Adjusting macros

Lemonie

Well-Known Member
Messages
240
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Last time I lost all my weight I was working on:

1500 cals
8% carbs (30g)
21% protein (77g)
71% fat (119g)

I lost the weight but lost a lot of muscle tone which I never got back. What are good protein macros for not losing the muscle during weight loss. I am exercising again but have found in the past that my bg's raise if I eat too much protein.
 

Goonergal

Master
Retired Moderator
Messages
13,466
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi there @Lemonie

I don’t think this is something anyone else can be prescriptive on.

In general I’d say the more protein the better, but I speak as someone whose blood sugars have no significant reaction to protein (unless I have a gigantic portion). In your circumstances, my suggestion would be to reduce the carb % as low as you’re prepared to and replace with protein and then adjust the fat macro as you go depending on how your weight loss/blood sugars are going.

I’ll tag @Mbaker as he might have some thoughts.

Also wondering whether this might help: https://perfectketo.com/keto-macro-calculator/
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lemonie

LaoDan

Well-Known Member
Messages
993
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
The term “new normal “
Last time I lost all my weight I was working on:

1500 cals
8% carbs (30g)
21% protein (77g)
71% fat (119g)

I lost the weight but lost a lot of muscle tone which I never got back. What are good protein macros for not losing the muscle during weight loss. I am exercising again but have found in the past that my bg's raise if I eat too much protein.

you might work the protein number first I.e. one gram per pound of body weight. Then fill in the other macros to meet your calorie needs. This is pretty much what I do. Maybe try to find a protein source that doesn’t raise your BG. I.e beef or casein
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lemonie

Mbaker

Well-Known Member
Messages
4,339
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Available fast foods in Supermarkets
Hi there @Lemonie

I don’t think this is something anyone else can be prescriptive on.

In general I’d say the more protein the better, but I speak as someone whose blood sugars have no significant reaction to protein (unless I have a gigantic portion). In your circumstances, my suggestion would be to reduce the carb % as low as you’re prepared to and replace with protein and then adjust the fat macro as you go depending on how your weight loss/blood sugars are going.

I’ll tag @Mbaker as he might have some thoughts.

Also wondering whether this might help: https://perfectketo.com/keto-macro-calculator/
The route 1 answer under professional guidance is via Ketogains https://www.ketogainsbootcamps.com/. They will put muscle on you in a sustainable and educated manner. Luis Villasenor is the founder who has being doing this for around 20 years; he doesn't get the recognition he deserves because he leverages protein in the keto space, which got him virtual slapped wrists, 118,000 paying members agree with him.

Alternatively you can do your own journey by maybe picking up bits from others in this space free. Below are some referential videos, but I will add my 2 pennies first. Excess cardio can get one lean, but perhaps not toned (muscled). I would lean toward long cardio for mental well being, glucose control via walks. Fast short cardio, such as bike sprints, 30 metre running sprints, swimming as fast a possible, jumping jacks, on the spot sprinting for the same cardiac results as chronic long runs. Resistance training is where it is at to get the muscle back with the right foundation of protein.

In the fitness world around 1g per lean desired weight would be a good medium level. Protein bioavailability is key also, so if you are on an animal based diet then meat is the easiest - if you are more plant based more volume will need to be consumed because of losses on the headline figures and maybe a plant based version of whey. If you are meat based and struggling to figure out choices, have your regular meal and then maybe a tin of sardines, smoked salmon or lean bacon (assuming you have got you fat needs from your meal). You could also just supplement with chicken / turkey (I do mine with nandos sauce (the one with 2.4 g / 100 carbs).

Exercises. You can do either body weight, weights, bands or any combination. For all of them a neutral spine, braced core and pulled in belly button whilst breathing normally is a good tip (harder than it sounds). All of the traditional exercises, bar crunches are good, so squats, both dual and single leg / pulse, push-ups and planks are excellent. The three big lifts, deadlift, squat and bench press, taught correctly will see massive gains. Bands are great. For bands and body weight there are plenty of YouTube.

Now the difficult part. If you really, really, really want to see progress in a reasonable time, once you have laid the foundation of maybe a couple of weeks of learning the movements in a routine that works as many muscle groups as possible - you need to illicit a failure response in the muscles being worked, a term called "progressive overload". If you don't do this it will take much longer to see results (which is fine also). I would watch a couple of YouTubes on training to failure, to get the complete picture, most people give up before they get there. Mentally this is very taxing. Dr Ted Naiman does this everyday, hence his ridiculous physique using just body weight exercises. I periodise failure, as I like to train everyday most muscles, focus on say deadlifts today, tomorrow squats, sometimes volume, sometimes weight, but each time I leave nothing on the table. You do not need to go that hard, but to get the growth quicker you will need to tune the volume. It is easy to maintain with less training once you hit your goal.

There are so many references I could provide such as Gabrielle Lyon, but here are some videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=womP3xT7beM
https://youtu.be/PZvA6sq9Jdw
 
  • Like
Reactions: Lemonie

Lemonie

Well-Known Member
Messages
240
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Thanks for the replies!! Lots to think on and read. I have signed up for Total Body Project for exercise.