#177 How Many Carbs Should I Be Eating?
We hear a lot about carbs, and I get asked a lot of questions about them. So let me clear some stuff up for you.
ABOUT CARBOHYDRATES – REALLY QUICKLY
Carbs are converted to glucose (a sugar) in your body, which is then used for energy. Your brain uses glucose, and your body also used glucose for high intensity exercise. So you do need carbs.
However, your body can produce it’s own glucose using stored fat. Therefore, eating a lower carb diet will result in your body (and brain) using fat for energy.
My point here is that you do not necessarily need to eat high amounts of carbs. The majority of your carbs should be consumed post workout to help replenish your body, or first thing in the morning, when your body can best metabolize carbs.
OK so now let’s get to the topic. How many carbs should you be eating?
WORK OUT YOUR DAILY CALORIE INTAKE FIRST
To work out how many carbs you should be eating, you first need to know how many calories you need to eat. I have already done a pretty detailed blog post on this, which you can find here. Have a quick read!
NOTE: for the calculations below, you will need to know that there are 4 calories in 1 gram of carbohydrates.
KNOW YOUR BODY TYPE
How many carbs you should be eating really depends on your body type. Each body type can tolerate different amounts of carbs. To find out which body type you are, check out my blog post here.
ENDOMORPHS
Endomorphs cannot handle higher carb diets and this type of eating can cause them to gain weight quickly. I would recommend a carbohydrate intake of around 25% for endomorphs.
This means that if you are eating say 2000 calories per day, 500 of these calories should be from carbohydrates (2000 x 0.25 = 500). 500 calories / 4 calories = 125g. Therefore an endomorph eating 2000 calories per day should eat around 125g of carbohydrates (which is 25%).
MESOMORPHS
Mesomorph body types do best on a balanced diet, so they should have a moderate amount of carbohydrates. I would recommend a carbohydrate intake of around 30-40% for mesomorphs. Let’s do calculations for 35% (in the middle).
If a mesomorph eats 2000 calories per day, 800 of these calories should be from carbohydrates (2000 x 0.35 = 700). 800 calories / 4 calories = 175g of carbohydrates. Therefore a mesomorph eating 2000 calories per day should eat around 175g of carbohydrates (which is 35%).
ECTOMORPHS
Ectomorph body types can eat a higher amount of carbohydrates. I would recommend a carbohydrate intake of around 50% for ectomorphs.
Ectomorphs are usually smaller in size, so let’s assume they eat 1500 calories per day. 750 calories should be from carbohydrates (1500 x 0.5 = 750). 750 calories / 4 calories = 187.5 calories. Therefore an ectomorph eating 1500 calories per day should eat around 188g of carbohydrates (which is 50%).
CARBOHYDRATE INTAKE FOR WEIGHT LOSS
When trying to lose weight or body, a lower carbohydrate intake is recommended for a certain period of time.
Any body type trying to lose weight should start at around 20% carbohydrates for the first 4 weeks and then slowly increase your carbohydrate intake until you reach the recommended amount for your body type.
This is the method that I have applied to my 3 Steps To Lean Legs Program. If you want a program that works all of this out for you and tells you exactly what to eat every day, then check it out! xx
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Rachael is an Australian born certified personal trainer and nutritionist who holds a Bachelor degree in Science.
After struggling for years to find an exercise and diet program that is tailored to women striving for lean and toned body with no bulk she designed her Lean Legs Program. This program is tailored to each body type and focused on helping women get toned but feminine bodies, without getting bulky.
Her mission is to empower women and help them stay in shape in a healthy and balanced way.
Hello Rachael,
I’m confused because I thought we were able to eat at a calorie deficit… what should we aim for? Or should I ask what is more important to have, lower carbs, or lower calories? I have no problem with protein level, fat, and fiber. I want to lose weight as a mesomorph but it’s always the carbs and calories I’m confused about. Thank you!
Hey lovely,
Your macros can affect your weight loss (low carb diets tend to give results faster) BUT Rachael says that calorie deficit is way more important so I would aim to eat around 300 calories less than you eat to maintain your weight.
You can calculate your ideal calorie intake here.
Let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Love,
Marina
hey my name is mustapha im 17 , im an ectomorphe i weight 53kg and 173m in mesure … so i do not know how many calories i need to take … not knowing also the number of gramms of carbs
if you could help me …. btw im a bodybuilder
Hi lovely,
Please have a read of these blog posts about how to calculate your ideal macros and calorie intake:
https://www.rachaelattard.com/how-to-calculate-your-daily-calorie-intake/
https://www.rachaelattard.com/calculate-macronutrients/
Wishing you all the best! xx
Love,
Diana
Hello! Your page is awesome. Im on a journey of health and fitness. Im an endomorph and not sure how many carbs protein fats ect i should eat. I weigh 150 currently. How many carbs should i eat daily? Im confused
Hi lovely,
That’s so great to hear! :) Because your body does better on a lower carbohydrate diet, we suggest having a diet that consists of 20-25% of carbs per day.
For more helpful tips please have a read of this blog post:
https://www.rachaelattard.com/how-to-get-skinny-legs-endomorph-nutrition-workout-guidelines/
Love,
Diana
xx
Hi Rachael, say if I do go low carb (20% of daily calories) for a few weeks. How would I go about adding calories back after? Will I gain back the weight I have lost?
Hi Dana, if you slowly start increasing your carb intake again you shouldn’t gain the weight back. I would just increase to 25% for 2 weeks, then 30% for 2 weeks, etc xx
hey Rachael i am confused when you say 125 gr of carbs do you mean total carbs or net carbs ?
Hi hun, I mean total carbs xx