Too much protein? Fiber??

Teach381

Every day, I've gone over my protein and fiber goals. Do you suppose that's a bad thing??

I just can't figure it out...I have some type of lean meat in my lunches and dinners, and occasionally, a light string cheese as a snack, but I can't figure out what I can cut!

Suggestions?

Teach381

Every day, I've gone over my protein and fiber goals. Do you suppose that's a bad thing??

I just can't figure it out...I have some type of lean meat in my lunches and dinners, and occasionally, a light string cheese as a snack, but I can't figure out what I can cut!

Suggestions?

LeeAnn11

Ohhh I would love to know the answer to this question since I have the same problem. My protein is wayyyy over, by about 25 due to the protein shakes I've been having for breakfast and lunch. Does this extra protein turn into fat??

gsschulte

fiber is not a bad thing to go over. It makes you feel full for longer and your body just passes it through. the protein is not that bad. i am male so the levels the MFP has for me are way to low but being over won't hurt if you are lifting and building muscle. if you are just doing cardio it will help you feel full so not to bad but if you are losing i would not worry about it to much.
.

Dave198lbs

in my opinion-
the protein and fiber targets are low

on protein, if doing weights... protein helps...you can of course eat too much but if you weigh 200...100 g of protein is not going to hurt..

I am always over on protein

google protein requirements for a slew of info

Phoenixflame

I'm pretty sure the MFP protein levels are on the low side. So no worries!

Fiber is great, but don't go CRAZILY over, because I've heard it can start leeching iron. But that'd be a lot of fiber.

LeeAnn11

I'm not lifting weights or trying to bulk up, just trying to lose 15 pounds of baby fat! So is the high protein levels OK or should I cut out one of the protein shakes?

Poison5119

I'm not lifting weights or trying to bulk up, just trying to lose 15 pounds of baby fat! So is the high protein levels OK or should I cut out one of the protein shakes?

The general rule of thumb for adequate protein is divide your weight by two, and the number is how many grams (roughtly) you're supposed to have.

I'm not sure what the difference is between lifting weights and strength training, but I know that strength training helps you lose weight, because the repair process that happens post-workout actually burns calories long after you've stopped.

Ultimately, even if you're only doing cardio, you need extra protein.

kendallalissa

I, too, go over on both. I don't worry about either of them being over...much like others on here have said. I weight train and work out a LOT, so this is not a problem as far as I'm concerned. Over the past two weeks, however, I've been extra gassy and I think the higher fiber is to blame. That's the only bad thing. Sorry if this is TMI. :laugh:


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JayEllAre

What about too little? I never get enough protein or fiber... is that a bad thing?

dothompson

I tend to think of the protein and fiber numbers in MFP as minimums.

Teach381

Thanks everyone:) That makes me feel better. I just changed it so the fiber and protein aren't shown in my log:laugh: Whatever works, right?!

dothompson

Thanks everyone:) That makes me feel better. I just changed it so the fiber and protein aren't shown in my log:laugh: Whatever works, right?!

They're very important, they both work in concert to make you feel full. Since you're always over I don't think it's an issue that you took them off, but I would monitor them from time to time to make sure you're at or slightly above the goal numbers.

Fitness_Chick

I'm not lifting weights or trying to bulk up, just trying to lose 15 pounds of baby fat! So is the high protein levels OK or should I cut out one of the protein shakes?

The general rule of thumb for adequate protein is divide your weight by two, and the number is how many grams (roughtly) you're supposed to have.

I'm not sure what the difference is between lifting weights and strength training, but I know that strength training helps you lose weight, because the repair process that happens post-workout actually burns calories long after you've stopped.

Ultimately, even if you're only doing cardio, you need extra protein.

Mmm thanks Russia for that info.. I tend to have a tough time not keeping under my Protein but carbs ..well that's awhole nother issue...I am not able to keep them up high enough:noway: . But with Protein I get over quickly, I don't eat tons of meat or anything but do eat protein by means of Cashew Nut Butter toast, tuna, cottage cheese, cheese, nuts, things like that so it adds up quickly. Of course when you add protein the fats go higher.

Yes I defintely think I need to make changes for it to be more balanced...but I'm still not exactly sure how to do the ratio done properly even after seeing so many posts here on it:sad: . I do appreciate you sharing your knowledge on the protein thought Russia.:flowerforyou:

But now how do I figure how my fats and carbs, anyone?? HELP?

Thanks!:flowerforyou:

FC

SteffCooley

Like everyone else said, protein and fiber are not a bad thing. Now, fat and carbs you need to not go overboard on - but protein and fiber are A-OK!

songbyrdsweet

I'm not lifting weights or trying to bulk up, just trying to lose 15 pounds of baby fat! So is the high protein levels OK or should I cut out one of the protein shakes?

The general rule of thumb for adequate protein is divide your weight by two, and the number is how many grams (roughtly) you're supposed to have.

I'm not sure what the difference is between lifting weights and strength training, but I know that strength training helps you lose weight, because the repair process that happens post-workout actually burns calories long after you've stopped.

Ultimately, even if you're only doing cardio, you need extra protein.

Mmm thanks Russia for that info.. I tend to have a tough time not keeping under my Protein but carbs ..well that's awhole nother issue...I am not able to keep them up high enough:noway: . But with Protein I get over quickly, I don't eat tons of meat or anything but do eat protein by means of Cashew Nut Butter toast, tuna, cottage cheese, cheese, nuts, things like that so it adds up quickly. Of course when you add protein the fats go higher.

Yes I defintely think I need to make changes for it to be more balanced...but I'm still not exactly sure how to do the ratio done properly even after seeing so many posts here on it:sad: . I do appreciate you sharing your knowledge on the protein thought Russia.:flowerforyou:

But now how do I figure how my fats and carbs, anyone?? HELP?

Thanks!:flowerforyou:

FC

The RDA's for protein, carbs, and fat actually fall in a big range:

45-65% of daily calories from carbs
10-35% of daily calories from protein
20-35% of daily calories from fat

However, we can't just use percentages because we have to take the total calories consumed into consideration, as well as protein needs based on activity. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends 1.2-1.7 grams of protein per kg of bodyweight. Divide your body weight by 2.2 to convert it to kg, and then multiply that by the grams. 1.2 g would be sufficient for a small female who is at the lower end of active, while 1.7 would be suitable for a male who is very active.

Once you have determined how many grams of protein you need, you can shape the rest of your calories around that amount. If you perform a lot of high-intensity exercise, you'll want more carbohydrates. If you perform a lot of lower-intensity exercise, you'll want little less carbohydrates, and you can replace those with fats.

The purpose of protein is muscle repair. It's important to eat enough fat and carbohydrates to spare the protein for its original purpose rather than force your body to use it for energy.

Fitness_Chick

bumpin for a reread on SBS's a bit later:drinker:

dothompson

[/quote]

The RDA's for protein, carbs, and fat actually fall in a big range:

45-65% of daily calories from carbs
10-35% of daily calories from protein
20-35% of daily calories from fat

However, we can't just use percentages because we have to take the total calories consumed into consideration, as well as protein needs based on activity. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends 1.2-1.7 grams of protein per kg of bodyweight. Divide your body weight by 2.2 to convert it to kg, and then multiply that by the grams. 1.2 g would be sufficient for a small female who is at the lower end of active, while 1.7 would be suitable for a male who is very active.

Once you have determined how many grams of protein you need, you can shape the rest of your calories around that amount. If you perform a lot of high-intensity exercise, you'll want more carbohydrates. If you perform a lot of lower-intensity exercise, you'll want little less carbohydrates, and you can replace those with fats.

The purpose of protein is muscle repair. It's important to eat enough fat and carbohydrates to spare the protein for its original purpose rather than force your body to use it for energy.
[/quote]

This is exactly what MFP figures out for you. It's goals are 15% of your calories from Protein and 30 percent from Fat. If your daily goal is 1200 calories. Then 15% from protein would be 180 calories. Since a gram of protein has 4 calories then you'd need 45 gms of protein. For fat of 30% you'd need 360 calories. A gram of Fat has 9 calories, so it'd be 40 gms of Fat.

The thing to keep in mind is that when discussing nutrional values, the number regarding fat is a maximum, while the protein number is a minimum for optimal health. If you go over a bit it's fine.