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Just curious about what you all consider a reasonable sat.fat/total fat daily intake?

 

My weight is a very stable 165-167 lbs (I'm 5'9" 41 yrs old) and I have about 14-15% body fat. I feel I'm in better than average cardio shape vs. the average weekend warrior, but could be superior if I could drop another 8-10 lbs.

 

My best attempts to track my total fat intake have me at about 20-25 grams/day. Does this sound excessive? I drink no milk, eat no fast food. (I do drink Coke and eat pretzels!)

 

Just curious what thoughts are out there re fat intake....

 

...or are the carbs the real problem?

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Fairweather said:

Just curious about what you all consider a reasonable sat.fat/total fat daily intake?

 

My weight is a very stable 165-167 lbs (I'm 5'9" 41 yrs old) and I have about 14-15% body fat. I feel I'm in better than average cardio shape vs. the average weekend warrior, but could be superior if I could drop another 8-10 lbs.

 

My best attempts to track my total fat intake have me at about 20-25 grams/day. Does this sound excessive? I drink no milk, eat no fast food. (I do drink Coke and eat pretzels!)

 

Just curious what thoughts are out there re fat intake....

 

...or are the carbs the real problem?

 

what weight do you wanna lose? you are already at the low end of the scale... i have hazardously low body fat... there is such a thing as too low and too much lower than you are right now would be that. i would say that you are about right... others cna elaborate, but i am sure that they will say that going too much lower on your body fat wouldn't be a good idea... confused.gif

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I've lost some weight and I did it by total caloric intake and didn't get too worried about fat although I tried to cut it out a little. I cut down my Coke intake and that makes a big difference, like if you drink 2 16 oz Cokes a day that is something like 400 calories. The typical person will drop 1 pound a week if you cut 500 calories a day from a previously stable weight, so by dropping the Coke you are on your way.

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Fence sitter, what are you calling too low? I don't think I've been above 5% body fat at any time in the last 3 years, and I don't know of any adverse health effects.

I don't monitor my fat intake at all, but I definitely don't drink cokes.

Activity level up, cokes down.

Also, I think eating more often and smaller portions makes the body tend to store less fat than larger meals 2-3 times a day.

More than anything, I'd say be active. Walk to the store, ride bike across town, etc.

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skykilo said:

Fence sitter, what are you calling too low? I don't think I've been above 5% body fat at any time in the last 3 years, and I don't know of any adverse health effects.

I don't monitor my fat intake at all, but I definitely don't drink cokes.

Activity level up, cokes down.

Also, I think eating more often and smaller portions makes the body tend to store less fat than larger meals 2-3 times a day.

More than anything, I'd say be active. Walk to the store, ride bike across town, etc.

 

i am at 3% and i have been warned to raise it repeatedly despite the fact the i eat like a f-in horse... not me sayin it brah... the doctors... i dunno man... just what they's tellin me confused.gif

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skykilo said:

Fence sitter, what are you calling too low? I don't think I've been above 5% body fat at any time in the last 3 years, and I don't know of any adverse health effects.

I don't monitor my fat intake at all, but I definitely don't drink cokes.

Activity level up, cokes down.

Also, I think eating more often and smaller portions makes the body tend to store less fat than larger meals 2-3 times a day.

More than anything, I'd say be active. Walk to the store, ride bike across town, etc.

 

I work out about 1 hour per day. With work/family it is all I can manage. Like I said before, I feel I'm in pretty "good" shape now. My Mt Si times are in the 1:13 range now w/o carrying weight, and I get out climbing about 2x month.

 

I know that the "more exercise/less cal" is the key, but I was just curious about the role of fat vs. general calorie intake.

 

...givin' up the Coke....shit, that would be tough... crazy.gif

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It's more like 3% for me, too, I just wasn't trying to make that the issue. I dare you to try to eat with me for a day. I'm 6'2"and 185 (that's ~85kilos for you, Dru), so I don't think I'm anorexic.

