Just how important is protein now?

doolha

Hi!

I've reached my goal weight (30 kg/66 lbs down, yay) and am now trying to find my maintenance calories, which is taking a while, but that's fine.

I know protein is important for weight loss and also for building muscle. It's also really "in" right now and there are high protein versions of many foods in the grocery store. I already buy these because I have a huge problem reaching even the lowest protein goals without them. Even if I eat two protein bars and a protein-rich (for my standards) lunch, I can't get even half the protein I'm supposed to be getting (according to online calculators).

I'm vegetarian (no meat or fish but yes dairy and eggs), which is obviously the problem here. :')

I'm now neither trying to lose weight nor trying to build much extra muscle/working out. Do I really need more than 40 - 60 g of protein per day? For the life of me, I can't reach anything above 60 g despite going over my calories for the day and eating "high protein" food variants (high protein yoghurts or puddings, high protein chips, protein bars). Most calculators recommended 120+ g, I set MDL to "only" 97, which is still unreachable for me.

I tried to google this, but every site assumes I'm trying to either lose weight still or trying to really build up muscle/change my body fat/etc.

For reference, this is for ~1450 daily calories (I'm still slowly increasing to find my maintenance level) and I now weigh 58 kg/128 lbs at 1.66 m/5'5".

mtaratoot

If your food diary were open, people might take a look and be able to give better feedback. In the meantime, here's some basic things to think about:

• Protein requirements are guidelines; there is some debate about how much you need.
• You also need complete protein, which for sure you can get even without eating dairy or egg, but you're way ahead of the game if you add dairy and egg as far as all your amino acids.
• The most basic guidance is 0.8 grams of protein per Kg of body mass. That means for a 58 Kg person, you'd want to aim for a little less than 47 grams.
• Some people provide guidance of 1.2 grams of protein per Kg. That would be closer to 70 grams of protein, but that 1.2 gram guidance is for LEAN BODY MASS, not total body mass. Unless you have an idea of your fat mass and lean mass, that guidance can be misleading.

I am sure you'll get much better information than this, but it's a starting spot.

AnnPT77

Like you, I'm an ovo-lacto vegetarian (49+ years so far). I'm about your size, 5'5" and lately cycling from upper 120s to low 130s pounds. (On a guess, I'm much older, at 68.)

In my view, we vegetarians will be best off eating slightly more grams of protein than someone with similar goals who eats meat/fish. That's because more of our protein sources are unbalanced in essential amino acids (EAAs), and some are less bioavailable. Getting a bit extra helps fill in the gaps, and varying the sources (the EAA incomplete ones) helps with that, too.

I do believe that personal goals matter. Someone who is trying to build muscle needs more, someone cutting calories need more, probably aging (60+) people need a bit more, etc.

If you're getting 40-60 grams routinely, you're currently within the USDA guidelines for sedentary women our size, which is 46 grams. (I'm assuming you're female from your size and profile avatar.) You can see personalized guidelines from them here:

https://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/dri-calculator/

I think this number is best interpreted as the minimum to avoid under-nutrition, rather than an optimum level for ideal health and functioning. (Where to be on that continuum is an individual choice.)

There is a reputable protein calculator and guide here that is from a neutral source, and based on more recent research:

https://examine.com/protein-intake-calculator/
https://examine.com/guides/protein-intake/

That one includes some (limited) goals information in its input. Based on my limited knowledge of you (best guess at what to put in the calculator), that one says:

Your protein optimal intake:
at least 70
grams/day.

Intakes of up to 105 grams/day may provide additional benefit, based on limited evidence.

On that scale, you're close.

I understand that you're working toward maintenance, not quite there yet. I've been maintaining for 7+ years so far (up and down a bit, but all in the healthy range and same jeans size, after around 30 years of being overweight/obese). We also have different goals. While I'm not a bodybuilder, I am athletically active so I need more protein for that, plus aging, plus vegetarian.

Honestly, if food preferences were not part of the picture (they always are), I don't think it's vegetarianism that's making it really hard for you to reach higher protein intake. I think it's the low calorie goal of 1450. (I'm not saying that goal is wrong! I'm also not saying that makes it impossible.)

My personal goal while losing weight was 0.6-0.8 grams of protein per pound of healthy goal weight. Now, with more calories in play, I shoot for a round number just above my estimated lean mass in pounds. My daily protein minimum is 100 grams. Most of the time, I average around 120 grams; getting less than 100 is very rare.

I don't use protein powder, protein bars, or other regular protein supplements. I don't think there's anything wrong with those, I just don't personally find them tasty or satisfying.

I don't eat lots of eggs. (Maybe less than a dozen in a typical month?) I do eat lots of dairy, because I love it a lot, and my Northern European genes are totally fine with helping me digest it smoothly. I think I could get to a 100g minimum fully plant based, but it wouldn't be as pleasant to me.

I think you're not in a terrible spot protein-wise, but suspect it might be better if you could bump it up a little.

In my mind, the key thing is to figure out how to do this via routine habits (eating patterns) that are easy to put on repeat, so you're not stressfully white-knuckling your logging every day to get enough. That's unpleasant.

