Question for body builders

Dragongrl

I have read that your daily intake of protein should equal to .8 to 1 gram per pound (of the weight you are supposed to be.) Which is alot more than what MFP recomends for my daily intake. Is this true for people trying to lose weight or just for those of us who are trying to add muscle?

fastbelly

I've read that too but no matter what I do I can't reach those numbers ever. I'll reach about 0.5 of my weight in lbs at max and that's counting 1 protein bar or shake a day. To reach those numbers I'd have to up the protein shakes/bars to 4 or 5 a day which is something I don't want to do.

portexploit

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

Dragongrl

I've read that too but no matter what I do I can't reach those numbers ever. I'll reach about 0.5 of my weight in lbs at max and that's counting 1 protein bar or shake a day. To reach those numbers I'd have to up the protein shakes/bars to 4 or 5 a day which is something I don't want to do.

I know it sounds crazy, doesn't it? I think I would have to probably eat the 6 meals a day. At least two of those would be shakes. And the rest JUST chicken...

fastbelly

I've read that too but no matter what I do I can't reach those numbers ever. I'll reach about 0.5 of my weight in lbs at max and that's counting 1 protein bar or shake a day. To reach those numbers I'd have to up the protein shakes/bars to 4 or 5 a day which is something I don't want to do.

I know it sounds crazy, doesn't it? I think I would have to probably eat the 6 meals a day. At least two of those would be shakes. And the rest JUST chicken...

That's hardly a balanced diet either...

fastbelly

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

This makes a lot more sense to me!

Loko_Ino

Watch any youtube vid on the day of a BB life..they eat a TON of food to get to 1 gram per lb. At one point I could keep up but nowadays with more kids in my life no way I can afford it. You do have to eat a lot of egg whites, chicken, steak, and tons of shakes. Watch Pumping Iron..Arnie is constantly eating..one of the reasons he says he smoked pot..to get his appetite up.

Lyadeia

I have to laugh when people say they can't get that much protein. Even when I am not trying to cut carbs, I end up eating over 100 grams of protein per day...eggs at breakfast, chicken or fish at lunch, chicken or fish at dinner, protein shake post-workout, plenty of other sources like beans or dairy throughout the day as well...just a typical day for me. :big smile:

I think the "g per LBM" makes more sense as well. Cause my husband would have to eat a whole chicken at every meal if it was total weight...he's 6'5" tall and weighs around 230 or so.

Dragongrl

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

I think you miss understood me. I was indeed refering to LBM in this equation. Of coarse I don't think that a 250lb person with 40% bodyfat would require the same amount of protein as a muscley person! That would be silly. Let me rephrase... Let's say I calculated my protein intake to be 120g per day. That would be .8 X my LBM. Would this affect my weight LOSS if I were to eat this much protien?

vinne

Think about your goals, bodybuilders generally are not trying to lose weight they are trying to increase/maintain streagnth whilst reducing fat % or they are trying to add lean mass.

If you add lean mass you will burn more calories daily and you will need to consume more calories then you burn to add the muscle.

If you are worried about adding fat whilst doing this then you should reduce your carb intake when you increase your protein intake.

If your consuming less calories then you burn daily you will lose some fat and muscle but the higher protein intake will protect your muscles more.

Hope this helps.

fastbelly

I have to laugh when people say they can't get that much protein. Even when I am not trying to cut carbs, I end up eating over 100 grams of protein per day...eggs at breakfast, chicken or fish at lunch, chicken or fish at dinner, protein shake post-workout, plenty of other sources like beans or dairy throughout the day as well...just a typical day for me. :big smile:

I think the "g per LBM" makes more sense as well. Cause my husband would have to eat a whole chicken at every meal if it was total weight...he's 6'5" tall and weighs around 230 or so.

Really? I find it funny that you eat that many animal products in a day...

I guess we just have different lifestyles (and no I'm not a vegetarian or vegan)... that doesn't give you the right to sit on your high horse laughing at those of us that may have trouble hitting the protein goals.

Lyadeia

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

I think you miss understood me. I was indeed refering to LBM in this equation. Of coarse I don't think that a 250lb person with 40% bodyfat would require the same amount of protein as a muscley person! That would be silly. Let me rephrase... Let's say I calculated my protein intake to be 120g per day. That would be .8 X my LBM. Would this affect my weight LOSS if I were to eat this much protien?

No it wouldn't, as long as you are eating at a calorie deficit.

Remember that your body doesn't really care where the calories are coming from when it comes to weight loss. It cares only that you are consuming less calories than you expend.

