Protein - Supplements Vs Food when losing weight

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  • kiachu
    kiachu Posts: 409 Member
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    Protein supplements can be very bad for your body. They are very hard on your kidneys and liver. If you continue to use them you need to drink more then the standard 64 oz of water a day. Have you considered talking to a registered dietician?

    Why would a protein supplement be any different than protein from foods? Where did yoi hear this?
  • SanyamKaushik
    SanyamKaushik Posts: 215 Member
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    I eat roughly around 1500-1600 cals a day and aim to do 100+g of protein (atleast on weekdays). Being a vegetarian, its a struggle but I tend to do it through mainly foods and one odd protein shake.
    There are some excellent souces of protein apart from protein powder though, e.g. Egg whites, Lentils, milk (n dairy) etc....
  • Arexxx
    Arexxx Posts: 486 Member
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    You do 4000 calories worth of exercise a day?!
    OH MY LORD
  • Tilran
    Tilran Posts: 626 Member
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    If you eat all your burnt calories you will just remain at a constant weight. By not eating them or too many of them you will lose weight.

    This is also rubbish! (using that term since it seems to be a favorite around here)

    MFP calculates at a deficit. If you eat all your calories plus workout calories you are still at a deficit.

    Do not listen to this person.
  • robstot
    robstot Posts: 36 Member
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    I use protein shakes to supplement my protein intake, around 220grams per day on a 1800 calorie intake. I use one that has 35grams of protein with only 156 calories, I add 1/2 cup of plain low fat Greek yogurt and water. and Sometimes some type of melon. I have one each morning and after a workout. I think they are important to maintaining ones weight.
  • xarge
    xarge Posts: 484 Member
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    Protein supplements can be very bad for your body. They are very hard on your kidneys and liver. If you continue to use them you need to drink more then the standard 64 oz of water a day. Have you considered talking to a registered dietician?

    I have been more thirsty... but thought it was the exercise. Dieticians are too expensive I'm afraid.

    You need to drink more water with higher protein intake anyway. It doesn't matter if the protein is from a shrimp or a shake.

    Unrelated to above but related to shakes; protein shakes are only fortified in vitamins and some minerals to enchance protein absorption. Most importantly what they usually (and they have) lack compared to a common meat dish is potassium and iron, both are essential for body so while taking protein powder, make sure you do get those micronutrients via something else in your diet.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    I eat roughly around 1500-1600 cals a day and aim to do 100+g of protein (atleast on weekdays). Being a vegetarian, its a struggle but I tend to do it through mainly foods and one odd protein shake.
    There are some excellent souces of protein apart from protein powder though, e.g. Egg whites, Lentils, milk (n dairy) etc....

    Why just the whites? What's the deal with people eating only part of their egg? Most of the nutrients are in the yolk. (Which is why it is yummier, imho)
  • SanyamKaushik
    SanyamKaushik Posts: 215 Member
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    I eat roughly around 1500-1600 cals a day and aim to do 100+g of protein (atleast on weekdays). Being a vegetarian, its a struggle but I tend to do it through mainly foods and one odd protein shake.
    There are some excellent souces of protein apart from protein powder though, e.g. Egg whites, Lentils, milk (n dairy) etc....

    Why just the whites? What's the deal with people eating only part of their egg? Most of the nutrients are in the yolk. (Which is why it is yummier, imho)

    Egg White is only protein and water. So I meant egg whites only to up the protein content with the minimal calories intake (from a natural source). Although, I am with you that yolk has all the other goodies. But I limit it to 1 whole egg and rest egg whites.
  • xarge
    xarge Posts: 484 Member
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    Why just the whites? What's the deal with people eating only part of their egg? Most of the nutrients are in the yolk. (Which is why it is yummier, imho)

    I usually eat 2 whole eggs and any amount of whites if needed. Let's say it is 2 whole+5 whites I could theoretically eat 7 whole eggs but that is around 1800 mg of cholesterol. Whereas I agree that dietary cholesterol has little effect on LDL levels, that goes for 1-2 eggs. 7 eggs is around 622% of dietary cholesterol RDI. I don't feel like a guinea pig :/
  • sjohnny
    sjohnny Posts: 56,142 Member
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    I use hemp protein powder daily....hemp protein powder is 11g protein for 80 calories...

