Too much protein??

notredame2011

Hi all,

Ok so I have noticed that I tend to eat way over my protein 'goal' (as per the MFP wizard) but I still stay within my calorie limit. Is this okay?? I just don't like eating carbs at night because I have heard that this is the worst time to eat them and I try to stay away from pastas and too much bread because then my meal sizes have to be tiny to stay within the calorie intake..

I always thought it was okay to have a higher protein intake, rather than carbs or fat - am I right??

Gary1977

You are right. Nothing wrong with the extra protein.

omgitsgene

I've never read anything that says high protein intake is bad for you. It should be fine.

LushLoni

I'm the same as you, wondered about it but I think as long as you're within your overall calorie goal you should be okay.

InspoAdam

Yep, I agree totally. IMO if you are eating a balanced diet you can never eat too much protein. The main reason for this is most of the staple foods have considerably higher carb content than protein - If your protein is through the roof, the chances are your carbs will be as well. There are of course foods such as chicken which are very protein rich and you can eat lots of them but your body will tell you this is not particulaly good - you really won't need to come on here and ask )

Looking at my personal goals, my daily intake should be 225g carbs, 61g protein and 55g fat which represents a breakdown of 66/18/16. To me, that seems a little low on the protein side. I have always been under the impression that the breakdown for a balanced diet sould be more along the lines of 65/25/10 which would break out as 222g carbs, 85g protein and 34g fat. Looking at my last week, I am over on protein every day but well within the above protein figure.

One thing I do need to point out this was a personal thing based on empirical evidence I have picked up over a number of years and I am not a medical professional so it is probably wrong. )

Schwiggity

You can eat too much protein. You probably aren't though.

RoseyK

i think the protein levels given on the site are a little low. I know they are for me personally. I had gastric bypass in 2004, and had issues of too low a protein and iron level in my blood work. My doctors and personal trainer have me on a higher protein level, It took me 2 years to get my blood work back to the normal range....so in that area, I am sticking to my doctor's guidelines and will be concentrating more on total calories for the day.

Now on the other side....you can eat too much protein. Too much protein can be hard on your kidneys.

Pandorian

MFP defaults to 15% from protein, to get to my target I had to change my ratios so that protein was 30% to get the goal I wanted.... 0.5 grams per pound of body weight (150 grams of protein a day) and when I step up to strength-training again I'll boost that goal up to 1 gram per pound of body weight (300 grams per day would be the goal).

Too much of anything isn't great but I'm losing weight since I cut back on my total carbs in favour of more protein and I'm fuller longer so find myself snacking on JUNK way less.

InspoAdam

Interesting that too much protein can be hard on the kidneys. I always though that the excess passes through the body. So, apart from having problems at the other end (if you get my drift), excessive protein shouldn't be an issues. It good advice though and unlike my personal experience, it comes from a professional. However, one thing I would like to know is how much is too much?

Also, I am wondering what others think on the thought of the ability to eat too much protein? Personally, I think that if you stay away from protein enriched foods (e.g. protein shakes) and don't go out to eat just protein (i.e. live of chicken breasts and egg whites) that it is pretty much impossible when eating a balanced diet to blow the protein out of the water without doing the same for carbs and fat. In this scenario, the carbs and fat would cause far more problems than excessive protein.

Thought?

AshDHart

I adjusted the default ratios. I have my protein set to 25%. I think the default had been 10%. According to the Mayo Clinic a range of 10-35% is good. Gives ranges for other areas such as fat, carbohydrates, etc. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-diet/NU00200

RoseyK

got this from Web MD....a site that I trust.

Too Much Protein
So think twice when you consider sacrificing the carbohydrates for a protein-dominant diet, Butterfield says. Drastically cutting carbohydrates from your diet may force your body to fight back.

She says that's because a diet in which protein makes up more than 30% of your caloric intake causes a buildup of toxic ketones. So-called ketogenic diets can thrust your kidneys into overdrive in order to flush these ketones from your body. As your kidneys rid your body of these toxic ketones, you can lose a significant amount of water, which puts you at risk of dehydration, particularly if you exercise heavily.

That water loss often shows up on the scale as weight loss. But along with losing water, you lose muscle mass and bone calcium. The dehydration also strains your kidneys and puts stress on your heart.

And dehydration from a ketogenic diet can make you feel weak and dizzy, give you bad breath, or lead to other problems.

How Much Protein Do I Need?
The amount of protein you require depends on your weight and your daily caloric intake. Most Americans consume more than enough protein in their daily diets. A few specific groups of people are at risk for being protein-deficient, including elderly women and people with illnesses or eating disorders. A protein deficiency is defined as eating 50% to 75% of the recommended amount of daily protein, Butterfield explains.

Ideally, you should consume 0.36 grams of protein for every pound of body weight, according to recommended daily allowances (RDA) set by the Food and Nutrition Board. So if you weigh 170 pounds, you need about 61 grams of protein each day.

Protein should also make up approximately 15% of your total daily caloric intake, also according to the RDA. In a diet of 1,800 calories a day, for example, about 270 of those calories should come from protein.