Question about being over in protein!

LMStark

Hello Everyone,

I am frequently over in protein and fiber. I always under in calories, fat, carbs, etc. I try to eat a balanced diet. What is the possible consequence to being over in these catagories? I appreciate your help.

Thanks,
Lisa

dorisholaway

From what I have read in some of the others posts, it is okay to be over in protein and also fibre. It is the calories, sugars, carbs and sodium that is bad to be over in. I think I have read that protein and fibre just help to keep you full longer.

whitejessamine

Those would be the categories you want to be over in. Think about it. Your total calories are 100% of what you eat. If you eat less fat and fewer carbs percentage-wise, the total percentage still has to be 100% of what you've eaten, so protein will make up the difference. Again, fiber is something it's okay to go over on. Fiber does not have the glycemic impact that sugar and starch do, plus it's super good for you, fighting constipation and colon cancer, which means good things without negative consequences. You're doing exactly what you should be! Good job!

marie_2454

IMO fiber and protein are set too low to begin with, but both of these are perfectly fine to go over in. I changed my goals to 35g fiber, and somewhere around 95g protein. That high of protein isn't necessary, but I personally feel better and can control my cravings more if I eat more protein. Don't worry about going over in these :bigsmile:

LMStark

Thanks guys! I went ahead and changed my settings to fit my lifestyle a little better. I agree they automatically set those catagories too low. It is easy for me to eat protein and fiber, because they keep me full and I often favor those items to begin with.

shassen

I eat 1 gram of protein per pound every day, but thats just me. I do a lot of heavy lifting and cardio, so I want to preserve all of that muscle .. Going over in protein is not a bad thing at all, so don't worry about that. I agree with marie_2454, the recommendation is way to low to begin with.

stevwil41

Good question! I've been basically ignoring the protein column because I'm always over and it seems like protein is added to any sort of health/dietish food there is. I don't drink it but protein water? Seriously?! I have some protein with each meal and one snack but it's not like I'm gnawing on a leg of lamb for every meal.

megan6709

I think they actually set them based on your goal weight. You are supposed to get 0.5-1 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day. If your goal weight is 160 lbs, you would need 80-160 grams (which is a huge range!) of protein each day. The protein goal I have is slightly higher than 0.5 grams per pound per day. That said, it is true that protein is better than carbs or sugars, because it has more nutritional value --
Remember:
protein = 9 kcal/gram
fat = 4 kcal/gram
CHO = ~4 kcal/gram (3.4 if you want to be nitpicky)

This is all off the top of my head, so the numbers might be slightly off, but the idea stays...

tigersword

People keep saying pound... The actual formula for calculating protein is 0.8 grams per KILOGRAM of body weight for a normal diet.

And your numbers are backwards, fat is 9 kcal/gram, and protein is 4 kcal/gram.

LMStark

Thanks for all of the advice. I will definitely use it!

megan6709

I knew that didn't look right. Makes more sense that way, LOL

~Megan