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Originally Posted by marv
Is it better for me to get the right amount of cals/fat/carbs/protein...or to eat cleaner?? I know I should do both, but I think I gotta do one thing at a time...
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The macros and your total calorie intake will always be the priority.
Clean eating is an arbitrary and very poorly defined phrase. I don't like it.
Yes, sticking to whole and minimally processed food sources is for the best. You provide a lot of useful micronutrients that way which can be beneficial.
But "clean eating" is not going to affect your physiology in any meaningful way, assuming the macros are accounted for. It's hardly essential.
It can affect adherence and it might have some psychological effects, but from the standpoint of losing fat, no it doesn't matter at all.
I realize I've just opened a can of worms and somebody's going to start up with the LOL INSULIN STORES FAT!!!11 argument. But I'm ready. Oh yes, I'm ready.
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also, do you think it'll be ok for me to add calories into my diet right away? have i damaged my metabolism to much?
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Ah the specter of metabolic damage.
No, unless you've got thyroid disease you haven't damaged your metabolism at all.
What you've done if anything is lower your base metabolic rate by undereating and overexercising...which isn't uncommon among women
The trick is to *gradually* add calories to your diet. If you've been living on 1500 and suddenly jack it up to 2500, yeah, you're going to gain weight, and it's not magically going to be muscle tissue.
You want to slowly adjust it upwards, and match it to your activity level. The goal is to fuel strength workouts, not just arbitrarily eat more for the sake of it.
Take it step by step.