What percentage of your diet should be made up of protein, carbohydrates, fat etc? Is there a formula to know exactly how much of each food group you should be consuming?
Depending on your individual requirements your diet should contain 50 - 65% carbohydrate, 20- 30% fat and 20-30% protein. No easy formula there, because that’s quite a broad range. Percentages can be confusing and hard to follow. Take carbohydrates for example, a healthy intake could be 20% of calories or it could be 65% of calories. It all depends on your total energy expenditure, your activity levels and your goals.
An optimal diet should be based around three important factors. My top three in order of importance are, calorie intake, food quality and nutrient balance. Your calorie intake matters the most if you want to lose weight, tone up or just have more energy. If you are eating too much of anything you will gain weight, regardless of your nutrient percentages. Each meal should contain complex carbohydrates, protein and some fibre too. Remember, it’s completely unrealistic to achieve so-called healthy percentages each and every day. Eating needs to be enjoyable too, so trying to follow a rigid diet governed by percentages can be self-defeating.
If you feel lost when it comes to eating, visit a nutritionist and get some personal advice that is applicable to you. A nutritionist will be able to look over your current diet and offer expert advice as to how you can improve your nutrient intake, achieve health goals or correct deficiencies.