High protein, low calorie, low cost food

stphnstevey

I am trying to build muscle and get rid of my beer belly-I'm looking for the classic abs and pecs. I'm weight training and doing cardio at least every other day. I'm progressively increasing my weights to increase muscle size and doing cardio to burn off fat. I've read that everyone has abs and the best way for them to show is to burn off the fat.

I have also read that diet is key - Protein, Protein, Protein! - about 1g protein/Lb weight/day. For me my target is 150g/day.

I also want to lose fat. I've researched that you need around 2500 calories/day to maintain weight so I am aiming for about 1500/day.

So I'm trying to maintain 150g protein/day and still stay under 1500 calories - but also on a budget, so looking for the cheapest ways of maintaining this!

I shyed away from Protein Powders due to the cost. I started using powdered skimmed milk, but these were 300 calories each drink. I realised that buying Whey protein in bulk is

1) about the same price (£33 for 5kg, 82% protein)
2) half the calories skimmed milk

But I can't just drink shakes, so I am looking for staple foods that fit the criteria to fill the rest of the day. I work from home, so some preparation and cooking is not a problem.

So far I have got the following list (least cost to most). I tend to shop in Tesco's, so excuse my reference to Tesco's Value Brand (TVB):

Liver
Chicken - Whole and portions (TVB)
Pork chops (TVB)
Pork Steaks
Diced pork casserole meat (TVB)
Eggs (Tesco Value Brand)
Tinned minced beef and onions (TVB)
Tinned Steak
Tuna Flakes (TVB)
Tinned sardines
Pork Loin Joint
Cottage Cheese (TVB)
Fish fillets (TVB)
Gammon Joint (TVB)
Diced Turkey Thigh (TVB)
Beef stewing/frying steak (TVB)
Chicken Joint
Chicken breasts (TVB)
Diced chicken


As you can see, just about all of this is MEAT!! I do add veg to it to bulk it out and stay healthy. I also like my fruit.

If anyone has any other Low Cost, High Protein, Low Calories food, please please let me know-I'm open to any ideas!

So far I've just been frying the meat with vegatables or grilling as appropriate. It goes together, but sure there must be sauces or seasonings I could easily do to make it more appetising?

Also, any bodybuilders that want to help, particularly on how they maintain their diets, would be more than appreciated.

Any ideas on anything else I could be doing to build my Abs and Pecs also appreciated

Cheers!

bbbgamer

checking in later...

MissFit0101

Greek yogurt is a snack that you can eat to add protein
Lentils or Beans are a good side to your meats to give you added protein ...
ETA: edamame is another good snack for added protein to your day

just a couple of ideas.. I get most of my protein from meat and eggs just like you do and I eat about 110-125grams a day (I supplement with protein shake when I don't get enough from food)

Toddrific

I was going to say greek yogurt, but that stuff is expeeeensive.

Beans

MissFit0101

I was going to say greek yogurt, but that stuff is expeeeensive.

Beans

I buy the Trader Joe's brand of plain greek yogurt and get a great deal on it.. like 1.99 for 4 servings for me.

nk17

Dannon Light & Fit Yogurt. Regular kind is 80 cal. Diabetic Friendly kind is 50.
Baby Bel Light Cheese. 50 cal.
Reduced or no fat cottage cheese.
Philadelphia Cream Cheese has a light variety.
Peanut Wonder. Kind of like peanut butter only a bit healthier. Runnier, though.

Don't know the costs as I don't do the shopping. Maybe some of these will work.

marci423

I know you said you can't drink the shakes. I don't like them either so I just make them and drink them really fast :bigsmile: my daughter asked me "can you even taste that?" I said, no, not really :laugh: the point is getting it down, not tasting for me )

good luck..I just started the higher protein count about a month ago myself!

solarpower03

I am trying to build muscle and get rid of my beer belly-I'm looking for the classic abs and pecs. I'm weight training and doing cardio at least every other day. I'm progressively increasing my weights to increase muscle size and doing cardio to burn off fat. I've read that everyone has abs and the best way for them to show is to burn off the fat.

I have also read that diet is key - Protein, Protein, Protein! - about 1g protein/Lb weight/day. For me my target is 150g/day.

I also want to lose fat. I've researched that you need around 2500 calories/day to maintain weight so I am aiming for about 1500/day.

So I'm trying to maintain 150g protein/day and still stay under 1500 calories - but also on a budget, so looking for the cheapest ways of maintaining this!

I shyed away from Protein Powders due to the cost. I started using powdered skimmed milk, but these were 300 calories each drink. I realised that buying Whey protein in bulk is

1) about the same price (£33 for 5kg, 82% protein)
2) half the calories skimmed milk

But I can't just drink shakes, so I am looking for staple foods that fit the criteria to fill the rest of the day. I work from home, so some preparation and cooking is not a problem.

