Getting your protein without going over calories?

gweep

Hiya, I've been told recently that my protein goals I've been using (Set by a calorie counting app) is too low, especially considering I'm a vegetarian. I've lost around 70ish pounds on my own just by taking things slowly compared to what I've done in the past. I've been put on every fad diet since the age of 10 by my mother. I have a host of hormonal imbalances which affect my energy levels and stuff, so my exercise isn't always overly strenuous to the point I need like quadruple protein or anything .. buut:

According to my friend I should take my weight and multiply it by 0.4 and that's the grams I need to aim for as a minimum, which ends up being 131g.. Buuut another source said I should aim for 1 for every pound I weigh if I plan on doing weight lifting. I will, eventually. Maybe. If it didn't hurt so much..!

Well anyhow, if I followed that method (1 per pound) .. that would be over 325 grams of protein a day :I and that just blows my mind. I have a limit of 1800 a day, which I go over by a couple hundred calories if I reach a plateau or somethin'.

I do need to up my protein as I've noticed in the past ten years of being a veggie my hair has thinned and changed texture, what used to be full and luxurious is now limp, dull.. thin, and falling out in clumps.

I really struggle reaching the 100 grams I've been set to use by my app as it is, I eat relatively clean.. not recently because I've been falling into bad habits again, but for the past couple years I have/had been pretty good with what I put in my mouth.

I'm just curious, most of the foods available to me with high protein levels are met with an equally high calorie/sodium/carb/whatever level. Cottage cheese is okay sometimes, but I have trouble digesting dairy randomly, so I try not to depend on it toooo much.. And as much as I love my mock meats, their sodium content just puts me over my limit in one meal pretty much, which isn't even worth it considering their protein content is only 7-8 grams per serving.

Even whole grains, such as Quinoa, the holiest of all vegetarian protein thingies comes in at a whopping 230ish calories for a single serving and only 8 grams of protein. Eggs are alrigggght.. but I really don't like eating the yolks because of their high fat content (No, I'm not on a low-carb, low-fat thing, I just don't like the app screaming at me about how much fat% the eggs make up in that particular meal) I did go the route of eating only the whites, but I mentally cannot get over wasting the yolk. Ethical vegetarian.

I do use supplements; I have a myriad of products I use such as muscle milk, this plant fusion stuff, MVO flavorless stuff, but I can't help but feel these are adding unnecessary chemicals and things to an otherwise healthy and processed-free way of eating. But even these puppies are packed with calories. I have a protein "shot" that delivers either 35g or 45g in one vial around 230ish calories.. but these suckers are soo expensive, like 2-3 dollars each. My powders vary from 20g, to 21g to.. uhh, I think 15-17g for 80-180 cals a serving.

I'm just not sure how I'm supposed to meet my protein needs realistically while staying within my sodium, sugar, carb and caloric limits.

Any advice?

TonyStark30

You need the Protein requirements of your goal weight not the weight you currently are, so no quadrupling. If you cant make that on vegetarian food then you Need some vegetarian protein shakes without the extra stuff. Nothing that is like a meal replacement or specially for body builders.