Too Much Protein

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I have protein with every meal (eggs, lean turkey, chicken, etc) but at the end of the day MFP tells me I'm over my limit by about 20-30grm daily.
How do I fill up without at meal time without all the added protein?

Replies

  • jrich1
    jrich1 Posts: 2,408 Member
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    Extra protein isnt going to hurt you.
  • AfroGeek
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    You might want to change your goals fit the amount of protein you feel you'd like to consume.
  • kungfulizard
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    try adding fiber rich foods like beans and leafy greens instead of protein based foods like meat. you'll still feel plenty full!
  • Hello - I'm no expert, but an excessive amount of protein can cause problems. Anytime there is too much of anything something gets stressed. In the case of protein the liver has to work harder to process the protein. That said, it doesn't sound like you're getting an "excessive" amount of protein, but that you're going over by a handful of grams. Perhaps you could tweak your intake a little to bring something else into your diet and cut a few of the extra protein grams.

    Medline, from the Nat'l Institutes of Health, has a good intro to protein. Here's the link:
    http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2008/March/docs/01features_01.htm

    Good luck.
  • tam8374
    tam8374 Posts: 270 Member
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    try adding fiber rich foods like beans and leafy greens instead of protein based foods like meat. you'll still feel plenty full!

    Yes Fiber is another way to fill up. A lot of veggies and things work. Also, food that have a lot of fiber (like Fiber one Bars or Fiber Cereal that advertise that their food doesn't take like cardboard). Just be careful not to pick to much food that is enriched. Enriched food is stipped of it's natural vitamins and has added minerals/vitamins..
  • cinephile
    cinephile Posts: 1 Member
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    Eat less meat! Hell don't eat any at all. It works great for me. Try eating beans or tofu. I promise you will feel better.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    In my experience, MFP's default protein recommendation is pretty low -15% of your calories.

    When I eat healthy, I gravitate toward eating 25-35% of my calories from protein, but I make sure I get a good variety of sources - not only meat and eggs, but vegetable protein as well (beans, protein-rich grains, etc.).
  • Bittner
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    You can change your goals
    I have mine at 40 %protein, 30% carbs and 20% fat and was able to lean out at 11% bodyfat. Protein along with weigh training will help deliver great muscle tone.
  • DancingDreamer
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    Eat less meat! Hell don't eat any at all. It works great for me. Try eating beans or tofu. I promise you will feel better.

    lol this seems a teensie bit of a misguided way to promote vegetarianism but i agree. start cutting down on the meat. it seems there are alot of people out there that feel like every meal needs some meat in it and that it isnt a meal without it. try a meal with no meat OR meat subsitutes, a purely veggie meal, trust me it'll fill you up and its just as delicious as a meat meal, it may just open your eyes to a whole new healthier way of eating!

    also eating "too much" protein isnt such a bad thing (unless your diabetic, i dont know what happens but i know diabetics who try and not have much protein, they've told me its bad for them too have too much :/ never told me why though) protein is a necessary nutrient that gives you LOTS of energy to get stuff done and if its a lean protein its way better for you then other things that give you lots of energy like too much carbs would be.

    good luck!
  • edorice
    edorice Posts: 4,519 Member
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    I have my protein higher for weight lifting. MFP does not have a good percentage for protein. Like others have said, go up to GOALS tab and you can change your SETTINGS.
  • sandyland324
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    Thanks for all the advice and tips! When you mentions customizing your setting based on a certain % - how did you find what that % number is?
    And for those of you who don't eat meat at all, well that's not gonna happen for me, but I would love to try some of your favorite vegetarian recipes. I'm all for mixing it up!
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
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    Thanks for all the advice and tips! When you mentions customizing your setting based on a certain % - how did you find what that % number is?
    And for those of you who don't eat meat at all, well that's not gonna happen for me, but I would love to try some of your favorite vegetarian recipes. I'm all for mixing it up!

    My Home --> Goals --> Change Goals --> Customize

    On that screen you can customize all kinds of things - % allocated to fat/carbs/protein, sodium goal, fiber goal, etc. (All your MFP goals.)

    If you're asking how we picked our percentages - I picked something that worked for me and matches how I seem to naturally gravitate to eating. lower carbs, higher protein and fat - 40/30/30 compared to MFP's 55/15/30

    Personally I think that as long as you're eating healthy, quality calories, the exact spread between these doesn't matter too much unless you're trying to be a high performance athlete or build serious muscle.
  • Wtbyerdoc
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    As long as you are not going over 1.6 grams per kg there is no health issues with this but if it causes you to go over your calorie budget then it will be converted to fat like any other calorie. therefore most people can eat up to 100 g plus without problems (stressing the kidneys). Just make sure that you are eating lean protein to avoid saturated fats.
  • jnblount
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    I read that a good protein recommendation is 7 g for every 20 pounds you weigh. Here's the link

    http://diet.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Side_Effects_of_Too_Much_Protein_in_the_Diet
  • Sitruc
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    From many bodybuilding resources 1.5g protein per pound (1.5g/lb) of body weight is the really high end of high-protein diets, and such diet is deemed appropriate if you are performing regular, intense strength training. 1.0g/lb is recommended by many resources during regular strength training and in maintenance diets 0.8g/lb. Balance your protein out with how much strength training you do. Protein is primarily used to build/repair muscle tissue, and is consumed as a form of energy (equally as energetic as a carb is). If you don't do much strength training, you shouldn't require as much protein.

    I played with a high-protein diet, and when your protein exceeds your carbs, your body produces cortisol, which somewhat inhibits the body's ability to burn carbs as energy. My roommates don't diet, and keep an ampule amount of carbs in the house. While I was on the high protein diet my carb cravings were unimaginable, and because of high cortisol I found myself very carb sensitive. If temptation wasn't there I could have easily stuck to it, but that just didn't work out.

    Interesting side effects of a high-protein diet was the thermic effect of processing protein, which in the Cunningham Technique of calculating your caloric needs, burned ~197 calories. That's above and beyond my resting metabolic rate of ~1970 calories. Fat loss happened faster and with reduced carbs and increased healthy fats, I felt full longer.
  • Holton
    Holton Posts: 1,018
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    I upped by protein intake to 120 grams a day by going into custom.