Increasing Protein for (Moderate) Weight Training

jsd_135 · March 2013

Looking for some advice. 48 y.o. female here. I've been pretty successful dropping the weight. I joined MFP in January with the goal of losing 25 pounds. To date I've lost 15. So the weight is coming off pretty easily (generally a pound or so a week) and my clothes are fitting better (lost a pants size).

For exercise I've mostly been doing cardio (running), but I want to start toning things up so I need to get started with the weights. My concern is about meeting my protein goal, which is already on the low side. My initial macro setting was MFP's default: 50% carbs, 20% protein, and 30% fat. I've changed that to 45/25/30, but in looking over my diary, I see that I'm not even getting that close to the 20% mark.

So here's my question (or questions):

1. What is a reasonable protein goal for a moderate weight-training regimen? I'm not trying to get cut--just want to firm things up and improve my strength and overall fitness. If I could get to at least 20%, would that be adequate?

2. If I need to increase my protein intake, any general recommendations? I have to say, though, that I'm not a protein shake/bar kind of person. I generally like my "normal" diet, and I'm cooking for a family of 4. So, in other words, I'm not looking to shake things up in a radical way. Maybe just a tweak. I do have room, I think, to increase my calories a bit, to accommodate new protein sources.

That's about it for now. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Also, my diary is open if anyone wants to analyze.

Thanks!

sarafil · March 2013

First of all, I love Madison! I lived there for about 10 years.

Anyhow, I do moderate lifting and I have my macros set at 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fat. I have come to realize what a difference protein can make, so I now pretty much structure my meal plan around my protein macros. If you eat meat, it really isn't that difficult to hit the numbers....I eat a lot of lean meats. I also eat a lot of eggs and greek yogurt. I do drink a protein shake on days I lift, but other than that most of my protein is received through "real" foods.

acogg · March 2013

I am 52 and take in about 100 gs of protein, regardless of percentages. I used to not pay attention and my muscles would ache after exercise, since increasing my protein my muscles feel much better and I feel like they are increasing in size. I swallow my protein powder like I swallow my pill supplements and do my exercise. I don't worry about enjoying it, I consider it medicine for my body. The protein powder has been extremely helpful in achieving my daily protein goal. Another protein source has been Greek yogurt.

balancedbrunette · March 2013

Sorry I'm not of much help to you i'm also wondering the same thing, as of doing moderate weight training im looking to increase my protein....mine is set as 40/30/30 but i don't meet protein fully anyday...need to change this!

As others have said I do find lean meats help me to reach my goal fastest..chicken, turkey that sort of thing.

Does greek yoghurt have to be plain??...Also wondering would taking protein bar after a workout help...like the poster i'm not really into putting supplement bars or that in my lifestyle but if theyd help for a while i may give it a go.

jsd_135 · March 2013

First of all, I love Madison! I lived there for about 10 years. Anyhow, I do moderate lifting and I have my macros set at 40% carbs, 30% protein, and 30% fat. I have come to realize what a difference protein can make, so I now pretty much structure my meal plan around my protein macros. If you eat meat, it really isn't that difficult to hit the numbers....I eat a lot of lean meats. I also eat a lot of eggs and greek yogurt. I do drink a protein shake on days I lift, but other than that most of my protein is received through "real" foods.

Thanks for the reply. I reset my goals to 40/30/30 yesterday, and when I saw how far off I am in protein, I changed it back. Then I reset it again to 45/25/30.

I do eat meat, and I love eggs. I guess I just don't eat a lot of it in a given day. The only macro I seem to hit regularly is fats, and that's because I use a lot of olive oil (and canola oil) in cooking. I'm big on sautee cooking.

I'll try the Greek yogurt again. I actually prefer the thinner yogurt, but I don't mind Greek. And I really don't need much encouragement to eat more eggs. I'm just loving my granola and yogurt breakfast in the morning. Unfortunately, the granola doesn't have that much protein even though it contains a fair amount of nuts. Maybe I'll add some ground flax seed.

What kind of protein shake are you drinking on lifting days? For myself, I could see having a protein shake on days I lift. I just can't see myself adding things like that to my general diet.

And, yeah, Madison is great (though cold right now).

jsd_135 · March 2013

I am 52 and take in about 100 gs of protein, regardless of percentages. I used to not pay attention and my muscles would ache after exercise, since increasing my protein my muscles feel much better and I feel like they are increasing in size. I swallow my protein powder like I swallow my pill supplements and do my exercise. I don't worry about enjoying it, I consider it medicine for my body. The protein powder has been extremely helpful in achieving my daily protein goal. Another protein source has been Greek yogurt.

Thanks for your reply. 100g of protein seems wild to me! I'm stuck in the 40s. The Greek yogurt and flax seed will help and, as I noted above, maybe supplementing on lifting days.

I was looking at your diary. How on earth are you getting so much protein in spaghetti sauce? Is it a meat sauce?

jsd_135 · March 2013

Sorry I'm not of much help to you i'm also wondering the same thing, as of doing moderate weight training im looking to increase my protein....mine is set as 40/30/30 but i don't meet protein fully anyday...need to change this!

As others have said I do find lean meats help me to reach my goal fastest..chicken, turkey that sort of thing.

Does greek yoghurt have to be plain??...Also wondering would taking protein bar after a workout help...like the poster i'm not really into putting supplement bars or that in my lifestyle but if theyd help for a while i may give it a go.

For me, I like either plain (sweetened with bananas) or vanilla yogurt. It does add to the overall calories, but eating just plain yogurt seems a little punitive.

Chicken (and fish) are great for racking up the protein. I have no problem working these into dinners. I'm not so much in the mood for them at lunch, however. (Except for tuna and occasional deli meats.)

I hope to hear from a few others on how much protein one should shoot for to support a moderate lifting regime. Anyone?

acogg · March 2013

Yes, my spaghetti sauce contains 1.5 pounds lean ground beef.

smiling_sushi · March 2013

I've just recently started lifting as well and had to increase my protein intake. It took some time, but now on a good day I can get at least 130 g protein (I aim for about 140-150 g). My favorite sources of protein include Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, edamame, chicken, turkey, salmon, tilapia, natural peanut butter, eggs (whole and/or whites), turkey bacon, and chocolate protein powder. My favorite high protein breakfast is a smoothie made with Greek yogurt, strawberries, protein powder and ground flax seed. I eat something with a reasonable amount of protein in it for every meal and snack and I drink a protein powder shake (1 scoop of protein powder in 1 cup of milk) after lifting.

Make sure that you also increase your fiber intake along with your protein intake, or you may have digestive issues. You should aim for at least 25 g of fiber a day.

P.S. I'm from Madison, too

Well, Fitchburg, really, but close enough.

Increasing Protein for (Moderate) Weight Training

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