Clueless about protein... should I eat bars/shakes?

Honeycat89

I'm a female and work out for around 1.5 hours 4 times a week. I do around 50 mins cardio and the rest weights. (When I say weight i only do baby weights, e.g 7-8kg squatting.)

Should i be drinking protein shakes/eating protein bars? All the fitness instagrams I follow eat them, but I don't know what it's for. When I asked my boyfriend he just laughed and said it would make me muscly.

Why do people eat protein bars/shakes? Should i be too?

SugaryLynx

Protein is in important to retain muscle in a deficit. Would really be beneficial to do heavy lifting and less cardio in my opinion. You won't get muscley from it or eating excess protein, so ignore the boyfriend.

As far as shakes and bars. They have their place if you have issues getting protein (generally recommended about 1g per pound of lean body mass) but they are totally unnecessary if you can get it from other sources like chicken, pork, fish, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, quinoa, eggs, etc :P

weightliftingdiva

Your boyfriend is wrong, eating protein alone won't make you "muscly". A good weight lifting program + a well thought out diet with lots of protein can help you "bulk" or build muscle. However, if you are a woman, you will not turn into a she-hulk on a bulk program, because it is physically impossible for you to do so. If you are losing weight, eating at a deficit + eating protein + weight lifting can help you RETAIN muscle, which means when you lose all that fat, you will still have some nice muscle underneath it.

I find that eating a higher percentage of protein + fat keeps me more satiated then when my protein and fat is low however, which means I'm less likely to binge later on. I sometimes supplement my breakfasts, which tend to be more carby, with protein powder.

Honeycat89

Ahh ok, after looking at the app I seem to be hitting my daily protein goal so I guess I'm good thanks for the help!

Honeycat89

Can I just ask what eating at a deficit means. To me it sounds like it means burning off more than you eat, but this can't be true as then no one would be eating enough! What does it mean?

SugaryLynx

Can I just ask what eating at a deficit means. To me it sounds like it means burning off more than you eat, but this can't be true as then no one would be eating enough! What does it mean?

It just means eating less calories then it takes to maintain . So, for example I maintain around 2100 calories. I would eat 1800 calories a day to create a deficit

jackielou867

I eat a lot of protein. It is in meat milk fish eggs even cereal and bread. I do have bars and shakes now and then, but only if I think I need a top up.
Deficit does mean burning more than you eat. This is how you make your body burn fat and lose weight. Maintenance means calories in equals calories out. And if you eat more than you burn you put on weight. Some people do this intentionally in order to build muscle.

Ashes_To_Beast

I'm a female and work out for around 1.5 hours 4 times a week. I do around 50 mins cardio and the rest weights. (When I say weight i only do baby weights, e.g 7-8kg squatting.)

Should i be drinking protein shakes/eating protein bars? All the fitness instagrams I follow eat them, but I don't know what it's for. When I asked my boyfriend he just laughed and said it would make me muscly.

Why do people eat protein bars/shakes? Should i be too?

1st off they won't cause you to be muscly, unless your lifting then they could help you get there.
Most ppl who lift try to get a minimum of 1gram of proteine/ pound of bodyweight to help muscle recovery and hypertrophy.
It can be hard to hit that amount of proteine with 3 to 4 meals a day and thats when the shakes and bars come in handy, also alot of ppl beleive that taking a shake right after your work out helps feed the muscle(this is contraversial tho!!!).

So If you think you need more proteine in your diet go for it, it can be a great add on to a healthy diet(but check the ingredient labels). If you think your proteine is high enough or you can eat lean meat(chicken,tuna, etc) instead. Their is no need for them.

ZealousMissJJ

*Sigh* Why people keep saying protein shakes will make you muscly is beyond me. What does that even mean? It is true that protein helps build and or preserve muscle, as protein is the building stone for almost all our cells, including muscles.

I don't know what target MFP gave you for protein, but normally it's pretty low. Personally I aim at 80 grams per day and 120 grams for workout days. Protein shakes/bars will help get you there if you have trouble not getting enough out of your food.

:flowerforyou:

MityMax96

I'm a female and work out for around 1.5 hours 4 times a week. I do around 50 mins cardio and the rest weights. (When I say weight i only do baby weights, e.g 7-8kg squatting.)

Should i be drinking protein shakes/eating protein bars? All the fitness instagrams I follow eat them, but I don't know what it's for. When I asked my boyfriend he just laughed and said it would make me muscly.

Why do people eat protein bars/shakes? Should i be too?

I would say protein should be obtained primarily from foods vs. drinks.
Allows for satiety as well as good protein...
So chkn, beef, fish, eggs, milk, etc.....

Use protein bars or protein drinks as a supplement to a good diet.

MityMax96

Protein makes you no more "muscly" than does steroids....

You can take them, but until you get your @$$ in the gym and start throwing around iron.....you will not develop your muscles.

I can take steroids all day long.....but if all I do is sit on the couch.....I ain't gonna get "muscly"

parkscs

If only adding muscle was as easy as popping a protein shake...

MityMax96

If only adding muscle was as easy as popping a protein shake...

Yeah ain't that the truth....:laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

Of course if that were the case, I have wasted a ton of money

Honeycat89

I really wanna try those Quest bars, see them all over instagram and they make me HUNGRY!

MityMax96

I really wanna try those Quest bars, see them all over instagram and they make me HUNGRY!

They are good.

