Trouble getting minimum protein

raingirl32

I've always done the high protein/low carb thing for weight loss and it works for me. I've lost 30lbs that way (I had surgery though recently and gained some weight back during recovery which I'm trying to lose again).

Based on calculations, I need about 65gms or protein minimum a day but I feel like I can never hit that amount even with a high protein diet. I usually hit my calorie goal before I've got enough protein. Can I get 65 gms or protein in for about 1400cal/day and still have some other foods, because I can't get the math to work.

I can't eat soy (the plant estrogens in soy cause me issues) so that's out. No fish or seafood due to allergies. And legumes I will eat sometimes, such as black beans in taco meat, but maybe at most once a week. Right now this is where I get my protein:

-whey protein powder (sweetened with stevia)
-chicken breast
-lean ground beef
-full fat dairy (greek yogurt and lots of cheese and milk, I'm a dairy addict)
-seeds and nuts
-beans/legumes rarely as I don't like the pasty texture, makes me gag.

Am I missing any other high protein foods? Any secrets I'm missing? Protein shake/yogurt for breakfast, cheese or nuts/seeds for snacks, chicken breast for lunch with salad, tacos or some other beef meal for dinner. It's basically the same every day and I don't hit the 65 gms of protein before I hit my calorie goal.

Ignore my diary, I'm only just back on the wagon and getting back into the swing of things after having surgery two months ago.

SideSteel

I've always done the high protein/low carb thing for weight loss and it works for me. I've lost 30lbs that way (I had surgery though recently and gained some weight back during recovery which I'm trying to lose again).

Based on calculations, I need about 65gms or protein minimum a day but I feel like I can never hit that amount even with a high protein diet. I usually hit my calorie goal before I've got enough protein. Can I get 65 gms or protein in for about 1400cal/day and still have some other foods, because I can't get the math to work.

I can't eat soy (the plant estrogens in soy cause me issues) so that's out. No fish or seafood due to allergies. And legumes I will eat sometimes, such as black beans in taco meat, but maybe at most once a week. Right now this is where I get my protein:

-whey protein powder (sweetened with stevia)
-chicken breast
-lean ground beef
-full fat dairy (greek yogurt and lots of cheese and milk, I'm a dairy addict)
-seeds and nuts
-beans/legumes rarely as I don't like the pasty texture, makes me gag.

Am I missing any other high protein foods? Any secrets I'm missing? Protein shake/yogurt for breakfast, cheese or nuts/seeds for snacks, chicken breast for lunch with salad, tacos or some other beef meal for dinner. It's basically the same every day and I don't hit the 65 gms of protein before I hit my calorie goal.

Ignore my diary, I'm only just back on the wagon and getting back into the swing of things after having surgery two months ago.

I don't mean this to be rude, I just don't understand.

8oz chicken breast: ~42ish grams protein?
1 scoop of whey, most brands: 120kcal, 24g protein.

that's about 400kcal and 66g pro.

I'm not sure I get why this is a problem and once again I do not say that with any sort of tone.



EDIT: Take 1 serving of greek yogurt and stir in 1 scoop of whey and that will get you over 40g protein in 1 shot and if you stir in some frozen berries or something of the like you'll have a nice dessert like treat too.

thedreamhazer

I'm with SideSteel, I'm not sure how you can't be getting the minimum protein with the food list you gave. Those are all great sources of protein -- you should be fine. It'd be helpful if your diary was open, then we could see what's happening and offer better advice.

Sarauk2sf

Confused me also. I can easily hit 120g by about 1,500 calories and I am a vegetarian. You can also try seitan. Seeds and nuts are pretty high in fats so do not give you much protein for the calories.

Espressocycle

Ainar

No offence but it seems to me that you have no idea how much protein there actually is in foods. Otherwise it does not makes sense. You could easily hit over 150 grams of protein a day by eating foods you are eating while fitting in your calories. It just doesn't make sense...

wolfchild59

I'm on board with the confused folks. I eat the same stuff you have listed, though, not the protein powder, and am regularly around 100-140 grams of protein depending on the total calorie consumption for the day.

onyxgirl17

I don't see how you can't make more than 65 g of protein unless you eat very little of those things.

Four_Leaf_Clover

To answer your question - I pretty regularly am close to 100 grams a day (at least 70) and my calories are just a little higher (1400). The more protein I eat, the less I want sugar or other "bad" carbs. (My diary has also been a little scary lately, but you are welcome to look - it's public)

Eggs (one egg + 2 whites)
Greek Yogurt
Chicken, extra lean ground turkey
Whey protein
Think Thin bars (whey protein based) - 20 grams for about 250 calories , very filling
My daily skim latte
High protein pasta
My personal favorite - a little bacon

Tilran

I think she ment 655g of protein...she is a professional body builder.

msshiraz

No offence but it seems to me that you have no idea how much protein there actually is in foods. Otherwise it does not makes sense. You could easily hit over 150 grams of protein a day by eating foods you are eating while fitting in your calories. It just doesn't make sense...