So far I have got the following list (least cost to most). I tend to shop in Tesco's, so excuse my reference to Tesco's Value Brand (TVB):

Liver
Chicken - Whole and portions (TVB)
Pork chops (TVB)
Pork Steaks
Diced pork casserole meat (TVB)
Eggs (Tesco Value Brand)
Tinned minced beef and onions (TVB)
Tinned Steak
Tuna Flakes (TVB)
Tinned sardines
Pork Loin Joint
Cottage Cheese (TVB)
Fish fillets (TVB)
Gammon Joint (TVB)
Diced Turkey Thigh (TVB)
Beef stewing/frying steak (TVB)
Chicken Joint
Chicken breasts (TVB)
Diced chicken


As you can see, just about all of this is MEAT!! I do add veg to it to bulk it out and stay healthy. I also like my fruit.

If anyone has any other Low Cost, High Protein, Low Calories food, please please let me know-I'm open to any ideas!

So far I've just been frying the meat with vegatables or grilling as appropriate. It goes together, but sure there must be sauces or seasonings I could easily do to make it more appetising?

Also, any bodybuilders that want to help, particularly on how they maintain their diets, would be more than appreciated.

Any ideas on anything else I could be doing to build my Abs and Pecs also appreciated

Cheers!

Add why protein. My protein does them cheap and chirpy. Add whey to yoghurt, oat etc to increase the protein content. Use George Foreman grill to cook meat!

uberrach

Great list so far. If you're open to tinned sardines, you may also try kippered (smoked/split) herring. It's similar in nature and also inexpensive. Definitely greek yogurt --- you can buy larger sized containers and save some cash while adding far more protein than regular yogurt.

Seafood can be inexpensive if you buy it on sale or at the right places. Scallops are a great source of protein and you can get a bag of them frozen from Aldi for $5-$8 (two or three servings).

thistimeismytime

Dude, you've about covered it!! That's a TON of good protein sources. I would also encourage you to really look at the price per serving of protein shakes. My hubby is a 260 lb competitive bodybuilder, and he uses Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard whey. On Amazon.com it's $52.95 with no tax and free shipping for a 5 lb tub. It has 74 servings, or 37 servings if you use 2 scoops. That comes to 72 cents for 24 gm of protein, or $1.44 for a whopping 48 grams of protein with almost no fat. There are tons of other, even cheaper brands of protein powders out there too, if you shop around. Otherwise, canned tuna in water and egg whites are about as cheap as you can get. Think of it as an investment in your body and your health. I eat 125-150 gm of protein daily and I couldn't do it without a couple of shakes. Good luck to you and enjoy the journey!!

grassette

Beans and corn make a complete protein. Refried beans with corn tortillas are a perfect protein combination.

Toddrific

I want cheap greek yogurt =( Cheapest I can find is like 4 bucks for 2 servings. MEH!

You can get ultra cheap whey protein, tastes like doo, and may not be the healthiest of choices.

Awkward30

You can make your own Greek yogurt pretty cheaply, google it, there are a ton of videos and basically the only requirement is milk and that you buy one serving of store bought yogurt (any kind with live cultures)

losingitlittlebylittle

To make any yogurt thicker (like Greek yogurt) you can strain it. Line a wire mesh strainer with some cheesecloth, dump the yogurt in and set it over a bowl in the fridge overnight. Gets rid of a lot of the water.

Brandon74

Eggs are a cheap source of protein, and you can always remove the yolk from it and eat egg whites which has less calories and fat.

Lentils are also filled with protein and cheap to purchase.

itgeekwoman

bison steak or burgers is lean, very rich in protein and wonderful tasting. Ezekial Bread is 80 calories a slice, but has protein and is very healthy for you. You could also try swapping out oatmeal for cream of brown rice cereal or chia goodness cereal with almond milk rather than regular or soy milk.
good luck .. oh make sure you get your salmon, trout and other white fish into the menu so that you can keep your omegas up without supplements.

skywa

at costco they sell Fage non-fat greek yogurt. 5+ servings for like 5 dollars.

itgeekwoman

Eggs are a cheap source of protein, and you can always remove the yolk from it and eat egg whites which has less calories and fat.

Lentils are also filled with protein and cheap to purchase.

If you are wanting eggs, it's better to have at least one yolk and then supplement whites for bulk, but the fats in the yolks and the whites compliment each other. One without the other (based on studies that I've read) show that it doesn't help lower cholesterol, although it might be lower in fat.

melissajones9

I am looking for a high protein low carb low fat low calorie diet. I have gone through gastric bypass surgery in May of this year and I'm still struggling to find the right foods to eat. Right now everything that I have tried has either come up or gave me loose bowels.:sad: So, if anyone has any suggestions for me, please let me know.

m00tmike

Bump

mom24uk

This is useful. I'm just looking at how to increase my protein intake on a budget - thanks :flowerforyou: