Upping protein without shakes...Help a girl out, will ya? :)

hottamolly00

I love me some dried/roasted edamame. 11 grams of protein for 1 oz serving. It's a good replacement for chips when you want something crunchy/salty. Mmmmmmm!

lorigem

My 2 go-to snacks packed with protein:

Greek Yogurt, some kind of fruit, granola and 1/2 scoop protein powder = approx 40-50 grams of protein (look at my diary for the other macros)

Cottage cheese, fruit = 11 grams of protein

Yummy in my tummy!

hottamolly00

Personally, as a paleo guy, I don't mind the fat. In fact, it helps me. But I also only do uncured bacon (it's not the fat that concerns me, it's all the added nitrates & nitrites).

But if you want to up protein without much fat & you don't want to do powders/shakes, then your best bets are:

1) Chicken breast, skin removed, roasted or grilled. Mostly protein, little fat, no carbs.
2) Salmon steak
3) Egg Whites. Hard boil eggs and scoop out the yolk if you are concerned with the fat and/or cholesterol.
4) Legumes. Soak overnight before cooking to get rid of some of the lectins and phytic acid. OK sources of protein, but really are more of a carb source than a protein source. Might throw off your macros if you lean on them too heavily.

If you can make your own beef jerky (so that it's not filled with preservatives), then that is also a nice "snacky" thing to use.
Other snack: Pistachios. Lower fat & more fiber than most nuts, still decent protein, taste great.

I heard legumes aren't Paleo. Am I wrong? I want to do paleo, but realistically with my lifestyle, I can't do it 100%. Correct me if I'm wrong, though!

running_shoe

I didn't want to resort to protein shakes, either. I really would prefer to eat real food. However, even to get my protein up over 100, I found I had to eat protein every time I put something in my mouth and I was not enjoying it and eating way too much dairy. I found a vegan protein powder that I don't hate and it gives me the push over the line I need. Yup, I gave in....

SpecialKitty7

bump for the great ideas

NovemberJune

My goals are 100+ protein and 45+ fat and I usually have chicken with lunch and dinner. I just don't really like beef much :P
Chicken meatballs, chicken breasts, chicken thighs. In soup, with peppers and onions, in quesadillas, with green beans and carrots, etc. I'm not a fan of egg white omelets but I do love omelets, quiche, and egg sammies

(But I also use myofusion banana perfection a few times per week, sometimes baked into mini peanut butter banana muffins )

aggieanne04

Tuna, oatmeal, whole grain bread, deli meats (I'm partial to the oven-roasted turkey 98% fat free kind), cheese (but I know that doesn't help with your fat grams...), skim milk, Greek yogurt (Chobani nonfat has 11.5g protein per 1/2 cup), nonfat cottage cheese (13g protein per 1/2 cup), navy beans (8g per 1/4 cup dry), black beans (12g per 1/4 cup dry), lentils (10g per 1/4 cup dry), whole wheat pasta, quinoa, couscous, lean beef/chicken/pork...

I like putting in beans to my scrambled eggs in the mornings. Also, tuna or shredded chicken with boiled eggs, Greek yogurt (instead of mayo), and navy beans gives a nice chunk of protein atop a lettuce salad.

I know you said you weren't a fan of protein shakes, but the AdvoCare ones are really good, IMO.

ETA: Make dip out of Greek yogurt to eat with veggies- I mix 2 cups nonfat Greek yogurt with a packet of Ranch dressing.

StacyReneO

I am not big on protein shakes, but once in a while (maybe 1x a week) I will have a Vega shake to up my protein levels. I also like Quest bars. Other than that, I keep high protein deli meats in the fridge at work and just snack on those - roast beef, ham, salami. I snack sized can of tuna also packs a lot of protein,

BusyRaeNOTBusty

Higher protein snacks:
Beef jerky, lunch meat, CHEESE, milk, yogurt, hummus, soup, sandwiches, hard boiled eggs.

Vini9

For me I use fage plain Greek yogurt 0% fat. it has 23g protein in a cup. I add nuts to it, sometimes honey to sweeten it. Light string cheese low cals and fat. Regular cheese, turkey jerky, tuna on crackers, hard boiled eggs, cottage cheese (you can do so much with cottage cheese when blended) nut butters, and a new favorite if mine is Quest bars. They come in all natural flavors. Personally I have shakes too. I find it gets to be really expensive when buying all that food. So I do both, somedays a shake, somedays not. I am not the type to eat the same thing everyday. I do mostly hit 160g of protein a day. Also fish like Maui, or haddock has a mild flavor and goes good on salads. Everyone has really good suggestions. You'll get there it does take some getting used to and for my hubby it makes him gasy but not me. good luck op!

