I find it hard to hit protein goal

JRugg1946
JRugg1946 Posts: 58 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am having a hard time hitting protein, goals and still get a calorie deficit to lose weight.
Im thinking i should not worry as much, untill im ready to start working out if i want to build and maintain muscle.
I currently 260lbs at 6'4".
I have not used a protein supplement yet, but will if protein goal is a must..

Whats does everyone else believe?

Replies

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    How high have you set your protein goal and how low are your calories?

    Protein is important, but it becomes a bit of a Tetris if you have set your calories pretty low.
  • JRugg1946
    JRugg1946 Posts: 58 Member
    MFP has my calorie deficit at 2092 to lose 2lbs a week. It has my protein intake at 209 grams. I have been averaging around 140 grams.
    My over goal is to try and get as close to 195lbs but have set a short term goal of 230lbs and go 10lbs from there to see where i feel and look my best
  • JRugg1946
    JRugg1946 Posts: 58 Member
    I have not implemented any workout routine yet, because i have a pretty physical job as a pipefitter/welder. 8-10 hour days. I just started my weightloss goal roughly 6 weeks ago, i was 277 to start.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    edited June 2021
    JRugg1946 wrote: »
    MFP has my calorie deficit at 2092 to lose 2lbs a week. It has my protein intake at 209 grams. I have been averaging around 140 grams.
    My over goal is to try and get as close to 195lbs but have set a short term goal of 230lbs and go 10lbs from there to see where i feel and look my best

    Did you mess with the macros? That's a 40% protein goal. Why so high?

    Here's a thread with ideas and a list of protein sources.

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also/p1

    Here's a good guide for macros:

    https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p1
  • JRugg1946
    JRugg1946 Posts: 58 Member
    I believe i did actually, i tried to lower my carb and fat intake, believing or thinking, that it may help with my high triglycerides levels. My last bloodwork fasting about 6 weeks ago, i was in the 600s. I dont eat fried foods, but was eating alot of foods high in fat and carbs. I also understand it may be genetic.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    My opinion is that the advantages of eating high protein are over-hyped.

    The recommended daily allowance is less than 0.5g per lb of lean body mass, but most of us who can afford to worry about it can afford to eat more than that. My point is that the RDA would put you at ~100g of protein per day (that would be about ~400kcals or only ~20% of your daily calorie goal). I don't see any reason to hit the same exact macro breakdown on each day, so you can vary around a bit, always trying to stay under your calorie plan. Note that any excess protein you eat is either metabolized for energy or pooped out. It does not magically add to your muscles, sadly.

    Here's a reason NOT to overeat protein: it's a bad energy source. Your body is much better at metabolizing carbohydrate and fat for energy. My personal approach is to try to get my breakdown as high as 50% calories from fats (allowing for daily variation as stated). My exception is when I do endurance cardio (like an hour or more of cycling), for which I like to eat additional carbs.

    In short, when I'm cutting, I try for 50%f, 25%c, 25%p as my baseline plan. I don't try to hit the macro breakdown perfectly every day, just the calorie total. You are free to pick the macro breakdown that works best for you, so long as you get adequate protein. I can tell you from experience that this works! I'm finally at a pretty reasonable weight and in pretty good shape! (After years of battling the bulge, so to speak.)

    Finally, losing at 2lbs per week is fine, but pretty difficult. It requires a relatively high caloric deficit. (In your case, about 30% of your 3000kcal TDEE. I usually recommend no more than a 25% deficit as rule of thumb.) If you find you are having difficulty with it, you can lower your loss rate. Then, on days where you feel ambitious, you can under-eat from your plan (e.g., do some exercise and don't eat all the additional calories back). I just find that it's more motivating to have a sustainable plan that you can sometimes exceed than a plan where you can't quite keep up.

    Best of luck!
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    A good goal (supported by Examine.com) if on a deficit (when you would want a bit more protein than otherwise, as it protects against muscle loss) is about 0.8-1.0 g per lb of lean mass, or 0.6-0.8 per lb of a healthy goal weight. Thus, 140 isn't necessarily off, although I'd probably try to up it a little. Over 200 seems like overkill.
  • JRugg1946
    JRugg1946 Posts: 58 Member
    Thank you all.. i should probably aim for 180, if thats my lean muscle mass then, for example?
  • cg6799
    cg6799 Posts: 3 Member
    Eat Legumes. Great source of protein.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    JRugg1946 wrote: »
    Thank you all.. i should probably aim for 180, if thats my lean muscle mass then, for example?