Yes agreed (no offense either) but might want to really utilize your food entry to see the grams of protein. And go with options in your search that have multiple confirmations of calories/nutrition facts)

One thing you didn't list, and maybe because you don't know, many vegetables have an abundance of protein! Broccoli, Spinach (full leaf- not baby is best), Kale- excellent source of protein.
Make an omlette- add in fresh veggies- not only will you get a ton of protein, you'll get additional digestive help from these veggies. A low carb diet without adding in your fiber (since you also said you don't like beans) can really wreak havok on your digestive

raingirl32

I only eat 2-3 oz of meat at a time? I don't think I could eat 8 oz of meat at once as it wouldn't fit in my stomach! I have acid reflux bad so I only eat a palm sized meal, including veg, at a time.

I alternate whey and yogurt, never thought of putting them together (hmm...chocolate greek yogurt?) I only do 1/2 scoop of whey as it's too strong I find for a full scoop. Most meals when I calculate it, they are coming up about 10-15 gms per meal, avg 12 gms per meal? Some days I don't have meat at lunch too as it's expensive and I'm trying to spread out costs of food so I snack on veggies and cheese/seeds mostly.

This is my usual breakdown of cals and gms protein:

300 cal breakfast - 12 gms
100 cal snack - 3 gms
350 cal lunch -12 gms
100 cal snack - 3 gms
450 cal dinner - 12 gms

Which leaves a 150 cal wiggle room to snack if I'm hungry.

I think my diary is open (it used to be), but there's nothing in it as I've been tracking it on paper for the last bit. I only switched over to MFP after I lost 30lbs the first time using LoseIt, so my previous weight loss isn't documented here. I'm new back into MFP and will be starting to log foods shortly. I'll see if I can enter my food the last few days and you can take a look.

SideSteel

how about just mix some whey with water and drink it? Can you drink a scoop of whey?

raingirl32

Oh yeah, eggs are on the gag list as well. I can have maybe one in a week, but the texture grosses me out like beans/legumes.

Sarauk2sf

Example to up breakfast:


6oz greek yoghurt
Some berries
1/2 scoop whey

Total: about 250 cals with about 28g protein

Example for a snack:

Egg: 70 cals with about 6g protein.



Sorry - just saw the comment re eggs

There are a couple of things you can also try out to up your protein - try out nutritional yeast and hemp seeds. Also, have you tried Quorn (not soy). It has 9g of protein for 170 calories - not fantastic but quite good and maybe you can handle that better than meat.

thedreamhazer

Even if you're only eating 2-3 oz of meat at a time, you're still netting 1400 calories a day, right? Which means you're filling in too many calories with non-protein to hit your goal.

My tip is: you're allowed to eat protein as a snack. Whey with greek yogurt is great. You can also do jerky, lunch meat roll-ups, cheese, or even protein bars. Or have some whey powder mixed with almond milk.

raingirl32

how about just mix some whey with water and drink it? Can you drink a scoop of whey?

I've tried that, couldn't down it. I've tried a few flavours, all the same. I can usually get 1/2 scoop into a smoothie with milk and matcha or blueberries, and that can sometimes make me gag.

Please be gentle with me. I have a selective eating disorder and there are very very few foods I feel safe eating that don't make me gag. A food one day will work (such as an egg) but then I can't eat it for weeks after because I will remember I didn't like it. It's almost like I have to forget it then try eating it again.

I really want help here so be nice. I worked really hard to lose 30 lbs before and it was really hard to give up some of my safe foods (pasta, bread, etc). I really want to get back into this and I'm finding it much harder this time.

thedreamhazer

Please be gentle with me. I have a selective eating disorder and there are very very few foods I feel safe eating

This provides some pretty vital information. Are the foods you listed above on your safe list? And can you "trick" yourself into foods you might not normally be okay if you hide them in other foods?

SideSteel

how about just mix some whey with water and drink it? Can you drink a scoop of whey?

I've tried that, couldn't down it. I've tried a few flavours, all the same. I can usually get 1/2 scoop into a smoothie with milk and matcha or blueberries, and that can sometimes make me gag.

Please be gentle with me. I have a selective eating disorder and there are very very few foods I feel safe eating that don't make me gag. A food one day will work (such as an egg) but then I can't eat it for weeks after because I will remember I didn't like it. It's almost like I have to forget it then try eating it again.

