Hi all,

I track my calories in Fitday and I really struggle to keep my carbs on target. I always seem to have too little protein and too many carbs.

What I would like to know is... do any of you think that this amount of carbs over target is really going to affect my cutting program. I am trying to get my BF from 16 down to around 10 or so.

I almost always get enough fat and often get the right amount of protein. The attached day just so happens to be a non lifting day thus no shakes.
My carbs are mostly over like on this day.

Any thoughts...

Hmm, it may make a difference, I don't know. It probably would for me.

Why not concentrate harder on hitting your goals? You made a goal, why not just change the food selections?

If you need help show us the foods for that day and we'll give some thoughts.

Being over 25% in calories from carbs? It certainly would get in my way.

Hi all,

Thanks for your replies.

Im still not clear though... the overall calories are still on target but the carbs are over compared with the rest of the macros. So what I am really trying to ask is will an inbalance in my macros on this scale make a big difference to my cutting plan?

I agree that I should adjust my carbs in my diet however, carbs are cheap, protein is expensive... carbs give me energy (which I have very little of) protein does not. :p

I am not complaining, just seeking some advise.

Hi all,

Thanks for your replies.

Im still not clear though... the overall calories are still on target but the carbs are over compared with the rest of the macros. So what I am really trying to ask is will an inbalance in my macros on this scale make a big difference to my cutting plan?
I don't understand the question, sorry! :o

Are you saying the math looks incorrect?

Or that your calories are on target, you just don't like the macros? It's easy, pull some of the carbs out, add some protein in.

I think I'm confused, sorry man.

Can you post a sample day's diet?

I agree that I should adjust my carbs in my diet however, carbs are cheap, protein is expensive... carbs give me energy (which I have very little of) protein does not. :p

I am not complaining, just seeking some advise.
Protein is not expensive. Tuna is cheap. :) Heck steak is cheap if you're not buying t-bone and fillet all the time!

I'm definitely not advising you go on a low-carb stint; you said that your carb intake was too high so I'll try to help you get it lower if that's what you want. Show us your diet and we'll offer suggestions.

Hi,

Ok first let me post a link to my food intake for yesterday and mention that I had made a mistake in entering one of the items. Link: (http://www.pixilated.za.net/dump/fitday.jpg) The first slice of whole wheat bread was incorrectly entered as a whole pita bread (much more carbs and cals). So I have rectified that and its looks much better.

Or that your calories are on target, you just don't like the macros? It's easy, pull some of the carbs out, add some protein in.

Yup, exactly... I am not happy with the macros. But what I am asking is this. If my cals are on target and I am expending more energy than I am consuming then does the macro rations make that much of a difference. I realise that if I only eat fat, or only eat carbs etc then I will not have a very well balanced diet but surely if the cals I eat are less than the cals I burn I will still lose weight. Also in my case the proportion that I am out by is not all that great or is it? Thats my question... If I am consistently out by that 50 grams of carbs but am still within target of cals consumed then will it affect my fat loss?

Protein is not expensive. Tuna is cheap. Heck steak is cheap if you're not buying t-bone and fillet all the time!

Ok, I am from South Africa and here protein is expensive and carbs are very very cheap cos they are a staple. Tuna is particularly expensive with red meat being next and then chicken. I do eat tuna and it is not out of reach expensive, I just cant go mad with it. I eat mainly chicken and eggs which are not too expensive. (Food in SA is expensive compared with America).

Thanks you for your thoughts so far... much appreciated indeed.

Hi,

Ok first let me post a link to my food intake for yesterday and mention that I had made a mistake in entering one of the items. Link: (http://www.pixilated.za.net/dump/fitday.jpg) The first slice of whole wheat bread was incorrectly entered as a whole pita bread (much more carbs and cals). So I have rectified that and its looks much better.
This may help. It would be much easier if you actually typed it out as in "Meal 1: blah blah blah" / "Meal 2: blah blah blah" - that way we could help you adjust each meal.

Anyway...

