Macros & Protein Deficiency

stephinator92

Hi all- so I'm beginning to add a more conscious nutrition plan to my health regimen. To this point I've been eating pretty healthy, but not really losing weight. It wasn't until today that I realized I'm netting around 1200 calories on an average day which I know isn't enough to get me to my goals.

That being said, the area I'm struggling with the most is getting in enough protein. My typical protein intake looks like this:

Breakfast: 2 eggs or 3 egg whites, sometimes sausages or other breakfast meats (not often)
Lunch: Deli meat, leftover chicken breast, tuna or salmon salad, or veggie burger
Dinner: similar to lunch

I'm doing my best to load up on veggies all day long and having 1 fruit per day. I know literally nothing about protein powders/bars and it's looking like I need something along those lines to at least get my protein intake to where it needs to be to attain fat loss/muscle gain.

Any help is appreciated!!

DavPul

Sounds like you're getting......60-75 grams of protein per day? And you're trying to get to.....100-115 or so? Protein powder is going to be much more economical than protein bars and will easily net you an additional 25-50 grams.

As for the rest, have a slightly larger portion of lean meat for lunch and dinner. Add a couple of egg whites to your breakfast. Add a snack with some protein. Drink a tall glass of milk. Something along those lines. Once you get the hang of it it's easy to hit as much as 150 per day barely even trying.

BeYouTiful94

Those are really good choices you've already put in. Some other things to consider:
-Greek yogurt. Dannon Triple Zero has 15g of protein. I'm pretty sure all Greek yogurts are high in protein like that
-Cottage cheese. 13g protein per serving. Super delicious with berries. Some like it with veggies. Try different combos of things to see what you like.

As far as protein powder and bars, you'll get the best bang with powder. Like the above poster said, they generally start around 24/25g protein and go from there. They also tend to be low calorie. Do a google search and you'll find a lot of them and you can choose based on your tastes and what you're looking for in a powder (vegan, gluten free, less sugar, etc). Bars are also good if you like them. I do but I know a lot of people think they are gritty or something. My advice, pick up just one and try it out. I don't now a place that sells protein bars that doesn't have them sitting out for you to buy them individually. A lot of people like Quest. Luna bars are delicious IMO. Stop by the isle and see what appeals to you. They generally tend to have much less protein that powder though, somewhere around 12-20g, and they're more calories.

mlindeman0002

I am 164c-126p-56f and I am usually a little under by a few grams, and sometimes a little over. What helps me a lot is protein powder which mine contain 25g. I also eat a Triple Zero Yogurt as my dessert which is 15g. I don't suggest taking protein powder if you are not working out. I lift 6 days a week, so I have to take it right after my workout. I don't really like protein bars because of all the sugar that is in them. Another thing you can check out, which I absolutely love is Muscle Eggs. It sounds awful, but it is seriously the best milk I have ever tried. The chocolate flavor is amazing and tastes just like chocolate milk! I recently purchased the strawberry and cake batter flavor and just waiting for it to ship out! Feel free to add/message me if you have any questions!!