Vini9

Darn I forgot something else that is a good snack. You take cheese ( I prefer shredded) put it in the oven till edges are crispy. Or you can cook it in the skillet. Cut it into wedges and have with hummus or black bean hummus. Yum!

sympha01

I'm in the same situation as you in that I'm trying to up my protein but would prefer to get it from eating food than drinking a food replacement.

One thing I'm doing right now is making an Indian lentil / chicken stew that per giant (dinner-sized) bowl has 60 g of protein (!) with 528 calories and 11 g of fat. I eat a half-sized (normal) bowl for lunch to get a monster protein boost for pretty few calories and little fat.

I'm also including a 12 oz glass of nonfat milk in my plan every day (more if my calories allow it) as well as a serving of nonfat yogurt.

Higher in fat (but healthy fat!) is sardines. They all say you should get two servings of fatty fish per week ideally, and sardines fit the bill. They're cheap, eco-friendly, and compared to other fatty fish low in toxins like mercury.

If you eat grains at all, consider looking at some of the fortified high-fiber pastas that are on the market now. The house brand from my local supermarket has 10 g of protein (and 7 g of fiber -- bonus!) per 190 calorie 2-oz serving. You can pair that with beans and pasta sauce for a pretty respectable protein and fiber boost for lunch.

I also like to make a batch of brown rice with black beans (or pinto beans) which you can mix with salsa and mexican-style veggies or a bit of seasoned chicken or pork and/or low-fat cheese for a nice lunch.

Last thought -- meat is meat, and it can be expensive, I know. But I've also found I can dry-grill (no oil) a few flattened skinless boneless chicken breasts on the weekend, cool them and slice them up and put them in the fridge, and they're THERE, ready to go, to add to salads or whatever during the week.

crobl

I don't like protein shakes either - the taste/texture get to me. But I make my own "protein shake". And as a disclaimer - I hate cottage cheese, the taste, the smell, the texture - icky! But you can't taste it - this seriously tastes like peanut butter/banana

Cottage cheese (about 25g protein per cup)
Peanut Butter (about 8g per 2 tablespoons)
Banana (about 1.3g per medium banana)
Milk (about 8g per cup)
Cinnamon

I'll be honest, I don't measure a lot, usually I go with what fits in my magic bullet and gives a good consistency- but figure

1/2 cup cottage cheese
2 TBSP peanut butter
1 banana
1/2 milk
cinnamon

That will get you about 25 grams of protein. Give or take my math deficiencies!

queend4580

Is EAS sold at Wal-Mart? I was just about to post on the board for help with picking the right kind of protein powder and stumbled across this topic. Serendipity I think!

shar140

To get that much protein and keep your fat that low, you'll have to skip the nuts and cheese, which are not high protein options, anyway, and go with fairly lean sources: lean fish, lean poultry and meat, etc.

Break down:

Breakfast -
4oz 93% lean ground turkey (I make my own turkey sausage from it)=22g pro
3 servings of egg beaters = 15g pro (though the nutrients are all in the yolk)


Lunch-
2 cans of tuna in water=36g

Snack(s)-
1 cup cottage cheese=28g

Dinner-
6oz chicken breast (skinless)=52g

That's a total of 153g pro (26g fat, I used full-fat cottage cheese), plus whatever you get from your other foods.

Personally, I aim for at least 100g pro/day, and generally hit in the 120-140g range (sometimes more, sometimes less). I try to get ~30g pro per meal, thus hitting my 100/day. Usually dinner is higher than 30g. I use protein powder occasionally, but not regularly. Snacks I have: cottage cheese, greek yogurt, boiled eggs, leftovers from lunch sometimes, tuna/chicken salad (with some celery or cucumber, or just with a spoon). Seafood may also be another option - but I'm allergic to shellfish, so I'm not as knowledgeable about it.

So in your case to make numbers easy, aim for something like 50g protein/meal - for 3 meals, that's 150g. Or adjust to 45g/meal, that's 135g pro plus a snack. It doesn't need to be the same amount at each meal, but it will need to be pretty high to get that much protein in a day. So I'd aim for some minimum per meal. Good luck!

CeleryStalker

And I mean if you want to get technical and trying to try natural, they make super expensive fancy "organic gluten free proteins" but you know what else is organic and gluten free, Cocaine, Uranium and Lead so don't let the buzz words sway your choice, alcohol isnt natural, if you put anything in your coffee other than black its not natural, and if you don't drink coffee or alcohol well then you win.

