iifym Macros - how can I eat more protein?

helen8297

Howdy everyone,

This might sound like a silly question - but how can I eat more protein easily?

I calculated my own macros and was aiming for 158g of protein a day. Then I had my calories and macros calculated by www.macrofit.com.au. They've suggested upping my calories to 1800 a day and upping the protein to 180g a day - I think i'm going to struggle!!

-I already changed up my breakfast to make them a little more proteiny (peanut butter/eggs etc)
-I have sandwiches to take to work for the ease of it, have changed thin sliced ham for chunky chicken sandwiches.
-I can fairly easily have a high protein dinner regularly at home.

Even after those changes I wasn't really getting too near to the 158g target. Now the target is 180g of protein! I'm a teacher and don't have a lot of time to prepare food at school. I can prepare a little at home. Any suggestions for good proteiny snacks?

Would having a protein shake work? Do I need it? I started insanity on Monday this week and i'm enjoying it, should I have a protein shake/smoothie thing for breakfast instead?

Any suggestions/advice would be gratefully received!
xx

ChangingAmanda

I use a protein shake in the AM as my breakfast. I'm not a morning person and need something quick and easy or I wouldn't eat at all. I use Syntrax Matrix and it's 23g per scoop and 110-140 calories depending on the flavor.

zaftiggirl

Here are a few snacks I have that pack the protein in:
- Cottage cheese mixed with a half-scoop of vanilla whey protein and a few berries to sweeten
- I have a tuna sandwich for lunch on one piece of ezekiel bread, with peas - peas have a good amt of protein and fiber and tuna has tons of protein.
- Think Thin bars (some will say the sugar alcohols are terrible for you; I don't find them to be that bad - for 20g of protein!)
- steamed edamame is great every once in a while, with butter and salt it's amazing!
- chocolate peanut butter "fudgesicles" made from good chocolate whey protein, peanut butter, and just enough milk to make it pudding consistency - freeze in pop containers and it's great! MUST start with good protein powder.

helen8297

Ooh thank you!!

Any other suggestions for good protein shake/powder things? I have never bought them before. (I'm in the UK)

x

zaftiggirl

http://www.proteinpow.com/ <--- everything protein powder related you could ever want!

I like the Muscle Milk brand, or this:

http://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Standard-Vanilla-Cream/dp/B000GISU1M/ref=sr_1_1?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1368135778&sr=1-1&keywords=whey+gold

Strangegirlz

I'm on a high protein diet, sometimes I find it really tough going. Turkey steaks are really good, I just grill them and then munch them as a snack, the ones I get are 125g and there is 37.5g protein per steak. My husband says I overcook them, but I quite like them crispy on top if I'm just snacking on them during the day. I also started to shred chicken breasts, and mix the chicken in with my veg, salad or some quinoa, I found it was easier to eat more of it this way.

kirkor

Peanut butter is high fat, not high protein.

Get used to having meat at every meal.

Egg whites can help get your protein grams in when your calories are getting close.

As other posters said, low fat cottage cheese, tuna, turkey, and of course whey.

WhataBroad

Peanut butter is high fat, not high protein.

Get used to having meat at every meal.

Egg whites can help get your protein grams in when your calories are getting close.

As other posters said, low fat cottage cheese, tuna, turkey, and of course whey.

although PB is high fat so you do want moderation here, it is unsaturated fat and it is still a great source of protein. Quinoa is also an excellent source and can be used in a variety of ways. My favs though are cottage cheese, turkey burgers and tuna!

lyttlewon

The only way I come close is by having a protein shake daily and eating meat at every meal.

shar140

If your goal is 180g of protein/day and you eat 3 meals, then you need to aim for 60g protein at each meal (assuming 3 meals). Peanut butter is not going to make it work in your calorie goals (besides that it's loaded with the unhealthy polyunsaturated fats in the form of omega 6s). You need more protein-dense options as others have mentioned - meat, cottage cheese, tuna, chicken, whey protein, etc.

Add in some snacks. If you get 50g protein/meal, then have two 15g protein snacks. that's 2 hard boiled eggs (14g), and 1/2cup of cottage cheese (15g). Snacks don't need to be "snack" food, either, use real food. I often save half my lunch and eat it later in the afternoon as a snack. I've eaten a can of chicken as a snack, or some tuna salad and veggies.

Also, the www.macrofit.com.au website is not up and running?

helen8297

Thank you for all your help! How do you all eat your cottage cheese? I'll do a bit of googling. I've never even tried it!