 

I will eat all of you under the table! Or high in the Andes! Just give me a 3rd tool (fork)! wazzup.gif

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Dang! That must be why its so dang hard to climb them hills. 180 lbs at 5'7". Drinkin' Coke as I write this!

Actually, even with the added weight I feel I am in better cardiovascular shape than when I was bodybuilding at 165 lbs w/ low % BF. Of course back then my priorities were different, so I think I could be a much better climber if I dropped 20# or so. HCL.gif

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That was with calipers, and I won't squabble over the accuracy. Let's call it 5%, whatever. So, what I want to know is, what are these long term effects? I don't make any effort to keep my body fat low, I consider it a side effect of an active lifestyle and genetic predisposition, or something like that. Any MD's want to share? Norman Clyde?

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Fairywetter:

 

Since you seem to desire to lose some weight, (you don't come right out and say that but for the sake of wasting time, I'll address it) and also imply that reducing fat intake will somehow effect your body fat.

 

When I'm attempting to lose fat, I generally cut the calorie intake, increase the activity level and comfortably drop 1-2lbs per week. You probably know this, but you cannot simply base your diet on fat content and expect to be healty or nutritious. I remember my sister thinking gummie bears would help her lose weight because they had "no fat". rolleyes.gif

 

I firmly beleive your calorie intake vs activity level should be the primary focus of any diet for a healthy lifestyle with an emphasis on getting "enough" protien.

 

I couldn't tell you what my daily fat intake is, but yesterday, I had some left over cheese pasta slathered in pesto and soaked up the left over olive oil with some garlic bread. evils3d.gif

 

All the while, my body fat is minus 4%. hahaha.gif Seriously, I don't worry too much about my body fat as long as my clothes still fit.

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skykilo said:

It's more like 3% for me, too, I just wasn't trying to make that the issue. I dare you to try to eat with me for a day. I'm 6'2"and 185 (that's ~85kilos for you, Dru), so I don't think I'm anorexic.

 

I will eat all of you under the table! Or high in the Andes! Just give me a 3rd tool (fork)! wazzup.gif

 

that is exactly my height and weight as well and i have done da dunk tank... with professionals, so... yeah i am a freak of nature and i guess homeboy si too... mabe this is like bizarro seinfeld and i have just met my bizarro twin? confused.gif

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Lots of words flying around here. First off, a calorie is a calorie -- too many consumed (whether from protein, fat, or carbs) will result in weight gain. Too few will result in weight loss. HOWEVER, if you're trying to lose mass, you want to try to maintain lean muscle at all costs (i.e. consume more protein and cut carbs.) Most people will find that as they try to lose fat, they're also losing a little lean -- key is to limit the amount of lean lost along with the fat.

 

As to bodyfat percentages, I must admit I'd doubt VERY strongly that any beer-guzzling climbers on these pages (you know who you are) are down at 3 or even 5% bodyfat, as very very few of the elite "bodybuilder types" who are specifically TRYING to get that lean for competition can reach that low a percentage, much less maintain it for any amount of time beyond competition. If you're getting those values from eyeballing, try again. Tanita scales, try again. Calipers, I'd question the one doing the measurements AND recall that there is a +/- 3% error (i.e. 5% might actually be 8%, and reasonable for a lean climber). Dunk tank is the way to go.

 

FYI the general (YMCA accepted) guidelines for "normal" (and I know you all want to be "supernormal", "abnormal" or "anything but normal") are 16% for men and 26% for women; climbers, triathletes, bikers, and other very active people may get to 13-18% for women, 8-13% for men; and below that we're talking either health problems, ultra-active, or elite. Hope that helps to some degree.

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Courtenay said:

As to bodyfat percentages, I must admit I'd doubt VERY strongly that any beer-guzzling climbers on these pages (you know who you are) are down at 3 or even 5% bodyfat

 

dont believe everything you read on the internet about drinking yellaf.gif i run more a week than the average person drives.... that is excluding my biking and climbing... yellaf.gif you are more than welcome to check out my B.F. %

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