 sandwich (usually egg salad, or turkey), and a piece of fruit. Sometimes a splurge and jello pudding!
afternoons if a bit peckish, i'll have a small handful of almonds, or a piece of string cheese.
Dinner is usually chicken, or beef, or pork (not often) with a big salad, some other veggies, some brown rice or a small potato. Pasta & veggie sauce on occasion - pasta doesn't do much for me one way or the other.
After dinner, usually a cup of tea and an organic cookie (not sweet enough to make me want more than 1 LOL, but a little 'something').
I firmly believe that THEE most important number is - calories.
I also firmly believe that each and every one of us has to, has to, absolutely HAS TO find foods that they enjoy eating and that will keep them satisfied - while staying within that calorie budget. If you enjoy what you're eating and if you are satisfied - taste wise, hunger wise, no craving wise - that's what will help you GREATLY in losing weight. Because that will HELP you to stay on plan. And staying on plan - consistency - is what it is all about. And when you consistently stay on plan, because you are enjoying what you are eating/doing - then it becomes your "lifestyle". Thus freeing you up to lose the weight - and keep it off.
If we leave out the people with true metabolic issues, then you are truly left with calories in vs. calories out as the basis of all successul weight loss. For me, combining calorie counting and the Southbeach way of eating lead to more consistent weight loss. When tracking on TDP, I've found that I generally have an even percentage of fats/carbs/proteins. I've noticed a direct correlation between higher carb percentages and a stall on the scales when I'm not careful.
Last edited by GirlyGirlSebas; 04-06-2009 at 05:10 PM.
How do you get in 100 grams of protein a day? I am insulin resistant and really need to stick to a low carb, higher protein diet but I always run out of ideas on what to eat and end up going back to things I know I need to stay away from. It's like I was raised eating starchy foods as side dishes to protein and I feel like I can only eat so much salad and am having a hard time adjusting to eating lots of veggies, I don't like the taste of most of them yet. Yet, I will get there, hopefully. Also, I know that technically I am not supposed to have a lot of fruits because of the sugar levels, but lately I have been having a smoothie once a day with some protein powder as well as a fiber supplement added into it and it seems to help some. I am just feeling lost and don't know what to do lately, I hate when I get in these ruts!
Carb/Protein/Fat breakdown
What is your breakdown of carb fat and protein, % wise???