The whole protein thing doesn't make much difference in weight loss. But it does help prevent muscle catabolism while you are eating in a deficit.

Lyadeia

I have to laugh when people say they can't get that much protein. Even when I am not trying to cut carbs, I end up eating over 100 grams of protein per day...eggs at breakfast, chicken or fish at lunch, chicken or fish at dinner, protein shake post-workout, plenty of other sources like beans or dairy throughout the day as well...just a typical day for me. :big smile:

I think the "g per LBM" makes more sense as well. Cause my husband would have to eat a whole chicken at every meal if it was total weight...he's 6'5" tall and weighs around 230 or so.

Really? I find it funny that you eat that many animal products in a day...

I guess we just have different lifestyles (and no I'm not a vegetarian or vegan)... that doesn't give you the right to sit on your high horse laughing at those of us that may have trouble hitting the protein goals.

Wow, high horse? You must have completely missed the point of what I said if that is what you are thinking. If you have something to say to me, do it in a message, not on the forum for the whole world to see. I wasn't tearing you down or anyone else. I am just noting that in my lifestyle, it's easy to get tons of protein. If you think I was being mean to you or anyone else, please gently remove the emotions from your shoulders before you snap at me.

Dragongrl

Think about your goals, bodybuilders generally are not trying to lose weight they are trying to increase/maintain streagnth whilst reducing fat % or they are trying to add lean mass.

If you add lean mass you will burn more calories daily and you will need to consume more calories then you burn to add the muscle.

If you are worried about adding fat whilst doing this then you should reduce your carb intake when you increase your protein intake.

If your consuming less calories then you burn daily you will lose some fat and muscle but the higher protein intake will protect your muscles more.

Hope this helps.

Thank you. You answered my question perfectly. You are awesome!!! :happy:

rock127

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

I think you miss understood me. I was indeed refering to LBM in this equation. Of coarse I don't think that a 250lb person with 40% bodyfat would require the same amount of protein as a muscley person! That would be silly. Let me rephrase... Let's say I calculated my protein intake to be 120g per day. That would be .8 X my LBM. Would this affect my weight LOSS if I were to eat this much protien?

BB's have different needs, an experienced BB can take much more protein than ideally recommended by the LBM calculations and still gain lean muscle mass.

High protein diet would be of no use if it adds up extra calories at the end of the day so in your case ideally you don't need that much protein but there are many factors responsible ie. metabolism/lifestyle/activities etc.

Dragongrl

It's definately going to be a challenge!!! Wish me luck on my BB goals y'all!

fastbelly

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

I think you miss understood me. I was indeed refering to LBM in this equation. Of coarse I don't think that a 250lb person with 40% bodyfat would require the same amount of protein as a muscley person! That would be silly. Let me rephrase... Let's say I calculated my protein intake to be 120g per day. That would be .8 X my LBM. Would this affect my weight LOSS if I were to eat this much protien?

No it wouldn't, as long as you are eating at a calorie deficit.

Remember that your body doesn't really care where the calories are coming from when it comes to weight loss. It cares only that you are consuming less calories than you expend.

The whole protein thing doesn't make much difference in weight loss. But it does help prevent muscle catabolism while you are eating in a deficit.

Funny because that's not what you said before... you said you "have to laugh" when people say they can't get enough protein... you totally disregarded the fact that there might be people out there with different choices or different requirements then those you make or have, that may have trouble achieving some targets be it protein or something else. That doesn't give you the right of laughing on them or their choices.

With regards to talking to you over a private message, I have nothing to hide so when you have to laugh in public why should I "snap" at you as you put it in private?

Lyadeia

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

I think you miss understood me. I was indeed refering to LBM in this equation. Of coarse I don't think that a 250lb person with 40% bodyfat would require the same amount of protein as a muscley person! That would be silly. Let me rephrase... Let's say I calculated my protein intake to be 120g per day. That would be .8 X my LBM. Would this affect my weight LOSS if I were to eat this much protien?

No it wouldn't, as long as you are eating at a calorie deficit.

Remember that your body doesn't really care where the calories are coming from when it comes to weight loss. It cares only that you are consuming less calories than you expend.

The whole protein thing doesn't make much difference in weight loss. But it does help prevent muscle catabolism while you are eating in a deficit.

Funny because that's not what you said before... you said you "have to laugh" when people say they can't get enough protein... you totally disregarded the fact that there might be people out there with different choices or different requirements then those you make or have, that may have trouble achieving some targets be it protein or something else. That doesn't give you the right of laughing on them or their choices.