    That's only half its calories from protein. There are many protein powders available that have 25 or so grams of protein for 110 or so calories. That's almost all protein in every scoop.

    I would prefer to get all my protein from whole foods but I usually have a shake or two every day. I actually like them and it makes it a whole lot easier for me to reach my goal of 180 to 200g of protein a day.
  • UWZander
    UWZander Posts: 70
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    Have you ever tried to eat two-three times your weight in protein? Yeah. You ain't getting all of that from food. That would be 3.7lbs of chicken breast a day. That is why protein supplements exist. Lol. Unlike my dad's day where he would buy what protein he could afford (actual food > protein) and would eat cow tongue because of the price, protein powder has gotten a lot better over time.
  • pobski
    pobski Posts: 42 Member
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    Getting the protein from food is the easy part, just eat like a half pound of chicken breasts with lunch, It's 200cals for 50g protein. The hard part is getting your fat macros in while staying under cals. Fish oils are like 1g of fat. You need like 30-60 in order to not feel like garbage every day. And putting olive oil on stuff sounds really gross to me.

    So, I try to eat lean beef and ground turkey. They both have a decent amount of fat, and taste good too
  • RGv2
    RGv2 Posts: 5,789 Member
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    You're burning 3-4000 calories per day and are worried about going over 1200? Am I the only one that thinks it's a touch rediculous?
  • mikeschratz
    mikeschratz Posts: 253 Member
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    Lauraloubell,
    You are more than welcome to use the spreadsheets here: https://docs.google.com/folder/d/0B3kFzsaVmRjmd1k4YjA1SlVWaFU/edit
    They will help you figure out really how much you should be eating.
    Hope this works for you!
    Mike S
  • sunshine_gem
    sunshine_gem Posts: 390 Member
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    You're burning 3-4000 calories per day and are worried about going over 1200? Am I the only one that thinks it's a touch rediculous?

    Read the whole thing. She corrected to 300-400.
  • harlanJEN
    harlanJEN Posts: 1,089 Member
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    Greetings!

    My first thought : why only 1200 cals? that is pretty low cal especially if exercising ...I assume you are working out if concerned about upping protein intake

    In regard to protein:

    I only use protein powder post workout for a veggie fruit protein smoothie. So, roughly 3 x week. I don't rely on supplements for my protein. Eggs, egg whites, tuna, fish, low fat dairy ( cottage cheese and Greek yogurt), chicken, occasional lean beef, Quinoa, lentils, beans .....

    nothing is better than real food. Plenty of protein sources without relying on protein supplements

    Good luck !
  • harlanJEN
    harlanJEN Posts: 1,089 Member
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    Dont worry bout it. Fat people lose weight quicker than slim people! :laugh:

    Tee hee, and faster than old ladies


    Ohhhhh LMAO. Old Ladies. Hmmmm. How old is that ?? : )
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    I use hemp protein powder daily....hemp protein powder is 11g protein for 80 calories...

    That's only half its calories from protein. There are many protein powders available that have 25 or so grams of protein for 110 or so calories. That's almost all protein in every scoop.

    I would prefer to get all my protein from whole foods but I usually have a shake or two every day. I actually like them and it makes it a whole lot easier for me to reach my goal of 180 to 200g of protein a day.

    It also comes with essential fatty acids, fiber, and healthy fats. Hemp protein is the most complete vegetable source of protein you can get.

    But again, it's about the price. I am fine on calories. Powder is cheaper. I would rather eat more meat and nuts, but I don't have the money to include them right now, except in smaller quantities.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Getting the protein from food is the easy part, just eat like a half pound of chicken breasts with lunch, It's 200cals for 50g protein. The hard part is getting your fat macros in while staying under cals. Fish oils are like 1g of fat. You need like 30-60 in order to not feel like garbage every day. And putting olive oil on stuff sounds really gross to me.

    So, I try to eat lean beef and ground turkey. They both have a decent amount of fat, and taste good too

    I have found the opposite to be true. Protein is the hard part. Fat is easy.
  • RobynMWilson
    RobynMWilson Posts: 1,540 Member
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    I'm not worried about going over calories but I cannot possibly meet the P90X protein requirements b/c I just can't fit that much food into me so I'm doing 2 scoops per day of egg white protein powder and I'm still not meeting my requirement but I'm stuffed to the gills every day as it is lol

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