What I try to go is get at least one major protein source in each meal. (I'm usually a 3-meals person, but not always.) Some things that I rely on for that, or a good chunk, are:

* Plain nonfat Greek yogurt. I eat this with berries or in my oatmeal, but also use it in cases where others might use sour cream: Blop on top of tostada, enchilada or hearty soup; make dips or salad dressings with herbs and such (thinned with some skim milk if needed); making deviled eggs or that sort of thing instead of mayo.
* Lowfat cottage cheese or other calorie-efficient cheese.
* Traditional soy foods: Tofu, tempeh, soy noodles, etc.
* High(-ish) protein pasta: Red lentil is my main go-to, similar taste/texture to wheat pasta. Chickpea "rice" is also available (really chickpea orzo). There are soy and black bean pastas with a bit more protein, but the soy ones tend to be chewy. I like those as a stir-fry add-in or similar Asian-esque preps, but don't enjoy them in Italian-ish tomato-y or cheesy sauces. The black bean ones can have a chewy texture (usually in the thin forms), or kind of a mushy one (bigger forms). I like the former in similar things to the soy pastas, but the latter not so much . . . maybe in soup

Seitan is another possible source, not EAA-complete like soy, but useful. I don't eat it often, but not for any good reason. I like it OK - it's pretty neutral.

On top of that, I try to get little bits of protein from most of the foods I eat, especially the foods that are relatively higher in calories. There are breads with more protein than others, vegetables with more protein, grains with more protein, etc. There are even fruits with a little protein. Those small amounts spread through the day will add up, sometimes to a surprising amount.

This thread helped me find some of those:

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

You'd need to scroll past the mostly meaty/fishy things near the top of the linked spreadsheet, but vegetarian sources are in there, including plant sources, further down the list.

Let me be clear: I don't eat things I don't enjoy. Life is too short for that. I do (did) experiment for a time when first reducing calories, and tried some things I didn't love, but I only kept eating the ones that tasted good and felt satisfying to me. It's a process.

There are also flavoring ingredients that I like that add a few grams of protein. Some examples are miso, nutritional yeast, and peanut butter powder. (I don't like the powder as a spread; I like using it in yogurt or to make Asian-esque peanut sauce for noodles or veggies.)

Maybe that kind of approach won't work for you, but it did help me. Usually I hit my protein goal just eating one of my normal in-rotation meals.

I don't log every day any more, but do most days. If you want to see specifically what I do eat, my diary is open to MFP friends, and you're welcome to send me a friend request, look at what I eat. I mostly cook from scratch, so my log can look like a list of ingredients, but I do myselfanswer DMs or questions on my profile/timeline about how I combine or use things.

TL;DR: You're at least close to a deficiency-avoiding protein level for a woman of your size, but it would probably be optimal to bump it up if you can. There are a bunch of ways to work at doing that gradually, by changing routine eating patterns.

Best wishes for successful maintenance!

cupcakesandproteinshakes

Agree with the last post. I’m not veggie but I don’t eat a huge amount of meat. I supplement with quite a lot of protein powder. I guess it’s not ideal, but I’m not shooting for an ideal diet, just a reasonably balanced one. So I have 2 shakes a day. Water, whey protein and frozen fruit.
I also mix whey into Greek yoghurt. I find this approach means I make 100 g a day of protein without too much much effort. I’m 135 pounds so that’s ok for me.

momlongerwalk

I would say "it's not easy" to get the protein at this level of calories--I'm in the same boat there. I work out a lot (play tennis, hike, too), and I seem to never keep up, even though I'm omnivorous. I will say lean protein goes a lonnng way toward remaining satisfied with a healthier (read: low saturated fat, low sugar) intake. If my protein intake dives, my ability to be smart about my food choices plummets as well.

doolha

mtaratoot wrote: »

If your food diary were open, people might take a look and be able to give better feedback.

Thank you! I made it public, though a lot of it isn't in English so it's probably not that helpful, and I do estimate some meals instead of logging accurately now that I'm in maintenance. :')

AnnPT77 wrote: »

TL;DR: You're at least close to a deficiency-avoiding protein level for a woman of your size, but it would probably be optimal to bump it up if you can. There are a bunch of ways to work at doing that gradually, by changing routine eating patterns.

This was so helpful and reassuring, thank you for the long and thoughtful response!

cupcakesandproteinshakes wrote: »

I supplement with quite a lot of protein powder.

momlongerwalk wrote: »

I would say "it's not easy" to get the protein at this level of calories

Thank you! I decided to not obsess over hitting protein goals anymore, I'll keep eating high protein puddings and protein bars since I like them and I may sprinkle protein powder over my porridge or something, but I'm not that worried anymore. Compared to how I ate a year ago, my body must still be crying in relief so 20 g less protein is a minor issue.

On another note, I found out my maintenance calorie level is a lot higher than expected. I always thought it was around 1350 (with absolutely no exercise and sitting for 12+ hours, obviously more on active days) but as it turns out, it's somewhere between 1550 and 1650. That feels like so much food after eating 1200 on average for 10 months! Yay!

Thanks again, everyone.

mtaratoot

I'm glad you're comfortable with your approach.

It looks like you're doing OK on protein. Keep sticking to it!

zebasschick

protein is important to maintain muscle, not just build it.

i'm a vegetarian, 5'4" and female, and my goal is to build muscle, so i eat a lot of protein (i try to keep it over 140 grams per day). when i wasn't building, i tried to keep it to at least 75 grams per day, so i ate a lot of greek yogurt, egg whites, protein shakes and soy beans. lately i've been lazy, so protein bars and protein powder figure largely in my diet... i notice when i drop below that 140 grams, my recovery is slower.

CrazyMermaid1

Another vote for protein powder but they’re not all the same. Muscle Milk has one I order online that has 50 grams of protein for 300 calories. That’s how I reach my 100 G protein goal every day.