Is Protein Hindering My Abilities to Lean Out??

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msfitmom_3
msfitmom_3 Posts: 45 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I eat peanut butter, steel cut oats & bananas as a snack everyday. I also have two protein shakes (25g of protein each) mixed with almond milk daily too. I keep reading that protein, peanut butter, etc are good for burning fat (esp belly area) but yet, I am not leaning out. I burn anywhere from 500-1000 calories a day in my workouts (1-2 hours) lifting, toning & zumba and nothing is happening.

It's becoming discouraging again. I don't know how to lean out... I eat very well, very clean. On the weekends I allow myself a cheat day, where I eat whatever I want. But throughout the week it's all greens, proteins, low calorie, low carb foods.

I am building muscle, you can plainly see it... however I feel "thicker" not trimmer. I don't want to bulk up. I'd like to thin out and gain muscle. Is that possible???

Can someone give me some pointers? I'm getting a bit distressed... I am NOT going to give up this fight. But I don't know what else to do!

Replies

  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
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    I eat peanut butter, steel cut oats & bananas as a snack everyday. I also have two protein shakes (25g of protein each) mixed with almond milk daily too. I keep reading that protein, peanut butter, etc are good for burning fat (esp belly area) but yet, I am not leaning out. I burn anywhere from 500-1000 calories a day in my workouts (1-2 hours) lifting, toning & zumba and nothing is happening.

    It's becoming discouraging again. I don't know how to lean out... I eat very well, very clean. On the weekends I allow myself a cheat day, where I eat whatever I want. But throughout the week it's all greens, proteins, low calorie, low carb foods.

    I am building muscle, you can plainly see it... however I feel "thicker" not trimmer. I don't want to bulk up. I'd like to thin out and gain muscle. Is that possible???

    Can someone give me some pointers? I'm getting a bit distressed... I am NOT going to give up this fight. But I don't know what else to do!

    It is unlikely you are building any significant muscle or any at all in a deficit. How many cals are you consuming and what is your TDEE?
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
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    Peanut butter is a fat source. It has little protein in comparison to calories.
    Steel oats are more of a carb.

    No food burns fat. Eating at a deficit does. Too much protein will not make you fat, excess calories will.

    What are your calorie levels like? What are you doing for exercise? Do you log your "cheat day"?

    Opening your diary may be helpful
  • bumblebums
    bumblebums Posts: 2,181 Member
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    I don't see a reason why protein would hinder your abilities to lean out. How many grams a day are you eating, and what is your LBM?

    What you describe sounds like a fairly high carb, low fat diet--is that right? You could try switching up the proportions of carbs and fats. For some people, this supposedly makes a difference.

    And have a look here maybe (there is a handy summary at the end, but you would want to read the whole thing)

    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/comparing-the-diets-part-1.html
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/comparing-the-diets-part-2.html
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/comparing-the-diets-part-3.html
    http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/fat-loss/comparing-the-diets-part-4.html
  • emilyahartmann
    emilyahartmann Posts: 23 Member
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    I am glad you asked this question, I seem to eat a lot of protein...I don't consume a lot of calories but feel too much protein is doing something to hinder progress....hmmmm
  • emilyahartmann
    emilyahartmann Posts: 23 Member
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    ahh you were posting this just as I was commenting...perfect :)
  • schondell
    schondell Posts: 556 Member
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    Bananas, steel cut oats and peanut butter are all high in carbs or more fat than protein. Consider other protein sources.
  • NJL13500
    NJL13500 Posts: 433 Member
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    Bump for answers. I am curious about this too.
  • msfitmom_3
    msfitmom_3 Posts: 45 Member
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    I should be consuming around 1650 calories a day.

    I burn between 500-1000 calories a day doing lifting, biking (trailering 3 kids), Zumba, tone & sculpt classes, etc...

    I usually do the majority of my workouts between 6-8pm... so by the time I get home it's hard to consume my calories burned right before bed. It usually makes me sick to my stomach.

    I workout 4-5 times a week.

    I do log my cheat days (and usually go over).

    I eat spinach, avocados, eggs/egg whites, berries, chicken/turkey/pork loin, sweet potatoes, broccoli, etc almost daily.

    Peanut Butter/Oats/Banana mushed up together is my weakness. I usually go to it for a snack. Or when I need to make up some calories.

    I consume 60-125g of protein a day.

