Weight-Loss Carb/Protein/Fat Ratio to lose fat?

[Hoping2BThinAgain]

How can I calculate how the ratio should be?

There is this blogger that is losing weight having a ratio, but dont know how she got it? she says that her carb intake on an exercise day is greater than when she doesnt exercise.

Please help?

 

[KaraCooks]

There is no such thing as a ratio that causes you to lose fat.

The point of balancing your macros when you're cutting calories is to make sure you're getting proper nutrition. Getting enough protein means that you maintain more lean muscle, and you want to make sure you consume enough healthy fats while you're dieting as well.

But there's no magic set of percentages that causes fat loss. The only thing that causes fat loss is cutting your calories and eating less than you burn.

 

[Hoping2BThinAgain]

Thanks Kara!

 

[Jeanette401]

I don't know the blogger you mean, but I've read about at least some of the reasons for changing ratios on exercise days.

If you're trying to lose fat and not muscle, the most important macro nutrient you can get is protein. It's the most 'protein sparing' and it can also be converted into glycogen - the energy source your brain needs, and that's also stored within your muscles. If you're trying to eat as few calories as possible while still getting enough protein, that means cutting back on both fat and carbs.

However, when you work out, it depletes glycogen from your muscles. If you deplete too much, then your body might have to break down actual muscles for energy. Carbs turn directly into glycogen, so if you eat them more around workouts, you have to worry less about muscle breakdown. Fat can never be turned into glycogen, but it can be used as a general energy source. So somehow by eating the carbs around your workouts it makes it more likely the extra calories get diverted to your muscles and not fat. ... I think. I'm not an expert

 

[hanknicholson]

Actually, it also kind of depends on your own body's unique metabolism.

This would become kind of a scientific story if I would get into all the details... But it has to do with the Krebs-cycle (citric acid cycle), which is responsible for about 80% of your energy (ATP) production.

Basically, 20% comes from the combustion of glucose, and the other 80% from the Krebs-cycle, in which ATP is produced in a process of using both glucose and fatty acids, resulting in substances called Acetyl-CoA and Oxaloacetate. The amount of either of these two need to be proportionate to the other so energy production in this cycle is efficient.

Now the thing is that through genetic differences and all kinds of other stuff, some people are fast oxidizers and others slow oxidizers (not in terms of metabolism and calories, but rather inside the actual cells where energy is produced in the mitochondria).

Fast oxidizers process glucose very fast and fatty acids very slow, which can quickly lead to a too great amount of oxaloacetate in relation to acetyl-CoA... which in turn leads to inefficient energy production.

With slow oxidizers it's the other way around.

So that's one of the reasons why some people simply feel and perform better on lower carb nutrition, while others would feel sluggish and lethargic. And for the same reason others do better on higher carb.

Anyway, that's just another thing to add about macronutrient ratios... There are basic rules to start with. But if you want to go advanced, eventually, you need to experiment and see what sort of ratios your body responds best to.

 

[whyweightonline]

I agree with Kara's first statement that there is a ratio for good nutrition but not directly for weight loss. Although maintaining good nutrition with the obvious connection of weight loss is a good start, as long as you do it for the long term.

But for good nutrition ive always been told the ratio of 40% 30% 30%, Carbs Protein Fat. 30% fat seems alot for a day understandable but what you have to remember is that there are so called good fats and bad fats first, and secondly that a lot of the food you eat or cook is good in fat which changes the content of the initial food, for example roast potatoes.
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[Harold14370]

I think it's possible to get too wonky with this sort of thing. I don't really know or care what my ratio is. I just sort of eyeball my meal plan, and see if I'm getting enough veggies and a reasonable amount of food from the different food groups.

It's pretty hard to be under the RDA of protein unless you are an athlete or a vegetarian. For the moderate amount of exercise I do, I'm sure I get plenty.

 

[summer123]

I'd agree with the above- its hard enough making sure your getting everything in (nutrients, protein, fresh fruit and veg) without going overboard on the calorie front let alone trying to add a perfect fat-protein-carb ratio to that as well!