I've heard a few things about this ratio.

40% Carb. 40% protien and 20% Fat

Since I weigh 165 lbs, I take 165 x 12 and I get 1,944. So I'm supposed to consume 1,944 calories a day. So then I divide 1,944 by 40% and I get 777.6 rounded to 778. 778 x 2= 1,556. Then 1,944 - 1,556=338.

So I've come to the conclusion that I must eat 778 calories of Carbs. and protien a day, and 338 cals of (good) fat a day.

But then I've also heard that you should eat 1gram of protein for every lb that you are.... So what's the deal with this???

Pleas help!

a cutting diet should consist of 40/40/20 in my opinion, however, if you're interested in maintaining muscle, the one gram per pound is generally a necesity. anywho, if you're getting 775 or however many calories from protein, thats about a gram per pound. 1 gram of protein has 4 calories in it.

778/4= 194.5

So should I add 165 and 194.5 and divide by 2? Average them out for short?

Carbs (and protein) is actually closer to 4.5 Calories per gram.

So, the math would be 778/4.5 = 172 grams.

Close enough to 165.

Remember though, these are all guidelines based on math based on guidelines.

-Allen

i think your thinking of this as too much of a maths formula

when doing your diet, aim for 40/40/20, and 1gram of protein per lb of bodyweight, but dont get annoyed if you dont hit it, just keep adjusting your diet and tracking your results, if you feel you are losing weight too fast, add some more calories, these will come in the form of protein/carb or fat! (forget all that 12x bodyweight stuff) just keep raising and lowering your calories untill you are comfortable!

So it's a good idea to write down what I eat, and when?

I found that measuring & writing down what I eat tremendously improved my understanding and accuracy of how much protein/carbs/fats I am actually consuming.

Now, if you have a good grasp of that, you won't gain much my writing it all down. But if you're unsusre about your macronutrient split, then measuring & writing that down for a few days (or couple of weeks) will really help you pin it down. After a short while, you'll end up knowing pretty well without having to write it down anymore. That's what happened to me.

To help you even further, you might consider using the FitDay website, or DietPower software to help you with calculations. I personally use DietPower and cannot praise it enough for how much it help me gain understanding of my diet, exercise, metabolism and how all that stuff inter-relates.

Cheers!

its not about how much this or that you eat... its WHEN you eat that matters.

you want your diet to support a fat burning stage throughout the day, and after your workout you want to switch on the anabolic mod. eating % calories this and that isn't going to cut it.

you need to have proper macro's and sufficient amounts to support your goals.

you can eat as clean as you can.. eat lots of food, but if your eating the wrong things and the wrong time.. your not going to get the results you want

its not about how much this or that you eat... its WHEN you eat that matters.

you want your diet to support a fat burning stage throughout the day, and after your workout you want to switch on the anabolic mod. eating % calories this and that isn't going to cut it.

you need to have proper macro's and sufficient amounts to support your goals.

you can eat as clean as you can.. eat lots of food, but if your eating the wrong things and the wrong time.. your not going to get the results you want

So what are your recommendations for what to eat and when to eat it, Jono?

Thanks,

- ThreeTee