Protein!

clair3jane

Hello! I recently lost 5 kilos and I'm ALMOST in the middle of my healthy weight range. I want to lose 5 more and get to the bottom of my healthy weight range (50 kilos--I'm female and 5'1.5 so that's a BMI of 20.8).

I've come to terms with the fact that these last 5 kilos are going to take a long time to come off, so I'm focussing on making my good habits a lifestyle rather than just a flash in the pan. I want my diet to be high in protein and low in carbs because I live in korea and I eat a school lunch, so the carbs around me come in the form of white rice, which I don't even like. I figure if I have some brown rice for breakfast, that can be my carbs for the day and then for lunch I can just have meat and vegetables, same as for dinner.

When I put that kind of day into my food journal, it says I'm eating too much protein. How much stock should I put in that, considering I do some kind of exercise almost every day (running 5 days a week, and walking/eliptical on the 6th day, light walking on my day off). I also do weight training 3 times a week.

Another problem I'm suffering is loss of menstruation because I only recently realised I was eating far too little. I've picked up my game since then and am definitely eating more, but I'm conscious of making the right decisions and not just eating cereal or whatever to get my calorie count up. So do you think eating more protein will help with that?

What do you think? Thanks for reading.

LesliePierceRN

you're not getting too much protein. With the workout that you're doing, you'll need at least 80-100 grams of protein a day. They estimate way low on MFP.

johanna_lee

u should eat more times , little portions (carbs, proteín, sugars, etc ) but little portions remember!!!!

crystalinda

I don't pay any attention to the protein limit, MFP has it set entirely too low in my opinion. I am always over somedays by quite a bit. If you're trying to lose weight protein is key to helping build lean muscle and it also helps keep you full.

Its good that you're consuming more calories now if you were eating too little before. This might be one the reasons your weight loss has slowed down. Consuming too few calories can send your body into starvation mode, meaning that its likely storing much of the fat you are eating because it thinks it may not get any more later. When in starvation mode your body will tap into those reserves, keep in mind that sometimes it will go for the muscle reserves first because they are more readily available and easier to break down than fat. So be careful not to get to that point or you may be working against your goals.

Lyadeia

I actually change my protein goal manually because the limit on MFP is horribly low. I lift very heavy weights and do intense cardio like HIIT and need my protein so I don't catabolize my muscles. I also calorie and carb cycle...but even on my "high carb/low protein" days I am still taking in 30% of my calories from protein which is still more than what MFP tells me to.

A lot of women have heard that they shouldn't eat a lot of protein. I honestly would like to beat down the guy that started that rumor...and I bet it's the same doofus that said that women will bulk up lifting heavy weights.

clair3jane

Great, thanks for the replies everyone!

cobretti

1-1.5 grams of protien per pound of LEAN body mass per day. You are running 5 days a week you need it. I also agree that the MFP suggested nutrient intake is wacked.