So I really only keep track of protein and calories (and only roughly). I had a thought of making a protein calorie ratio table of foods I commonly eat as a guide. A food item can have a ratio from 0 (no protein) to .25 (all protein). Now if I am aiming to hit a certain calorie and protein number in a given day, the total day will have a ratio I need to hit to achieve that. Say 3000 calories and 200g of protein. The daily ratio would be .0667. Anything I eat with a higher ratio than that would help me hit my protein goals. I don’t really care if protein goes higher. Basically, other than low calorie foods, I should be shooting for a ratio around 0.0667 to hit my goals. If I go lower, I’ll need to eat some higher ratio foods to make up for it.
For example a double chicken chipotle bowl has a ratio of 0.089, so it is a good item to eat to hit my goals. Another example is peanut butter (which is touted as high protein), that only has a ratio of 0.035, so it probably isn’t the best thing to eat to achieve my goals.
Now it seems the downfall of this type of thinking would be neglecting low protein / low calorie foods. A strawberry has a terrible ratio, but should be eaten. Its calories will likely not screw up the daily ratio by much, and has other benefits.
Does anyone else do anything like this to assess the food they are eating?
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Seems like a waste of time. If you are going through all that trouble (which looks confusing) why not just track? All the foods are already listed on calorie trackers.
If you only want to roughly track protein then only count protein from protein sources. I do not count protein from veggies, fruits, etc.
I am more of an intuitive eater, with a photographic memory. Maybe this sort of tool applies to someone like me more than others. A list of food ratios like this would just be a guide for someone like me to make decisions. Oh, the breakfast I had was a low ratio high calorie meal, need to eat a high ratio, lower calorie lunch to even out. That is where its power is. Perhaps I am a bit more mathematical than most as well (I can’t spell or grammar though)?
I kind of like this approach. Almost like an exchange idea (like they used to push for diabetics to track carbohydrates) but simpler once you memorize the list.
I would be interested in something like this as a tool to. I would probably add a protein to carb ratio as well (just for my own purposes - I am diabetic).
Edit: For typos. I am better at math than spelling.
A fellow engineer understands lol. It was just one of my musings as I was going to bed. I think it has some power in showing that although the 3 brats I was planning have 40 g of protein, they also have 1100 calories, and a poor ratio.
I already have a list for all of my common bfast and lunch foods with calories and protein. Perhaps I’ll make a ratio list. I’ll be shamed on T-Nation for my lunch choices though. Lots of fast food, but I am pretty selective in the items I eat. Never get fries, never get regular pop. I try to find the higher protein items with lower calories anyways.
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I have been working hard to cut out fast food just because it is always very carb loaded. Burrito places are usually pretty good if I get double chicken and no rice in a bowl, but that’s about it. I don’t do fries and definitely no regular soda (only you heathens call it pop).
If you get something put together, please share.
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As mentioned I love the double chicken burrito bowl from chipotle.
I almost feel more guilty about having a regular Mountain Dew than like 3 beers. At least I get a buzz off the beers.
I should do a bit of actual work, but I’ll create a list of my breakfast and lunch options, and post it.
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