LMAO If I could get my hands on some organic cocaine, I wouldn't have this weight problem :laugh:

rainbowbow

I would suggest Fage greek yogurt 0%. I add some splenda and eat it as is but you could definitely add some fresh strawberries.


It's 100 calories, 0g fat, and 18g protein.

mjrkearney

If you don't like protein shakes make your own. My personal favorite is spinach, Greek yogurt, frozen berries, and milk. I once put protein powder in that for something like 50 grams of protein, but it came out grainy.

Another option is PB2 mixed with, again, Greek yogurt. I think I eat too much of the stuff.

Mr_Knight

Personally, as a paleo guy, I don't mind the fat. In fact, it helps me. But I also only do uncured bacon..,.

Bacon isn't paleo. Or even primal, for that matter.

CeleryStalker

You guys are fantastic!! Thank you so much for all these wonderful suggestions! I'm glad to see others jumping in for the ideas as well. Thanks to your wonderful suggestions, I remembered I had some 'fancy' can of tuna in the pantry I've been meaning to eat. Not sure what makes it so 'fancy', but I'm a sucker for packaging (as long as the label agrees with what I'm after), and this stuff came in a swanky package. Ever have Ocean Naturals Skipjack tuna in water? It was good, but no better tasting than the regular stuff that's a third the price. I tend to be a hippie when it comes to 'sustainable' and 'responsibly caught' options as opposed to farmed, etc. This stuff says it's 'responsibly caught', so if that's true, I suppose it's worth the extra buck per can. You know what they say about a fool and his money tho... *blush*


So....off to the store to load up on things I can't find at the farmer's market. Got a pretty substantial list here. Thanks a bazillion for all these great recommendations. And by all means, keep'em coming! :flowerforyou:

melham

Quest Protein Bars. They have very low sugar, many are under 200 calories, and 20g protein. They're also very tasty and come in lots of flavors. Try them out at GNC then order them online once you know what flavors you like. Quest has a website if you're curious, and you can buy from there, too.

CeleryStalker

OK since SEVERAL of you have mentioned these Quest bars, I'm adding GNC to my afternoon shopping trip. I had already looking up Quest and 'store locator' before I came back to this thread and saw YET ANOTHER recommendation on these bad boys. They better be good! :laugh:

toni_mmh

my fav breakfast is Nature Valley Protein Bar - 10g protein with a 8oz glass of 1% lowfat choc milk (8g protein). YUM
and fits in my macros for breakfast.

MichelleLRayburn

For breakfast, I like Biggest Loser Pancakes ( made from 1/2 cup cottage cheese, 1 egg, 1/2 cup of oatmeal and some vanilla blended up in my magic bullet blender, then fried in a pan like regular pancakes). It delivers 24g protein, 33g of carbohydrates, 4 sugars, and 10g protein. I top them with fruit.

melham

OK since SEVERAL of you have mentioned these Quest bars, I'm adding GNC to my afternoon shopping trip. I had already looking up Quest and 'store locator' before I came back to this thread and saw YET ANOTHER recommendation on these bad boys. They better be good! :laugh:

I can't eat chocolate (I have GERD), so I've tried several non-chocolate. My favorite is cinnamon roll, second is vanilla almond, third is apple pie. I don't want to hear about how good the chocolate flavors are... I love chocolate... dangit :sad:

JacksMom12

If you would consider a natural protein powder, check out About Time protein. Tryabouttime.com 25 grams of protein in 100 calories. No artificial sweeteners or anything.

RadioactivePirate

I make a protein smoothee by using Greek yogurt, fruit, milk, vanilla, and sweetener. No protein powder necessary. I'm not concerned with "natural" but I hate the taste and texture of protein powder, so I avoid it. My usual is 1 cup frozen strawberries, 3/4c milk, 1/2c plain Greek yogurt, vanilla, and Splenda, and it ends up around 20g protein and under 200 calories.

Greek yogurt and cottage cheese are FANTASTIC sources of protein in general, low in fat and in carbs.

meowlymary

I didn't read all the replies so sorry if this is redundant - little things to keep on hand for quick proteiny snacks: hard boiled eggs, string cheese. I know you said you like meat but if you're okay with meat substitutes, Morningstar makes really yummy "sausages" that are only 80 cal and 10 g of protein! They are great if you pop them in the skillet for a few minutes and eat with an egg and avocado or something. I'm having trouble with my protein too and have resorted to making PB protein shakes, but these are the other ideas I've gathered.

sabified

bump to save ideas

RunsOnEspresso

I want to read this later, always looking for ways to increase protein.