Protein Ideas???

lizschmid
lizschmid Posts: 2
edited January 4 in Recipes
Hi all....I'm struggling lately and I believe it's because 1) I'm a night shift nurse---I try to eat my dinner before midnight and then not again until I get home---water keeps me awake for the most part but also because 2) I don't eat red meat or pork. I'll eat chicken and turkey BUT I get bored of it easily. Fish---eh. Not a huge fan but I can manage it from time to time. I'll take ANY suggestions. I find myself FAMISHED at times and turn to carbs---bad idea. :). Also, I love salad but I get bored with dressings. Any awesome dressing recipes??? Thanks in advance!!!

Replies

  • Hulk0511
    Hulk0511 Posts: 407 Member
    I work night shift too. I usually have a protien shake or bar when i get the munchies. I use muscle milk brand its low in carbs or yogurt, cottage cheese, eggs, almonds and most nuts. I also love salad and usually go thru my market and find all types of different things to throw in it love avacado in my salad.
  • Cjoseph03
    Cjoseph03 Posts: 107 Member
    I, too, am a night shift nurse and work on increasing protein. My goal is to consume 25% daily. For salads, I love to use the flavor sensations tuna in place of dressing. I've never been fond salad dressings anyway. Feel free to add me and check out my diary! I also use protein bars/drinks.
  • 4Phoenix
    4Phoenix Posts: 236 Member
    1 scoop Sun Warrior - Warrior Blend
    1/2 cp frozen peahes
    1/2 cp frozen/fresh raspberries
    1cp unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or homemade)
    remaining water in the blender to 32 oz
    lots of ice

    This is what I do when I know I won't be near food for long periods of time. I pop this in my briefcase and it is delicious and provides me with health and energy. Good luck! I'm finding the key to my success is being prepared.
  • battynat12
    battynat12 Posts: 55
    I recently discovered blogilates from a post on this site about her two ingredient pancakes, which are AMAZING! Try looking through some of these recipies for ideas. You can incorporate protein powder into recipes. Quinoa, which is a grain also has some protein, but is not low in calories so be careful. Edamame also has some protein and can be a good snack. Good luck!

    http://www.blogilates.com/recipe-index
  • stevesl1986
    stevesl1986 Posts: 1 Member
    Hi there,

    I also had the same problem and was getting so sick of chicken and turkey. Have you looked at getting whey protein? If you buy an isolate, look for one that has 1-3g of carbs and about 25g of protein per serving. There are a lot of recipes I now make with the protein powder and they are my treats during the day. On MFP, I am often over in my protein for the day and under in carbs. Here are a couple delicious recipes I found and I love them.

    Pumpkin Protein Bars- by Jamie Eason
    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/jamie-easons-livefit-recipes-pumpkin-protein-bars.html

    Each bar is about 47 calories (without walnuts). This recipe makes 24 bars. I normally make muffins instead and it makes about 12 muffins for me, so each muffin is about 100 calories. She also has carrot muffins, which are delicious as well. I find I need to keep them in the refrigerator or they go bad fast.

    I've also been making up no bake protein balls. There are a ton of recipes that I found for these on pinterest. The protein is normally higher than carbs and they are delicious little treats.
    http://immaeatthat.com/2012/08/17/coconut-oat-protein-bites/

    Those are the best ones I have found so far and I substitute apple sauce for the honey. These are a little higher in calories, but if you have some leftover, its a good way to get enough protein and not a lot of carbs.

    Hope this helps!
  • kristen6022
    kristen6022 Posts: 1,923 Member
    I have a self-imposed goal of at least 100 grams a day and I find if I eat out I never meet that goal...little things I've found that help fill in the gaps:

    Cottage Cheese
    Greek Yogurt
    Beans (I put about 1/2 serving of black beans in my salads at lunch with a lean protein)
    Ground Turkey (my favorite is Jenni o Extra Lean)
    Jenni o Turkey Breakfast Sausage
    Egg Muffins (pretty much egg substitute, real bacon bits, and veggies made in muffin cups, I pre-make them on weekends and bring them to work with the above turkey sausage, filling breakfast!)
    Quinoa
    Edamame (or other soy sources)
    Almond Milk (my fav is the Pure Almond Unsweetened - 30 calories for a cup!)
    Protein bars (they are pretty much candy with protein thrown in, so they help the sweet tooth...)

    I have no yet succumbed to protein powder. I have a container of Jillian Michaels Vanilla in my pantry and haven't yet done anything with it. I like to get my protein from food sources...
This discussion has been closed.

Categories