Fats?

[Reuben Hall]

Hey what foods should I be getting my fats from? And also, I count my protein but I've never really bothered to count my carbs or fat grams. What would be a good number to strive for? I'm 5'10 180lbs-ish. I'd like to gain lots more muscle but be lean at the same time. And one more thing, what about flax oil? Other than calories, does it serve any other purpose? Should this be something I should look into?

Thanks a ton guys!

[patrick w.]

Hey what foods should I be getting my fats from? And also, I count my protein but I've never really bothered to count my carbs or fat grams. What would be a good number to strive for? I'm 5'10 180lbs-ish. I'd like to gain lots more muscle but be lean at the same time. And one more thing, what about flax oil? Other than calories, does it serve any other purpose? Should this be something I should look into?

Thanks a ton guys!


fats are very important in a diet. Not only are the calorically dense but they also contain lots of energy (1g of fat= 9 cals.), they delay gastric emptying of protein and hormones are transported via fat.

My favorite fat sources (aside from those in my protien sources like eggs, red meat, turkey) are:

Flax oil
fish caps
Natural PB
heavy cream (for shakes)
nuts (almonds are really great)
olive oil
safflower oil (esp. safflower oil mayo)
cheese


Flax seed oil is a great source of omega 3 (w-3)fatty acid. Omega 3 fatty acids have been showen to prevent the risk of heart disease, be beneficial to skin, hair and the immune system. Most amercian diets are very high in Omega 6 (w-6) fatty acids (things like olive oil, safflower oil, ect..). the ratio your body is looking for is a 1:1 between w-3 and w-6. Diets that are very high in w-3, most notably the type of diet an eskimo eats, which is very fish heavy, are proving to be extremely beneficail for the heart. Most american diets have a ratio closer to 12:1 (w6:w3) which is thought to be why there are higher amounts of heart disease in this country.

Flax or Fish??

Both are great sources of w3 but the problem is that the flax seed oil is going to need to be broken down into the two active long-chain polyunstaurated fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) to be used by the body. Some, the amount that you actually absorb can be up in the air. The fish caps are already EPA and DHA so you know what you are getting (most caps being 1000mg). I prefer the fish caps but I use both as it is important that you get a variety of fats in your diet. Just don't cook with the flax as it has a low smoking point and will quickly go rancid and once the bottle is opened it must be kept refrigerated or again, it will quickly go rancid.

How much your fat intake should be is entirely up to your persoanl metabolism and caloric intake. Some do better on higher fat diets and others do better on higher carb diets. The way you eat is very personal and no two people are the same. What I would do is try to keep a food journal with our calories and macronutrient breakdown of each meal and daily totals and then look at it and see where you need to improve or set it up depending on what your goals are.

hope that helps.

[Reuben Hall]

fats are very important in a diet. Not only are the calorically dense but they also contain lots of energy (1g of fat= 9 cals.), they delay gastric emptying of protein and hormones are transported via fat.

My favorite fat sources (aside from those in my protien sources like eggs, red meat, turkey) are:

Flax oil
fish caps
Natural PB
heavy cream (for shakes)
nuts (almonds are really great)
olive oil
safflower oil (esp. safflower oil mayo)
cheese


Flax seed oil is a great source of omega 3 (w-3)fatty acid. Omega 3 fatty acids have been showen to prevent the risk of heart disease, be beneficial to skin, hair and the immune system. Most amercian diets are very high in Omega 6 (w-6) fatty acids (things like olive oil, safflower oil, ect..). the ratio your body is looking for is a 1:1 between w-3 and w-6. Diets that are very high in w-3, most notably the type of diet an eskimo eats, which is very fish heavy, are proving to be extremely beneficail for the heart. Most american diets have a ratio closer to 12:1 (w6:w3) which is thought to be why there are higher amounts of heart disease in this country.

Flax or Fish??

Both are great sources of w3 but the problem is that the flax seed oil is going to need to be broken down into the two active long-chain polyunstaurated fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) to be used by the body. Some, the amount that you actually absorb can be up in the air. The fish caps are already EPA and DHA so you know what you are getting (most caps being 1000mg). I prefer the fish caps but I use both as it is important that you get a variety of fats in your diet. Just don't cook with the flax as it has a low smoking point and will quickly go rancid and once the bottle is opened it must be kept refrigerated or again, it will quickly go rancid.

How much your fat intake should be is entirely up to your persoanl metabolism and caloric intake. Some do better on higher fat diets and others do better on higher carb diets. The way you eat is very personal and no two people are the same. What I would do is try to keep a food journal with our calories and macronutrient breakdown of each meal and daily totals and then look at it and see where you need to improve or set it up depending on what your goals are.

hope that helps.


Sweet! Surprisingly enough that made sense to me. Well, I'm gonna start a journal here soon when I can figure out what I'm gonna eat and plan my meals out better. thanks a lot bro.