You want me to eat how much protein ??

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zebramama84
zebramama84 Posts: 64 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Fitnesspal is suggesting that I eat what feels like an inordinate amount of protein. Most days I can get between 40 and 50 grams of protein just on diet but there are days where Fitness Pal wants me to eat upwards of 200 grams of protein exercising. Starting to think I should go start knowing on live cows it might help. I would love some guidance in this particular conundrum!

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  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,976 Member
    edited March 2020
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    It does add all the macros when you exercise.

    Here's a good thread to read about setting macros and calories:
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p1

    If you are a higher weight sometimes the numbers get somewhat skewed. Not only intake but exercise calories can get very skewed when using an online calculator at a high body weight. If you are logging 1000 calories on exercise, you may want to cut that in half.

  • eater_78
    eater_78 Posts: 13 Member
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    How many calories are you on and what are your macro settings? I second the poster above me not to eat back all the workout calories as it's hard to estimate them precisely.
  • zebramama84
    zebramama84 Posts: 64 Member
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    cmriverside wrote: »
    It does add all the macros when you exercise.

    Here's a good thread to read about setting macros and calories:
    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p1

    If you are a higher weight sometimes the numbers get somewhat skewed. Not only intake but exercise calories can get very skewed when using an online calculator at a high body weight. If you are logging 1000 calories on exercise, you may want to cut that in half.

    Is there a for dummies version of this? My brain is just not grasping this :/ i really want to understand so i can be the master of my own health!
  • zebramama84
    zebramama84 Posts: 64 Member
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    eater_78 wrote: »
    How many calories are you on and what are your macro settings? I second the poster above me not to eat back all the workout calories as it's hard to estimate them precisely.

    Okay so i weigh 350, im eating 1700 to 2200 cal a day... macro settings are default cause i just dont understand. But i always have a minimum cal deficit of 1900 and most days closer to 2200. I appreciate any guidance possible
  • martianspuds
    martianspuds Posts: 93 Member
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    I track using Cronometer. I'm 5'8" and ~242 lbs, low activity, and it prompts me to eat around 130 g of protein per day.

    I am a vegetarian, yet actually I don't find it hard to hit this goal anymore. The trick for me was to identify several calorie-efficient protein sources that I find yummy, and which I now rotate through & have during most meals. For example: peanut powder in my oatmeal, Fairlife ultrafiltered non-fat milk in my tea, non-fat plain Greek yogurt with berries for dessert, etc. Don't forget that some veg, like mushrooms, have slightly more protein than others - it can add up quickly.

    To figure out which sources worked best for me, I made a spreadsheet to show calories per gram of protein in each food.
  • eater_78
    eater_78 Posts: 13 Member
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    Your calorie intake seems reasonable, I wouldn't worry too much about macros unless you're not losing weight. Some people do diets that favour particular macros over others, but it's totally possible to lose weight just focusing on calorie intake. You have to see what works for you and...persevere :tired_face:

    A few years back I did a Ducan diet (high protein) and while it gave me quick results it was awfully boring. I like my macros 40/30/30 (carbs/fat/protein). But if I go over or under it doesn't matter, especially so far from my target weight.

    Don't overthink it, just eat less than you burn and you'll be fine. Once you've been at it for a while, you can tweak your macros to suit other goals.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    The default protein goal is 20%, so even at 2200 it shouldn't give you a goal of more than 110.

    That said, I wouldn't worry about it but pick a daily goal and ignore increases on days you exercise.

    A good number is 0.6-0.8 x your midpoint healthy BMI weight.

    In other words, if my midpoint healthy BMI weight were 130, I would aim for between 78 to 104 g. So long as you have a good amount to lose the risk of muscle loss isn't so high.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
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    To add to that, 200 g would be crazy high and entirely unnecessary unless you like eating that much, but 40-50 is probably on the low side and it shouldn't be hard to increase some on 1700-2200 cals.
  • YellowD0gs
    YellowD0gs Posts: 693 Member
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    zebramama84 wrote: »
    Okay so i weigh 350, im eating 1700 to 2200 cal a day... macro settings are default cause i just dont understand. But i always have a minimum cal deficit of 1900 and most days closer to 2200. I appreciate any guidance possible

    The simple version is, the macro defaults are based on your current weight. 350 x 0.6 = 210 grams. This will automagically change as you lose weight; 200 pounds x 0.6 = 120.

    One suggestion is to use your target weight to manually set that macro. The better suggestion may be above, hit your daily calorie goals and persevere.
  • runandbikeNick
    runandbikeNick Posts: 13 Member
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    Targetting higher Protein can often help people hit their calorie goals and feel fuller longer. Lean meats in particular really help me, I can eat a lot of chicken tenderloin/breasts, lean beef, pork chop/loin... and its only a few hundred cal, but sticks around in stomach it seems like. Combine that with a large serving of two types of veggies, makes for a great dinner or lunch. Keeps my body strong/recovered from exercise as well. For example a small serviing of chicken is just 165cal (100g) and 20~31g of protein! I try to incorporate more protein into more meals/snacks if I can.

    Cook ahead of time and chicken and hard-boiled eggs are an easy way to make a work lunch more filling and high protein.
  • Priasmama416
    Priasmama416 Posts: 103 Member
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    The average adult should have between 50-70g a day. If you have a very physical job, then up to 100 is good. If you are having a hard time getting that much in, then you may want to try shakes, or adding protein powder to some foods

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