    Yes, that would be a good number.
  • MaltedTea
    MaltedTea Posts: 6,286 Member
    For muscle building/preservation benefits, and a surprising cognitive benefit (for me anyway), I like 40-40-20, where the 20% is fat.

    Do I hit it daily? Heck no. Weekly? Sometimes.

    That said, I've gotten 120+ grams protein on many a day on an average of 1500-1900 calories. This is despite a 2 scoop/day protein powder max, not eating pork, and rarely eating red meat.

    In sum, fiddle with your macros to see what works for you and your goals. Then adjust your food choices accordingly so that you meet the macros efficiently and in a way that satisfies your palate 😋

    This may take months so patience and opened to being experimental is required.
  • Indee19
    Indee19 Posts: 52 Member
    I'm at 145 g daily protein and the only way I can hit it is by selecting leaner meats and adding one protein shake in per day. I can imagine why you were struggling with 209 g! I agree with those who said to focus more on overall calorie reduction until you get closer to goal and start adding some training.
  • JRugg1946
    JRugg1946 Posts: 58 Member
    Indee19 wrote: »
    I'm at 145 g daily protein and the only way I can hit it is by selecting leaner meats and adding one protein shake in per day. I can imagine why you were struggling with 209 g! I agree with those who said to focus more on overall calorie reduction until you get closer to goal and start adding some training.

    Thank you.. and thank you all for the information
  • Kmb4391
    Kmb4391 Posts: 8 Member
    I keep my protein goal at a minimal 40% but am also lifting 6 days a week. Shakes are pretty important to hitting this for me unless I'm treating myself to a big steak or several chicken breasts. Between shakes (made with skim milk), cottage cheese, protein chips, eggs and whatever lean meat I have for the day, I can usually get right around 200 grams of protein while only hitting 1900 calories (give or take) It takes little bit to get used to it, but now i'm always looking forward to most the food I eat.

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  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 11,616 Member
    @Kmb4391 that is a LOT of protein coming from shakes and supplements. Not going to address whether it's better to get from natural sources or not, but will comment that I'm sure it's rather expensive to buy that much in powder, shakes and protein chips each day. (Never heard of BBQ protein chips...sounds intriguing...)
  • MaltedTea
    MaltedTea Posts: 6,286 Member
    nossmf wrote: »
    @Kmb4391 that is a LOT of protein coming from shakes and supplements. Not going to address whether it's better to get from natural sources or not, but will comment that I'm sure it's rather expensive to buy that much in powder, shakes and protein chips each day. (Never heard of BBQ protein chips...sounds intriguing...)

    @Kmb4391: This day's example is way over 40% protein. Glad it's working for you. I'd need more fiber...and whole food to be comfortable. But our goals (and perhaps genders) are different.

    @nossmf: Never heard of the MyProtein brand but iWon has a "chip" with the shape and crunch of Cheetos but in BBQ form.

    🗣️ ADDICTIVE, I TELL YOU!

    They can be bought by the case load (in 8s) to help reduce unit cost. Ahem, or so I'm told: https://iwonorganics.com/products/mesquite-bbq-protein-stix

    r9cazcrbv9h0.jpg


  • Kmb4391
    Kmb4391 Posts: 8 Member
    It's very true, you have to find what works for you and never be afraid to try something different. For several months I had been pretty consistent with protein and fat making up about a 40/40 split and the other 20 being carbs and I just didn't see process. Bumped the protein up significantly this last month and a half and have seen continued progress happen. Seems to work best for me beings that I do no cardio other than leisurely walks before lifting, so I'm not burning more than 300 to 400 calories per workout.

    Myprotein has become one of my favorite companies. When they have sales on whey, they REALLY have sales! I think the last time I purchased it was around $65 for 11lbs. Their chips aren't bad either! They seem to do 50% off every other week anymore. I like the quest chips too, but they are a little more expensive.
  • Lietchi
    Lietchi Posts: 6,827 Member
    edited June 2021
    nossmf wrote: »
    @Kmb4391 that is a LOT of protein coming from shakes and supplements. Not going to address whether it's better to get from natural sources or not, but will comment that I'm sure it's rather expensive to buy that much in powder, shakes and protein chips each day. (Never heard of BBQ protein chips...sounds intriguing...)

    For those in Europe, I love these - it's not even a compromise between wanting chips and needing protein, they are just yummy :
    https://xxlnutrition.com/en/protein-chips

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