Struggling to under stand what reading I should be taking with Macros.
For instance today my macros read…
16g Carb
182g Fat
175g Protein
But the percentages read
3% Carb
68% Fat
29% Protein
The percentages do not match the ratio of grams for Fat to Protien!?
Which one should I read??
Grams are weight. Calories are different for fat and carbs/protein.
Fat is generally considered to be 9 cals per gram. Protein and Carbs are 4 cals per gram.
So the percentage is probably based on calories, not grams.
That looks right. I checked the arithmetic.
Carb is 2.6% by calories and that rounds up to 3%. The other percentages work fine as a fraction of total calories: 700 protein calories and 1638 fat calories.
2400 total calories.
So how should I reduce my protein?
Today I had Greek yoghurt with fruit and nuts, chicken thighs and wings for lunch and burgers egg and mushrooms for dinner?
For whatever it’s worth, I am 74 years old, male, fairly fit with a full-time, active job that requires standing and walking (no sitting) during shifts. I find the following method for determining macros much easier to understand and utilize. It’s based on Bikman’s protein recommendation of approx 1.5 gr protein per KG of total body weight.
Total protein per day: 90 grams or 360 calories. This is 1.38 grams per kilogram of total body weight (144 lbs - 65.3 kg).
Total carbs per day: sub-17 grams or 70 calories max (I generally eat less, but use this number for calculating macros)
I need to eat 2800 calories per day to maintain weight (based on experience/testing):
2800 total calories - (360 calories protein + 70 calories carbs) = 2370 calories from fat
2370 / 9 = 263.3 grams of fat per day min.
THUS:
2.93 grams of fat per gram of protein
6.58 calories of fat per calorie of protein
OR in %:
85% Fat : 13% Protein : 3% carbs
The fat is a min value and the carbs a max value. I use the ratios 2.93:6.58::fat:protein in my daily meal spreadsheet to determine food portion amounts.
Hope this helps.
Forget percentages. Your need for protein should be based on your lean body mass, not on how many calories you’re eating.