What's "Breakfast Standard?" ;) Whatever it is, that's a lot of carbs for breakfast. What's in there?

Popcorn? Pudding? Hot Chocolate?

If you like all these foods, then by all means figure out a way to work them in and be happy. :) But honestly you could be making better food choices.

Okay you want to reduce some carbs still? You can pull out the milk if you'd like. You can replace the bread with something better, and of course replace the three foods I listed above.

Yup, exactly... I am not happy with the macros. But what I am asking is this. If my cals are on target and I am expending more energy than I am consuming then does the macro rations make that much of a difference. I realise that if I only eat fat, or only eat carbs etc then I will not have a very well balanced diet but surely if the cals I eat are less than the cals I burn I will still lose weight. Also in my case the proportion that I am out by is not all that great or is it? Thats my question... If I am consistently out by that 50 grams of carbs but am still within target of cals consumed then will it affect my fat loss?
I understand now. :) Sorry for the confusion.

The answer to this depends on who you ask. Some will say "calories in / calories out" while some would say to focus more on macros. I think both are important.

Yeah, if you eat less calories than you consume you should lose weight, but you probably want to focus also, or more, on losing fat and maintaining muscle. This becomes easier for me by structuring my macros according to what I feel works best for me. One thing that really helps me is to structure my daily meal plan so that the majority of my carbs are eaten around the weightlifting workout - before, during after, and a bit after that. I will sometimes also have a fairly hefty carb meal at breakfast.

But that's how I prefer it. You may not notice much of a difference. I know plenty of people who cut fat very, very well with a pretty high carb percentage. For example, guava and JeremyLikness, both members of this forum, prefer higher carb intakes than I do and both of them have phenominal physiques.

50% (your actual for carbs) is rather high for my preference during a cutting program, but again opinions vary and everyone seems to be different. If I went that high I'd have a lot of trouble losing fat. But guava goes that high (I think) and she has way better abs than me. :)

Ok, I am from South Africa and here protein is expensive and carbs are very very cheap cos they are a staple. Tuna is particularly expensive with red meat being next and then chicken. I do eat tuna and it is not out of reach expensive, I just cant go mad with it. I eat mainly chicken and eggs which are not too expensive. (Food in SA is expensive compared with America).

Thanks you for your thoughts so far... much appreciated indeed.
I didn't know where you were from, didn't look at your profile, sorry. You can still drop fat with a lot of carbs I suppose, but your carb choices are still not so great. It's up to you on how strict you want to be. If you want to be more strict, get rid of the pudding, the hot chocolate, the bread, the popcorn, and possibly the milk. Tell me more about "Breakfast Standard" too...

Chicken and eggs are good choices. Why are they not on your list then?

I'm a bit confused though, you say that food is expensive in SA, but are popcorn, protein bars, pudding, hot chocolate, and yogurt not expensive? Some of those sound like packaged, higher-processed foods, which can tend to be more expensive compared to plain chicken breasts, cans of tuna, a bag of oats, etc.

Ok here is breakfast (http://www.pixilated.za.net/dump/fitday1.jpg) and please do bear in mind that this is only one day and its a Sunday so I do treat myself on a Sunday. Perhaps not the best day to post here, sorry.

I do not normally have hot chocolate (in fact that was the first time in a long long time), or popcorn (even though that is a better snack than chips for eg)

As for the milk and pudding... I cannot afford to have more than three protein shakes in a week (I know some say rather not have shakes at all and eat all the protein you need but the shakes are a time saver for me, as discussed in another thread by me which I cant find right now), so for a late night snack I have been having milk (cos its cheaper than yogurt or cottage cheese) with peanut butter in a shake. I decided to add FF Pudding to the mix to thicken the shake and add a bit of variety (diff flavours of FF Pudding available). The FF Pudding is a bit expensive but I only use 2 table spoons every now and then.

I would like very much not to change my breakfast cos I really love the combo and it get me going in the morning, its also very quick and easy to make in the mornings (especially when trying to get the kids and wife up and ready for the day). I am trying to reduce the amount of yogurt and cottage cheese in my diet cos of the expense (my wife just lost her job too so that makes things even more expensive).