The macrofit people have an instagram and you can email them for the breakdowns.

CoachReddy

Howdy everyone,

This might sound like a silly question - but how can I eat more protein easily?

I calculated my own macros and was aiming for 158g of protein a day. Then I had my calories and macros calculated by www.macrofit.com.au. They've suggested upping my calories to 1800 a day and upping the protein to 180g a day - I think i'm going to struggle!!

-I already changed up my breakfast to make them a little more proteiny (peanut butter/eggs etc)
-I have sandwiches to take to work for the ease of it, have changed thin sliced ham for chunky chicken sandwiches.
-I can fairly easily have a high protein dinner regularly at home.

Even after those changes I wasn't really getting too near to the 158g target. Now the target is 180g of protein! I'm a teacher and don't have a lot of time to prepare food at school. I can prepare a little at home. Any suggestions for good proteiny snacks?

Would having a protein shake work? Do I need it? I started insanity on Monday this week and i'm enjoying it, should I have a protein shake/smoothie thing for breakfast instead?

Any suggestions/advice would be gratefully received!
xx

there is no reason for you to be eating 180g of protein.

CoachReddy

the average woman actually only requires 46g of protein a day. I do think that's a bit low, and many will suggest .7-1g of protein per pound of lean body mass. In other words, per pound of muscle.

odds are you don't need much more than 100g of protein, though I don't know your stats. excess protein does your body no good and just gets excreted anyway, so i wouldn't worry yourself over getting MORE of it, if you're just going to end up peeing it out.

SaebraSpirit

If you need that much protein your gonna need MEAT at every meal. And lots of it!
Also try eggs, cheeses, protein shakes!

Make yourself the night before:

-turkey/ham/tuna/beef wraps
-hard boiled eggs
-slices of cheese
-bacon wrapped around scallops
-beef jerky
-roasted nuts
-carrot/celery sticks with a pot of cottage cheese
-protein shakes


Also drink milk if you can.

kirkor

Peanut butter is high fat, not high protein.

Get used to having meat at every meal.

Egg whites can help get your protein grams in when your calories are getting close.

As other posters said, low fat cottage cheese, tuna, turkey, and of course whey.

although PB is high fat so you do want moderation here, it is unsaturated fat and it is still a great source of protein. Quinoa is also an excellent source and can be used in a variety of ways. My favs though are cottage cheese, turkey burgers and tuna!

Quinoa is an excellent carb, not an excellent protein. Per 1/2 cup raw it is 12g protein and 55g carbs.

helen8297

Oh!

I'm 152.4lbs 5ft 2inches. 28 years old. I'm a teacher and i'm in the first week of insanity.

What %'s would you suggest for carbs, protein and fats - and how about calories? thank you

aippolito1

- whole milk
- beans
- nuts, seeds, string cheese for snacks
- oatmeal

MsEmmy

I'm in the UK as well. I started taking Optimum Nutrition Gold 100% whey protein double chocolate when I realised my protein was well under (I'm veggie). I mix it with semi skimmed milk and it tastes really nice! Also helps after a workout (am doing 30 Day Shred and my muscles aren't half as stiff as they were before I started having the shake.) You can buy it in the larger Tesco stores much cheaper than in Boots and Holland and Barrett (Think it was £32.99 instead of 42.99)

cordianet

Percentages are hard to do as a blanket rule. I'd suggest .7 to 1 gram of protein per pound of lean mass. If you don't know what that is, it's easy to calculate if you know your % body fat. If you don't know that either, there are calculators available on the internet, but they'd require more data that you've provided so far. I I had to make a wild guess, I'd say somewhere around 100 pounds, so in effect you'd need 70 to 100 grams of protein a day. If you can do more, it wouldn't hurt you, but I think 180 grams is unnecessary.

CoachReddy

Percentages are hard to do as a blanket rule. I'd suggest .7 to 1 gram of protein per pound of lean mass. If you don't know what that is, it's easy to calculate if you know your % body fat. If you don't know that either, there are calculators available on the internet, but they'd require more data that you've provided so far. I I had to make a wild guess, I'd say somewhere around 100 pounds, so in effect you'd need 70 to 100 grams of protein a day. If you can do more, it wouldn't hurt you, but I think 180 grams is unnecessary.

Agreed

helen8297

Oh thank you! My bf is 39%...hopefully for not much longer!

Is there a good % amount for fats and carbs that you could suggest or is that fairly varied?

Thank you for your advice - much appreciated x