    According to a calculation I had found on a fitness site -- I should be consuming 3/4 of my weight in protein. I am 135lbs at 5'5... that puts me at 101g of protein a day.
  • 3dogsrunning
    3dogsrunning Posts: 27,167 Member
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    I should be consuming around 1650 calories a day.

    I burn between 500-1000 calories a day doing lifting, biking (trailering 3 kids), Zumba, tone & sculpt classes, etc...

    I usually do the majority of my workouts between 6-8pm... so by the time I get home it's hard to consume my calories burned right before bed. It usually makes me sick to my stomach.

    I workout 4-5 times a week.

    I do log my cheat days (and usually go over).

    I eat spinach, avocados, eggs/egg whites, berries, chicken/turkey/pork loin, sweet potatoes, broccoli, etc almost daily.

    Peanut Butter/Oats/Banana mushed up together is my weakness. I usually go to it for a snack. Or when I need to make up some calories.

    I consume 60-125g of protein a day.

    According to a calculation I had found on a fitness site -- I should be consuming 3/4 of my weight in protein. I am 135lbs at 5'5... that puts me at 101g of protein a day.

    Where did you come up with that number? MFP or another calculator?
    Are you eating all of those exercise calories, all the time? How are you estimating them?
    How are you measuring your food and do you log consistently?
    How much do you go over on "cheat days"?

    Just to add - you don't have to wait until you have exercised to eat the calories. You can plan ahead and consume some of them throughout the day.

    2nd edit - there is nothing wrong with banana, peanut butter and oats, I was just pointing out they aren't exactly significant protein sources. When I was dieting for a bodybuilding competition they were staples in my diet. I often mixed them with protein powder. no issue leaning out.
  • msliu7911
    msliu7911 Posts: 639 Member
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    Bananas, steel cut oats and peanut butter are all high in carbs or more fat than protein. Consider other protein sources.

    This.

    Also, you mention that you eat avocados and sweet potatos almost daily. While those aren't bad, if you're eating those in excess its not necessarily good either... added to your bananas, oats, and PB (all 5 listed each day would give you a high amount of fat, carbs, and fiber... which are all good but at the same time can be bad if too much is consumed).

    I might suggest that if you must have a banana, add it to plain greek yogurt. Also, if you have to have PB, maybe have it on an apple.

    Lastly, if you're really looking to build a little muscle (lean out), you might want to shift your workouts to primarily lifting and minimize the cardio. I've seen many women on this site switch gears and it did wonders for their bodies.
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
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    Dafuq???

    Protein will only hinder your progress with leaning out if you are consuming so much of it that you consistently eat more than TDEE.

    Pretending that protein will halt fat loss is the silliest thing I have read in quite some time.
  • songbyrdsweet
    songbyrdsweet Posts: 5,691 Member
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    What is your current body fat %? You look very skinny in your avatar picture. Your BMI is healthy. You may not have much to lose, you may have drastically decreased your BMR by cutting for a very long time, or you may be miscalculating what you're eating.
  • tomcornhole
    tomcornhole Posts: 1,084 Member
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    I should be consuming around 1650 calories a day.

    Do you hit 1650 / day?
  • TeriLynnSpano
    TeriLynnSpano Posts: 103 Member
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    Bump....I want to learn.......:smile:
  • debussyschild
    debussyschild Posts: 804 Member
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    You might try mixing in two days where you do a HIIT workout. It might be that your body is adapting to all of the same exercise. Need to change it up!
  • Bowent12
    Bowent12 Posts: 2
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    I'm also trying to burn fat and tone. I'm usually under the 1200 calories recommended by mfp and am told i've gained extra calories after I work out (which is typically around 6-8 pm with dance workout videos as i'm new to working out). However I do cardio 6 days a week. a minimum of 25 minutes up to 1hr 15. I've lost maybe 4 lbs since the start of my workouts about a month ago (with a one week gap due to migrains :sad: . Does anyone have any suggestions on what i can eat to do so. I have left over's for lunch but I always measure out my foods. We typically have brown rice or another starch and vegetable nightly. I'm not big but I would like my weight to be mainly muscle. tighten my thighs, arms, flatten my stomach. On the weekends I prepare all my own meals as during the week I make breakfast (1/8 dry steel oats mainly) and small portions of left over dinner, usually chicken breast, occassionally red meat; all about 3-4 oz or less.

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