Get them and put on some wax paper, and pop in the microwave for about 13 - 15 seconds. YUM!!!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough is REALLY GOOD

jennadelane

Ahh ok, after looking at the app I seem to be hitting my daily protein goal so I guess I'm good thanks for the help!

You probably need more protein than MFP has suggested for you. MFP is notoriously low in their protein suggestion. Personally, I am for at least 100g of protein per day, and I'm a vegetarian. You really should be getting around 1g per pound of lean body mass (LBM). LBM is calculated by subtracting body fat weight from total body weight..

As for the quest bars, I've heard great reviews from hoards of people, however I've tried at least 6 different flavors and they were just ok to me. A little too dry and chewy in my opinion, but I did like the double chocolate chunk flavor. I do use protein powder every day though.

SugaryLynx

Protein makes you no more "muscly" than does steroids....

Please do elaborate. As protein and steroids are completely different. Was it for the sake of saying you have to work the muscles to get muscle? You also have to be in a surplus. Protein also is essential for the body...steroids not so much. Those are like comparing two completely didn't things and in the confusion probably made OP think steroids and protein are essentially the same.

parkscs

Protein makes you no more "muscly" than does steroids....

Please do elaborate. As protein and steroids are completely different. Was it for the sake of saying you have to work the muscles to get muscle? You also have to be in a surplus. Protein also is essential for the body...steroids not so much. Those are like comparing two completely didn't things and in the confusion probably made OP think steroids and protein are essentially the same.

Not sure how you missed his point. If you read the next few sentences:

You can take them, but until you get your @$$ in the gym and start throwing around iron.....you will not develop your muscles.

I can take steroids all day long.....but if all I do is sit on the couch.....I ain't gonna get "muscly"

He's simply saying that unless you put in the effort to train, simply taking steroids will not get you ripped or "muscly". The same goes for protein - if you just eat 400g of protein every day and sit on the couch all day, don't expect to get 19" arms packed with muscle. Just like protein by itself won't get you ripped, steroids, test, HGH, etc. by themselves will not give you a ripped physique. Basically, they can enhance the gains you make from your training, but they don't deliver gains simply by taking them. I don't see how you can fairly read "steroids and protein are essential the same" into those statements.

SugaryLynx

Protein makes you no more "muscly" than does steroids....

Please do elaborate. As protein and steroids are completely different. Was it for the sake of saying you have to work the muscles to get muscle? You also have to be in a surplus. Protein also is essential for the body...steroids not so much. Those are like comparing two completely didn't things and in the confusion probably made OP think steroids and protein are essentially the same.

Not sure how you missed his point. If you read the next few sentences:

You can take them, but until you get your @$$ in the gym and start throwing around iron.....you will not develop your muscles.

I can take steroids all day long.....but if all I do is sit on the couch.....I ain't gonna get "muscly"

He's simply saying that unless you put in the effort to train, simply taking steroids will not get you ripped or "muscly". The same goes for protein - if you just eat 400g of protein every day and sit on the couch all day, don't expect to get 19" arms packed with muscle. Just like protein by itself won't get you ripped, steroids, test, HGH, etc. by themselves will not give you a ripped physique. Basically, they can enhance the gains you make from your training, but they don't deliver gains simply by taking them. I don't see how you can fairly read "steroids and protein are essential the same" into those statements.

Right, except that protein you're still working with genetics, steroids take you beyond that so those two things really aren't comparable to me.
I get proper protein and it will help me retain muscle in a deficit, in a surplus I can gain but I'm at the mercy of genetics, proper training, and even then the gains for muscle are not significant. My point being is you have to TRY. Steroids take you well beyond that, that's where people get confused in thinking that a little bit of weightlifting and protein will make them crazy bulky. For women especially, it's tremendously difficult. Also, getting more protein than necessary is pointless.

My point is I think it would be adventitious for someone to be careful what they throw around in forums when trying to make a point as people take things out of context.

parkscs

While that's true... it's sort of irrelevant to the point he was making. The OP was concerned that eating a protein bar/shake would make her "muscly," which is nonsense. Getting ripped doesn't happen overnight or even in a year, and it certainly doesn't happen simply because you ate a protein bar or drank a shake. It takes proper training, a lot of work, a proper diet, and a significant amount of time. Simply eating protein will not get you ripped and that's all he was saying - just like simply taking steroids won't transform you into Ronnie Coleman. Even if you have the genetics to reach that level of physique, it's still going to take a ton of effort and time, as well as a proper diet, a proper training program, and so on.

Getting ripped is not as easy as popping a shake, and anyone that's tried to add a significant amount of muscle to their body can tell you as much. I don't think you can read anything more into his comments beyond that.

SugaryLynx

While that's true... it's sort of irrelevant to the point he was making. The OP was concerned that eating a protein bar/shake would make her "muscly," which is nonsense. Getting ripped doesn't happen overnight or even in a year, and it certainly doesn't happen simply because you ate a protein bar or drank a shake. It takes proper training, a lot of work, a proper diet, and a significant amount of time. Simply eating protein will not get you ripped and that's all he was saying - just like simply taking steroids won't transform you into Ronnie Coleman. Even if you have the genetics to reach that level of physique, it's still going to take a ton of effort and time, as well as a proper diet, a proper training program, and so on.

Getting ripped is not as easy as popping a shake, and anyone that's tried to add a significant amount of muscle to their body can tell you as much. I don't think you can read anything more into his comments beyond that.

Meh. Maybe it's my early morning reading comprehension gone wrong lol. I wish getting ripped was that easy :P

parkscs

It'd certainly be nice. :bigsmile: