Daily Diet Composition Charts for Carbs, Protein, and Fat

How much protein, carbohydrates, and fats do you need for a healthy diet and for a high protein diet? These charts can show you what your goal should be in calories and in grams for each macronutrient. You can read nutrition labels or use a diet-tracking app to add them up each day.

First, determine what your daily calorie level should be. You can use a daily caloric needs calculator to find how many calories your body burns each day. If you want to lose weight, you should aim for a number that is 500 fewer calories per day than your daily caloric needs.

Choosing a Weight-Loss Diet

People have weight loss success with different kinds of diets. Some do very well with a high protein diet, while others prefer to follow a Mediterranean-style, vegetarian, or a typical low-calorie diet. These charts are based on three healthy diets modeled by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and a high-protein 40-30-30 diet.

If you are training for an endurance event such as a half-marathon, marathon, or century cycling ride, athletic trainers usually recommend using one of the three diets with higher carbohydrates rather than the high protein but low carb diet. You need carbohydrates to burn for energy during endurance exercise.

Healthy U.S.-Style Diet Chart

USDA Dietary Guidelines provide percent ranges for each macronutrient. For adults, the organization recommends consuming 10–35% of calories from protein, 45–65% from carbohydrates, and 25–35% of calories from fat. They also suggest consuming less than 10% of total calories from saturated fat.

The table below provides specific numbers for a diet that provides 51% of calories from carbohydrates, 18% from protein, and 33% from fat. It is appropriate for athletes, especially for people who enjoy endurance exercise, such as walking, hiking, running and cycling. Depending on your needs, the macronutrient ranges may be different.

Healthy Vegetarian Diet Chart

According to the USDA, those following a healthy vegetarian eating plan should meet the same nutrient and Dietary Guidelines standards as the Healthy U.S.-style Pattern, so macronutrient ranges are the same. The difference between the two eating styles is the foods chosen within each food group.

For example, servings of protein foods such as meat and seafood are not included in the vegetarian plan. Rather, someone following a 2000-calorie-per-day vegetarian diet should try to consume 3½ ounce equivalents of protein foods, including legumes, soy products, eggs, nuts, and seeds.

The table below provides specific numbers for someone following a vegetarian diet that is 55% carbohydrate, 14% protein, and 34% fat. Depending on your needs, the macronutrient ranges may be different.

Healthy Mediterranean-Style Diet Chart

According to the USDA, those following a Mediterranean-Style eating plan should meet the same nutrient standards as the Healthy U.S.-style Pattern. Again, the macronutrient ranges are the same. The difference between the two eating patterns is that the Mediterranean-style diet contains more fruits and seafood and less dairy than the Healthy U.S.-style Pattern.

For example, the USDA recommends 15 ounce-equivalents per week of seafood for those following a 2000-calorie-per-day Mediterranean diet, but only 8 ounce-equivalents per week of seafood for those following the Healthy U.S.-Style Pattern.

The table below provides specific numbers for someone following a Mediterranean diet that is 52% carbohydrate, 18% protein, and 32% fat. Depending on your needs, the macronutrient ranges may be different.

40-30-30 Diet High Protein Chart

A 40-30-30 diet is one in which you consume 40% of your calories from carbohydrate, 30% from protein, and 30% from fat. This chart is geared towards a high-protein diet, which may not be appropriate for those with liver or kidney problems or when training for endurance exercise.