Popcorn is very very cheap, protein bar is a homemade one that I make myself and consists of oats, whey protein, etc (I cant remember all the ingredients now as I am at work), I only eat them on lifting days.

Here is todays menu typed out as you requested:

Meal 1: Breakfast

3/4 Cup Oats
1/4 Cup Wheat germ
1/4 Cup Bran
30 Grams Raisins
Splash of Milk (I have reduced this from 1/2 cup to a splash recently)

Meal 2: Morning Snack

1 Slice Whole Wheat Bread
1 tsp Peanut butter
1 Banana (medium)

Meal 3: Lunch

1 Cup Brown Rice and Lentils (made myself no added oil or anything)
180 Grams Ostrich Meatloaf (made myself with ground ostrich and eggs)
2 Cups Lettuce Salad (with tomato and carrot and cucumber)

Meal 4: Afternoon snack

1 Protein Bar (homemade, its a lifting day today)

Meal 5: PWO

32 Grams Whey protein
1 Cup nonfat milk
5 grams Creatine (Just started using... experimental)

Meal 6: Dinner

2 Large Chicken breasts
1/2 Cup Whole wheat spaghetti
1 Cup cooked carrots onion and green pepper

Meal 7: Evening Snack

I dont actually know what I am going to do here. This is where I have a problem.. the eveing snack.. i was having cottage cheese with Peanut butter at one stage but the cottage cheese thing was getting very expensive.

Sorry about the long post... any suggestions are really appreciated.

Oh and BTW I got a really good price on the creatine and it will last me over a year so its not expensive here, although whey is.

SOme healthy choices in there but for me at least, that many carbs l(not calories but frequency and quantity per meal) would kill my diet- looks more like a bulk for me (just not enough calories).

I think your problem, calorically, is that you a re VERY low on healthy fats. Other than a little bit of peanut butter... I see no healthy oils, etc.

Hi,

I see your point about the healthy fats, but my fitday always says I have reached my targets, or at least come close. I do also take salmon oil caps which I dont record (two per day) as well as a multi and an immune system booster.

So you suggest that I lower my carbs overall... I am really worried that I am going to become even more lethargic if I do.

I did an experiment a few weeks back and cut my cals down to 1500 per day and I though I would die. It was an effort to just keep my head up.

Where did you get your "target" numbers?
Fats can be very satiating. You don't necessarily have to drop your cals so much, just change around your macros. Decrease carbs and increase good fats. Almonds, natty PB-are those available to you?

I get at least 50% of my calories from carbs (see my signature), and I'm happy with my diet and my physique. So I agree with 1FastGTX. If you like those foods and you're seeing results with this diet, don't fret so much. There's no rule that says you have to eat 40/40/20 or whatever target you're working with.

If you're still convinced you need more protein, you'll need to cut back on the carbs and find some more protein sources.

Cheap protein
eggs, especially whites
tuna
tofu and other soy products
beans (protein and carbs)

Instead of your breakfast special, try mixing a couple of egg whites with 1/4 C silken tofu or cottage cheese. Stir in 1/2 C of oats and a few spoons of bran or wheat germ. Pour it into a pan and cook until brown, then flip and brown the other side.

I've usually been able to find granulated soy or texturized vegetable protein (http://www.soyfoods.com/soyfoodsdescriptions/TexturedSoyProtein.html) in most of the countries that I've lived in. This is an excellent source of low cost protein. Probably even cheaper than your protein powder.

I get at least 50% of my calories from carbs


Me too and I'm still losing fat.

:tucool:

So you suggest that I lower my carbs overall... I am really worried that I am going to become even more lethargic if I do.
I'll help you lower your carb ratio and raise your protein ratio if that is what you really want, but the above quote disturbs me. Are you sure you really want to do this?

And, are you sure it's lack of carbs that causes your lethargy? How's your sleep schedule? What's your stress level like? How's work?

If you're lethargic and your carbs are going at and above 50% then carb intake may not be the problem.

