If I am losing weight, how do I know if I need to change my macros?
I have been following the keto diet since 2nd January and have lost 25lbs. I keep hearing people say that they change their macros as they lose weight, could someone please explain to me how you know if you need to change your macros? I thought that the number you were given at the start were the ones you followed until you reached your goal weight, obviously this is not correct. Some clarification please.
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First, congratulations on losing 25 lbs, that's amazing! As for your question, adjusting your macros is really only necessary if you've noticed that your desired weight loss has stalled. As you continue with Keto, your body will adapt to the amount of food you are eating and you may notice that you are no longer losing weight. At this point, you may need to make small changes in your diet, reduce your carb or fat grams slightly to reignite weight loss. However, it sounds like you are still losing weight without the need of adjusting your macros at this time.
People also change their macros when they have lost a significant amount of weight. After I lost 50 pounds I needed to change my macros because my caloric intake at my new weight was now a lot less than when I started.
The other time that I've changed my macros is when I began an exercise program last summer. I began doing high-intensity workouts and needed to increase my carbs slightly to help with my more intense workouts.
Basically, I just paid attention to my body. Weight loss was my initial driving force and as long as I was continuing to lose, then I maintained my macros. But, if I noticed that I began to plateau than I made slight changes to my macros.
So for the long winded reply, hope this helps a bit. Good luck to you, but it sounds like you are already doing everything right.