Busting A Myth – How Much Fat Should I Eat Per Day?

I’ve started to learn there are a variety of advantages to closely monitoring your caloric intake, beyond the basic “how much food have I eaten today…”  For instance, there’s a bias against fat in our society.  Everyone shouts the no-fat or low-fat mantra.  But, after taking a few weeks to understand my daily calorie distribution, I’ve learned the whole bias against fat is wrong-headed.  It’s completely off base.  The eating habits that led me to lose nearly 60-lbs, and keep it off for the over four years, have included consuming an average of 20-30% of my daily calories from fat.  So the question becomes, how much fat should I (or you) eat each day?

How Much Fat Should I Eat Per Day?

We tend to think of this question in terms of “grams of fat per day.”  It doesn’t really make much sense, but I’m assuming it has to do with the media’s presentation of the number.  But, after taking some time to make use of an online nutritional calculator, I’ve figured out that the bias against fat is nothing more than simple bunk.  The only reasonable explanation I can find is that fat contains more calories per gram than either protein or carbohydrates.

However, that doesn’t make fat inherently evil.  As a matter of fact, fat is necessary for proper human nutrition.  And, for those who say that cutting fat is required for weight loss, I’ll submit my journey in weight loss as a testament to the fact that its simply not true.  Couple my experience with the most recent review of my eating habits, and it goes to show that calories rule when it comes to weight loss.  Maybe not for optimal health, or for the best performance at a given activity, but when it comes to losing weight, its your calories that count.

So, back to my original question.  How much fat should I eat per day?  Rather than think about this in terms of grams, I’m going to look at it from a “percentage of daily calories.”  Most of what I’ve found suggests an optimal amount is 20-30% of total daily calories.  I hit that number, pretty much by accident.  What I’ve learned is that when I consume more than 30% of my daily calories from fat, I generally feel rather nauseous.  The source is irrelevant, too.  It doesn’t matter if its from almonds and walnuts (heart healthy fat, of course), or if its the calories in steak (generally considered less healthy fat).  As long as I don’t go over that 30% number, I feel just fine.  And, if you’re really determined to look at the number from a grams/day perspective, it works out to 51-74 grams per day.

None of this is to suggest that consuming any old fat is a good idea.  Neither is it to recommend sitting down and consuming a bucket of lard.  Just the opposite, actually.  Although there’s some debate about the health benefits of saturated fats, most medical experts will tell you to reduce consumption of saturated and trans fats for optimal heart health.  This means we should try getting them from olive oil, healthy nuts, avocado, and the like.

How much fat do you consume in a day?  Do you worship the low fat culture, or have you gotten off that merry go round?