Protein-- How much?

hungrover

Hi FitnessPals,

I'm pretty good about staying consistently under my calories (1250), but I am stuck not losing past my initial 5 pounds! I am wondering if I am eating too much protein or carbohydrates, and that is keeping the weight on. Additionally, I do Jillian Michaels Shred at least 5 times a week, and I try to throw in a 30 minute walk a few times a week as well.

Here's what a typical day looks like:

Breakfast: Smoothie with Light and Fit nonfat yogurt, soy milk, and frozen fruit (~280 calories)
Lunch: Sandwich with tuna, grilled chicken or lunchmeat. No cheese, portion-controlled light mayo or bbq sauce with lettuce or sprouts. On the side I'll have a handful of pretzels or carrot and hummus. (Today, I have chicken, avocado, and sprouts on whole grain fiber bread with bbq sauce, saltless mini pretzels and yellow mustard-- all proper portions).
Dinner: Chicken and veggies or rice or whole wheat pasta or sandwich (I eat a lot of chicken, haha).

I probably eat out about 3 times a week, usually salads from Giant or Whole Foods, and I occasionally splurge on a burger at Five Guys with no cheese.

My goal says 50g of protein per day, and I usually seem to go over, but stay at my goal for calories. Does anybody have any suggestions as to why I seem stuck? Is it too much protein? Something else (maybe salt)?

I appreciate any help or advice! I want to break the 10 pound total loss by mid-December.

Editing to add stats:
5'10" F, 24 years old
SW: 191
CW: 186.6
GW: 160

shovav91

It's all about calorie deficit- being over on protein isn't going to stall weight gain; your body gets rid of what it doesn't need.
Are you working out? If so, you could need to up your calories. The biggest reason I've seen people's progress stall is because they're more active than they think, and underestimate their caloric needs. Being too low on calories makes your body hesitant to lose weight because it doesn't know if it's going to be getting enough nourishment. Try upping your calories to 1,400 or so for a couple weeks, and see how it goes!

vim_n_vigor

I am 5'4'' and eating 1450 calories before eating any exercise calories. You probably need more.

dmpizza

My excellent doctor said that we don't need more animal protein than a "pack of cards".

MinnesotaManimal

My excellent doctor said that we don't need more animal protein than a "pack of cards".

that is a decent way to estimate about 3 ounces of meat...... if you took that advice for every meal you would be getting closer, but if that was all the protein you consumed in a single day, I would not expect it to be enough.