When to eat lots of protein

marty_smith
marty_smith Posts: 102 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Im a 6ft tall male, i have lost 2 stone from 15.5 to 13.5 stone so im really pleased. My body shape is still very wobbly though, especially on my hips and i know i have at least another stone to lose. My question is should i be trying to eat more protein now i am a lower weight but still eating at a pretty big calorie deficit? My idea is that it will slow down my muscle loss and maybe concentrate my weight loss on fat percentage? Or is protein only really for building muscle?

Replies

  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    Protein, along with resistance exercise such as lifting weights or doing bodyweight work, helps to retain muscle during weight loss. There are a bunch of studies that advise anywhere from .63 grams per pound on up. I aim for .8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight and then I round it to the nearest 5, just to make it easy. So for you I'd aim at 150 grams per day. Keep in mind that it is a minimum goal, meaning that if you go over that number it is fine.

    I also aim at .4 grams of fat per pound of bodyweight as a minimum. You didn't ask about fat but I thought I'd mention it. Some people cut their fat very low while losing weight and that's not really a good thing. Our bodies need fat for proper hormonal functioning.

    Good work so far!
  • marty_smith
    marty_smith Posts: 102 Member
    jemhh wrote: »
    Protein, along with resistance exercise such as lifting weights or doing bodyweight work, helps to retain muscle during weight loss. There are a bunch of studies that advise anywhere from .63 grams per pound on up. I aim for .8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight and then I round it to the nearest 5, just to make it easy. So for you I'd aim at 150 grams per day. Keep in mind that it is a minimum goal, meaning that if you go over that number it is fine.

    I also aim at .4 grams of fat per pound of bodyweight as a minimum. You didn't ask about fat but I thought I'd mention it. Some people cut their fat very low while losing weight and that's not really a good thing. Our bodies need fat for proper hormonal functioning.

    Good work so far!

    Brilliant. Just what i needed to know. Cheers
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  • pinggolfer96
    pinggolfer96 Posts: 2,248 Member
    Regardless if you work out or not, protein is essential. It does a lot more than just aid muscle growth/ perseveration.
  • sunnybeaches105
    sunnybeaches105 Posts: 2,831 Member
    jemhh wrote: »
    Protein, along with resistance exercise such as lifting weights or doing bodyweight work, helps to retain muscle during weight loss. There are a bunch of studies that advise anywhere from .63 grams per pound on up. I aim for .8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight and then I round it to the nearest 5, just to make it easy. So for you I'd aim at 150 grams per day. Keep in mind that it is a minimum goal, meaning that if you go over that number it is fine.

    I also aim at .4 grams of fat per pound of bodyweight as a minimum. You didn't ask about fat but I thought I'd mention it. Some people cut their fat very low while losing weight and that's not really a good thing. Our bodies need fat for proper hormonal functioning.

    Good work so far!

    I largely agree with this, though I target 0.35 grams of fat. Some info:

    http://www.jissn.com/content/3/1/7

    http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1139/apnm-2015-0549

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