I really want help here so be nice. I worked really hard to lose 30 lbs before and it was really hard to give up some of my safe foods (pasta, bread, etc). I really want to get back into this and I'm finding it much harder this time.

Are you seeking help with your eating disorder?

lizziebeth1028

Greek yogurt 14 grams

I'm not particularly fond of protein powder but Walmart Body Fortress strawberry is palatable. I add one whole scoop to 8-9 ounces of cold water and drink it down in a few gulps like it was necessary medicine. 26 grams there ya go!

I've also become a fan of Nature Valley protein peanut butter and dark chocolate bars - 10 grams

lizziebeth1028

how about just mix some whey with water and drink it? Can you drink a scoop of whey?

I've tried that, couldn't down it. I've tried a few flavours, all the same. I can usually get 1/2 scoop into a smoothie with milk and matcha or blueberries, and that can sometimes make me gag.

Please be gentle with me. I have a selective eating disorder and there are very very few foods I feel safe eating that don't make me gag. A food one day will work (such as an egg) but then I can't eat it for weeks after because I will remember I didn't like it. It's almost like I have to forget it then try eating it again.

I really want help here so be nice. I worked really hard to lose 30 lbs before and it was really hard to give up some of my safe foods (pasta, bread, etc). I really want to get back into this and I'm finding it much harder this time.

^^^^^^With a selective eating disorder you should probably consult your doctor or a nutritionalist for their recommendations:flowerforyou:

raingirl32

Yep, I've got help before and I know the proper things to eat. I've been down this road before so I'm familiar with it all. I thought I was just picky until I got a diagnosis. It's really funny to be afraid of so many foods illogically, but it is what it is.

It's really hard to explain to someone what it's like to have a panic attack over food, even my husband doesn't get it. I found this thread and it really made me feel better and not such a freak: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/524365

For example, eggs, it's not that I don't like eggs. It's just that...if I don't want an egg, I can't force myself to eat it without gagging. And I can easily psych myself out about eggs if I'm not careful. If I think about the texture too much ahead of time, I won't be able to eat it. So, sometimes I can eat them, but sometimes I can't.

My weird ones are:
-I can eat yogurt ONLY if it's plain without fruit pieces. I can have fruit flavour, only if it's smooth and no chunkies.
-all meats have to be carved like a surgeon to remove any fat or gristle or hard bits. If I accidentally get a bit of fat or gristle in mouth it will make me gag and I won't eat any more of the item I'm eating where it came from.
-I won't eat meat that I can see has touched a bone. You know those pork chops that have the bone around the edge on one side and the meat is like a circle in the middle with a ring of fat around it. I have to cut out the circle of meat from the middle, leaving the rest behind.
-no chunky soups, have to be pureed.

In all, I know what works for me and it tends to mean I eat a lot of the same thing over and over. I could eat tacos every night and be ok with that because I can make from scratch with ingredients that are safe to me and I know how to make them high protein, low cal. And they taste good.

If only I could find a good high protein, low carb pizza crust that fits in with my safe foods list. I've tried the cauliflower one but the texture just doesn't work for me. I think I will have to stick with my "meatloaf" crust for that one for now if I want high protein.

My biggest problem is lunches though. That's where I fail the most. Cooking at home I can do well, but when I get to lunch, I suck. I like chicken and salad for lunch, but I don't always have time to make that. I don't know what else that's high protein I can have for lunch (at work that is, stuff I can take and re-heat or eat cold). If I don't have time to make the chicken, then I default to a sandwich which isn't horrible and still in my cal range, but usually high carb and not high protein.

raingirl32

It also doesn't help that I'm a supertaster (stupid taste buds) but that's a whole different story.

So, any ideas on easy to transport, high protein lunches? Stuff other than a quick grilled chicken breast and salad?

otrlynn

Hmm, can you cook chicken ahead so that you have several days worth on hand to use for your lunch, or to make a sandwich? Whole wheat bread such as Nature's Own brand (f you live in the U.S. has 8 grams of protein. Can you add a pasteurized egg product to your smoothies? Most of the Lean Cuisine lunches that I buy have at least 18 grams of protein. There is a great variety of them--there must be something that you would find acceptable. As others have noted, Greek yogurt is very high in protein, and you can buy it in plain or vanilla flavor--no lumps of fruit. Do you eat peanut butter or snack on nuts? They are also pretty high in protein (but also calories).

Ainar

Prolly not my business but one thing I do not understand tho, why you even bother? Again, no offence, hehe, but as it seems it's very hard for you to follow this type of diet - high protein, low carbs. Why torture yourself? It's really not an only option what works. It worked for you and it's great but I'm sure other type of diets would work well too. Why not to just ate carbs? It's really mainly all about calories you ate not foods themselves. Or is it also a some kind of health problem that, you can't ate carbs?