Muscle Injury, need to increase protein?

Kgodon
Kgodon Posts: 4 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I am currently seeing a doc for a long existing neck inj/ neck muscle injury. He suggested I increase my protein to help aid healing. any thoughts as to how much of an increase I should add? I currently am supposed to consume 57.....Does this sound silly to anyone?

Replies

  • SpecialSundae
    SpecialSundae Posts: 795 Member
    How much do you weigh? Just 57g of protein a day sounds pretty low.

    I'm currently recovering from muscle injuries in both legs and I'm trying to eat around 130-150g protein per day (1.3-1.5g per lb of lean body mass). I figure it's not going to do any harm to try to eat a little more if protein helps with muscle repair usually and my muscles need a heck of a lot more repairing than they do from my usual strength-training programme.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    What is your lean body mass? Conventional guidelines are 1g of protein per 1lb of lean body mass. I don't think anyone should really be getting under 100g (pretty typical for a female). Men, much more.
  • sarahkatara
    sarahkatara Posts: 826 Member
    If you're using MFP's calculator for protein, know that it tends to estimate low for protein ratios. Manually change your goals to something that is pretty "normal" like 40% carbs/ 30% protein/ 30% fat. It's a common ratio. There are a lot of ways to calculate how much protein you need- just type "grams of protein per pound body weight" into google and you'll get your answer. I like scooby calculators or freedieting.

    HOWEVER- always ask your doctor. Anything people say on here is not based on your individual case, but only our own experiences. Just call the doctor you're seeing and leave a message asking the medical assistant to call you back and then tell her what your question is. Normally the doctor returns calls and such at the end of the day.

    Good luck!
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
    Im not a doctor, so I can't say, but I know that protein does aid in muscle repair from day to day activities and workouts - not sure about serious injuries though. Sounds like it's worth a try. I think your protein goals are low anyway. It won't hurt to bump it up and it might help. I recommend Epsom Salt and lavender oil compresses or soaks for muscle aches, bruising, strains, etc. I love that stuff!
  • Kgodon
    Kgodon Posts: 4 Member
    oops, my bad. mfp suggests 77 a day. I am 5'9, 169 and lead a pretty active lifestyle .

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