Anyway, here we go...

Ok here is breakfastI do not normally have hot chocolate (in fact that was the first time in a long long time), or popcorn (even though that is a better snack than chips for eg)
Popcorn is better than chips. But there are about 5,000 things better than popcorn. :)

I think you should replace this personally, but again it's really up to you.

As for the milk and pudding... I cannot afford to have more than three protein shakes in a week (I know some say rather not have shakes at all and eat all the protein you need but the shakes are a time saver for me, as discussed in another thread by me which I cant find right now), so for a late night snack I have been having milk (cos its cheaper than yogurt or cottage cheese) with peanut butter in a shake. I decided to add FF Pudding to the mix to thicken the shake and add a bit of variety (diff flavours of FF Pudding available). The FF Pudding is a bit expensive but I only use 2 table spoons every now and then.
There are other things you can add to the shake rather than pudding, and if you want to do so without increasing carbs there are still many other things you can try. Heavy whipping cream is something I'll often add to a shake.

I don't really know what is available to you and what is not expensive where you live, so it is difficult to make suggestions.

I would like very much not to change my breakfast cos I really love the combo and it get me going in the morning, its also very quick and easy to make in the mornings (especially when trying to get the kids and wife up and ready for the day). I am trying to reduce the amount of yogurt and cottage cheese in my diet cos of the expense (my wife just lost her job too so that makes things even more expensive).
Sorry about the wife losing her job. :( Good luck to you both on getting back on track. I know that must make things difficult.

Popcorn is very very cheap, protein bar is a homemade one that I make myself and consists of oats, whey protein, etc (I cant remember all the ingredients now as I am at work), I only eat them on lifting days.
Popcorn isn't very good.

The protein bar sounds good actually. I was assuming you got something from the gas station or grocery store, prepackaged. Making them yourself is a better option. Be sure to visit this forum's recipe section as there are some recipes for good bars.

Meal 1: Breakfast

3/4 Cup Oats
1/4 Cup Wheat germ
1/4 Cup Bran
30 Grams Raisins
Splash of Milk (I have reduced this from 1/2 cup to a splash recently)
This meal has tons of carbs but very little protein. How about some eggs/egg whites? They don't take long to make. Do you have a microwave?

Meal 2: Morning Snack

1 Slice Whole Wheat Bread
1 tsp Peanut butter
1 Banana (medium)
Again, hardly any protein in here at all. Need to add some. I would probably remove that bread too.

Meal 3: Lunch

1 Cup Brown Rice and Lentils (made myself no added oil or anything)
180 Grams Ostrich Meatloaf (made myself with ground ostrich and eggs)
2 Cups Lettuce Salad (with tomato and carrot and cucumber)
Sounds okay. I might remove the carrots personally or use them sparingly (not that they're bad, but there may be better veggie choices out there IMHO).

I don't think I want to taste ostrich. ;)

Meal 4: Afternoon snack

1 Protein Bar (homemade, its a lifting day today)
Is this preworkout? Anyway like I said this doesn't sound too bad.

Meal 5: PWO

32 Grams Whey protein
1 Cup nonfat milk
5 grams Creatine (Just started using... experimental)
Is this postworkout? Not too bad of a meal. Not great, but not too bad. I'm not a big fan of milk postworkout but I know people with better physiques than mine who love to have milk postworkout.

Meal 6: Dinner

2 Large Chicken breasts
1/2 Cup Whole wheat spaghetti
1 Cup cooked carrots onion and green pepper
That's one of your better meals.

Meal 7: Evening Snack

I dont actually know what I am going to do here. This is where I have a problem.. the eveing snack.. i was having cottage cheese with Peanut butter at one stage but the cottage cheese thing was getting very expensive.

Sorry about the long post... any suggestions are really appreciated.
Cottage cheese and peanut butter is good, especially if it's natural peanut butter.

You should probably go for a protein and fat meal at this point. What options are available to you in terms of food and supplements? How about flax oil? Nuts? Fish oil?