O-Ding on Protein

ttjones215

This is my second day and I have already gone way over my protein limit. Did the same thing yesterday. Could this have an adverse affect eating too much protein? How can I make sure I eat the right number?

thedreamhazer

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/340455-too-much-protein?hl=too+much+protein&page=1#posts-4581881

Check out this (long) thread. The advice varies...some good, some bad. I bet you can sort it out, though!

It is generally taken that the MFP protein number is minimum, not a maximum.

Acg67

i'm pretty sure you aren't over consuming protein in the amount for it to have any negative effects on body function. shoot for a minimum of 1g of pro per lb of lean body mass. Notice i said minimum as there is no arbitrary ceiling in which you shouldn't go over

jayliospecky

I'm not sure the effect, but I am often over the recommended protein as well. I would be interested if anyone else knows more.

TripleJ3

I've always heard/read that you should eat the amount of protein for the weight you want to be. So if I want to weigh 150 pounds, I consume 150g give or take.

olo567

Not a huge issue. There is such thing as too much protein of course, but you won't hit it on a caloric deficit anyway. MFP's default ratios are very conservative and you can tweak them as you like to increase %protein.

kstep88

Yes, you can. You wont die or anything....but, I did have trouble... had horrible back pain for 3 days along with a lot of trouble having a BM. Called my doctor and she said lower the dose. I was doing 110 grams. Everyone is different though. I drank 12 cups of water and did everything I was supposed to. My body does best at 80 grams. But it also depends on how active you are.

AdAstra47

It is generally taken that the MFP protein number is minimum, not a maximum.

Yes. This. Try to keep your carbs and fat in the green, but your protein *should* be in the red.

In your body, the chemical reaction that burns fatty acids also requires amino acids, which are obtained from protein. If you don't eat enough protein, your body will get it from your muscles instead and you will lose muscle mass. So it's important to eat plenty of protein!

As for overdosing, unless you have some preexisting kidney or liver disease, you really can't. My doctor has me on 350g protein a day (on a 2000 calorie diet, so that's about 65% of my calories from protein). I know people who have eaten high-protein diets for decades, to combat epilepsy or diabetes, and they are perfectly fine. So I wouldn't worry about it too much.