With regards to talking to you over a private message, I have nothing to hide so when you have to laugh in public why should I "snap" at you as you put it in private?

As I said in the PM, I don't enjoy arguing and defending myself in a public forum. If you have something not so nice to say about me, I would prefer it kept private so that neither one of us get in trouble with the mods.

And again, as I said in the PM, you still missed the boat with what I was saying. If you can not see that I was speaking in jest, then this whole line of conversation in pointless. It's annoying that you are following me around poking at me to continue this conversation since you can't understand that what I originally said what not making fun, poking fun, or anything like to you or anyone else and you seem to think it was. Obviously your sense of humor is not like mine since you had to try to tear me down with your comments instead of at least asking for clarification.

Thank you, that is all.

Wilfred808

ive seen protein intake anywhere from 1 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of bw.

fat should be around .45 times bw. fill in the rest of your calories with carbs and additional protein and fat.

your weight gain should be about .5 to 1 pound a week so adjust your calories as neccesary

xraychick77

this is debatable.

more so than anything, i've seen a study that says its more important when you intake your protein, not how much. typically we should only be intaking around 60-80 grams of protein a day. your body can only process so much protein anyways, so any excess will just get exreted.

i think its safe to intake 1 gram per lb of body weight. but intake a good whey isolate shake right after your workout. its the prime time for protein synthesis.

Dragongrl

this is debatable.

more so than anything, i've seen a study that says its more important when you intake your protein, not how much. typically we should only be intaking around 60-80 grams of protein a day. your body can only process so much protein anyways, so any excess will just get exreted.

i think its safe to intake 1 gram per lb of body weight. but intake a good whey isolate shake right after your workout. its the prime time for protein synthesis.

I think I read somewhere that your body can only metabolize 30 grams per meal. Which explains why bb's eat like 6 times a day.

portexploit

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

I think you miss understood me. I was indeed refering to LBM in this equation. Of coarse I don't think that a 250lb person with 40% bodyfat would require the same amount of protein as a muscley person! That would be silly. Let me rephrase... Let's say I calculated my protein intake to be 120g per day. That would be .8 X my LBM. Would this affect my weight LOSS if I were to eat this much protien?

What you mean would it affect your weight loss?? In a positive or negative way...? I also have a question, "do you like being a dragon?"

dave4d

When I did body for life they recommended getting 40% of your calories from protein, 40% from carbs, and 20% from fat. Splitting your meals into 6 meals a day. Each meal you consume a serving of protein, and a serving of carbs, with at least 2 servings of vegetables. Most bodybuilding programs I've read about are fairly similar. They do recommend 1 gram per pound of bodyweight, but I believe some also specify that to be LBM. Even at a good caloric deficit, when I set my macros to the 40/40/20, I am consuming over 150 grams of protein a day.

I have read a few articles lately where some are varying from the 1 to 2 grams per pound of lean bodymass, down to the government recommendation of 1 gram per kilogram of bodyweight, which makes more sense to many people.

Even the articles I have read on bulking, they don't recommend upping your protein, but increasing your carbs to give you better fuel for your workouts.

dave4d

If you use any formula based on "total weight" it's highly inaccurate. You think a 250lbs bodybuilder who has 8% bodyfat, needs the same amount of protein as someone who is 250lbs with 40% bodyfat?

It should be .5-1.0grams per LBM(Lean Body Mass)

I think you miss understood me. I was indeed refering to LBM in this equation. Of coarse I don't think that a 250lb person with 40% bodyfat would require the same amount of protein as a muscley person! That would be silly. Let me rephrase... Let's say I calculated my protein intake to be 120g per day. That would be .8 X my LBM. Would this affect my weight LOSS if I were to eat this much protien?

Protein is supposed to be harder for your body to digest than most other foods, Meaning your body will actually burn more calories trying to digest your proteins than digesting carbs. As long as you maintain a caloric deficit you should lose weight, no matter what source you get your calories from. Protein will just help you maintain muscle mass, as you are trying to burn off fat. The only downsides to eating a lot of protein are, if you have issues with your kidneys, high protein diets can harm your kidneys, and People tend to develop hard stools from high protein. I understand this can be helped if you increase your fiber too.

portexploit

When I did body for life they recommended getting 40% of your calories from protein, 40% from carbs, and 20% from fat..

I never seen any specific ratios in BFL, i read through it a few times...

dave4d

When I did body for life they recommended getting 40% of your calories from protein, 40% from carbs, and 20% from fat..

I never seen any specific ratios in BFL, i read through it a few times...

I thought it was in the book, but I may have seen it on the website. It was a while ago that I read the book.