How Much Carbs and Protein to Lose Weight

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How much protein, carbohydrates, and fats do you need for a healthy meal plan? These charts can show you what your goal should be in calories and in grams for each macronutrient. You can read nutrition labels or use a diet-tracking app to add them up each day.

First, determine what your daily calorie goal should be. You can use a daily caloric needs calculator to find how many calories your body burns each day. If you want to lose weight, you should aim for a number that is 500 fewer calories per day than your daily caloric needs.

Carbohydrate and protein each contribute 4 calories per gram, while fat contributes 9 calories per gram.

Choosing a Weight-Loss Diet

People have weight loss success with different kinds of meal plans. Some do very well with a high protein diet, while others prefer to follow a Mediterranean-style, vegetarian, or a typical low-calorie diet.

These charts are based on three healthy diets modeled by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and a high-protein 40-30-30 diet.

If you are training for an endurance event such as a half-marathon, marathon, or century cycling ride, athletic trainers usually recommend using one of the three diets with higher carbohydrates rather than the high protein but low carb diet. You need carbohydrates to burn for energy during endurance exercise.

Though these charts start out at 1,000 calories per day, it's important to note that the minimum calorie count recommended for adults is 1,800 calories per day for sedentary women and 2,400 calories per day for sedentary men. Only children and youth can eat lower calorie counts and still satisfy their nutritional needs. The number of calories that you need each day day will depend on your age, weight, height, activity level, and health goals.

U.S.-Style Diet Chart

USDA's Dietary Guidelines for Americans provide percent ranges for each macronutrient. For adults, the organization recommends consuming 10%–35% of calories from protein, 45%–65% from carbohydrates, and 20%–35% of calories from fat. They also suggest consuming less than 10% of total calories from saturated fat.

The table below provides specific numbers for a diet that provides 51% of calories from carbohydrates, 18% from protein, and 33% from fat. It is appropriate for athletes, especially for people who enjoy endurance exercise, such as walking, hiking, running, and cycling. Depending on your needs, the macronutrient ranges may be different.

Calorie Target	Carbs (calories)	Carbs (grams)	Protein (calories)	Protein (grams)	Fat (calories)	Fat (grams)
1,000	510	128	180	45	330	37
1,100	561	140	198	50	363	40
1,200	612	153	216	54	396	44
1,300	663	166	234	59	429	48
1,400	714	179	252	63	462	51
1,500	765	191	270	68	495	55
1,600	816	204	288	72	528	59
1,700	867	217	306	77	561	62
1,800	918	230	324	81	594	66
1,900	969	242	342	86	627	70
2,000	1,020	255	360	90	660	73
2,100	1,071	268	378	95	693	77
2,200	1,122	281	396	99	726	81
2,300	1,173	293	414	104	759	84
2,400	1,224	306	432	108	792	88
2,500	1,275	319	450	113	825	92

Vegetarian Diet Chart

According to the USDA, those following a healthy vegetarian eating plan should meet the same nutrient and Dietary Guidelines standards as the Healthy U.S.-style Pattern, so macronutrient ranges are the same. The difference between the two eating styles is the foods chosen within each food group.

For example, servings of protein foods such as meat and seafood are not included in the vegetarian plan. Rather, someone following a 2000-calorie-per-day vegetarian diet should try to consume 3.5-ounce equivalents of protein foods, including legumes, soy products, eggs, nuts, and seeds.

The table below provides specific numbers for someone following a vegetarian diet that is 55% carbohydrate, 14% protein, and 34% fat. Depending on your needs, the macronutrient ranges may be different.

Calorie Target	Carbs (calories)	Carbs (grams)	Protein (calories)	Protein (grams)	Fat (calories)	Fat (grams)
1,000	520	130	180	45	320	36
1,100	572	143	198	50	352	39
1,200	624	156	216	54	384	43
1,300	676	169	234	59	416	46
1,400	728	182	252	63	448	50
1,500	780	195	270	68	480	53
1,600	832	208	288	72	512	57
1,700	884	221	306	77	544	60
1,800	936	234	324	81	576	64
1,900	988	247	342	86	608	68
2,000	1,040	260	360	90	640	71
2,100	1,092	273	378	95	672	75
2,200	1,144	286	396	99	704	78
2,300	1,196	299	414	104	736	82
2,400	1,248	312	432	108	768	85
2,500	1,300	325	450	113	800	89

Mediterranean-Style Diet Chart

According to the USDA, those following a Mediterranean-Style eating plan should meet the same nutrient standards as the Healthy U.S.-style Pattern. Again, the macronutrient ranges are the same.

The difference between the two eating patterns is that the Mediterranean-style diet contains more fruits and seafood and less dairy than the Healthy U.S.-style Pattern.

For example, the USDA recommends 15 ounce-equivalents per week of seafood for those following a 2000-calorie-per-day Mediterranean diet, but only 8 ounce-equivalents per week of seafood for those following the Healthy U.S.-Style Pattern.

The table below provides specific numbers for someone following a Mediterranean diet that is 52% carbohydrate, 18% protein, and 32% fat. Depending on your needs, the macronutrient ranges may be different.

Calorie Target	Carbs (calories)	Carbs (grams)	Protein (calories)	Protein (grams)	Fat (calories)	Fat (grams)
1,000	550	138	140	35	340	38
1,100	605	151	154	39	374	42
1,200	660	165	168	42	408	45
1,300	715	179	182	46	442	49
1,400	770	193	196	49	476	53
1,500	825	206	210	53	510	57
1,600	880	220	224	56	544	60
1,700	935	234	238	60	578	64
1,800	990	248	252	63	612	68
1,900	1,045	261	266	67	646	72
2,000	1,100	275	280	70	680	76
2,100	1,155	289	294	74	714	79
2,200	1,210	303	308	77	748	83
2,300	1,265	316	322	81	782	87
2,400	1,320	330	336	84	816	91
2,500	1,375	344	350	88	850	94

40-30-30 Diet High Protein Chart

A 40-30-30 diet is one in which you consume 40% of your calories from carbohydrates, 30% from protein, and 30% from fat. This chart is geared towards a high-protein diet, which may be helpful for those who want to gain muscle mass, but may not be appropriate for those with liver or kidney problems or when training for endurance exercise.

Calorie Target	Carbs (calories)	Carbs (grams)	Protein (calories)	Protein (grams)	Fat (calories)	Fat (grams)
1,000	400	100	300	75	300	33
1,100	440	110	330	83	330	37
1,200	480	120	360	90	360	40
1,300	520	130	390	98	390	43
1,400	560	140	420	105	420	47
1,500	600	150	450	113	450	50
1,600	640	160	480	120	480	53
1,700	680	170	510	128	510	57
1,800	720	180	540	135	540	60
1,900	760	190	570	143	570	63
2,000	800	200	600	150	600	67
2,100	840	210	630	158	630	70
2,200	880	220	660	165	660	73
2,300	920	230	690	173	690	77
2,400	960	240	720	180	720	80
2,500	1,000	250	750	188	750	83

A Word From Verywell

There is no single diet that works for everyone. If you want to change your eating plan to reach certain health or weight goals, consider different eating plans and and think about your personal needs and food preferences. It is important to choose a plan that is sustainable. Reach out to a registered dietitian if you need help. These nutrition professionals are trained to develop personalized plans to meet your needs.

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How Much Carbs and Protein to Lose Weight

Source: https://www.verywellfit.com/daily-diet-composition-calculator-charts-carbs-protein-fat-3861072

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