Protein for Exercising

Can you have a bigger breakfast?

I say MAKE time for lunch. And who says you have to have a sandwich? I haven't eaten a sandwich in months. This week I'm having two chicken tacos on corn tortillas with refried beans and avocado. 32 g of protein and so very yummy. Here's two other things I might eat at lunch:

- Homemade McDonald's-style egg white delight with an english muffin, egg whites, canadian bacon, and white cheddar cheese (17 g protein)
- Salad with romaine lettuce, light Caesar dressing, grilled shrimp, shaved parmesan cheese, and a few fat-free croutons (14 g protein)

I also usually have some fruit (banana, strawberries, grapes, etc). And then I have an afternoon snack at 3:30 (coming up! yay!) that usually consists of flavored Greek yogurt, a hard-boiled egg, and light string cheese. That's about 24 g of protein.

I'll never understand how people can "forget" to eat. That's the last thing I'd forget. Eating is the best.

you could try other protein powders and make shakes or just mix with water, you may find one you like. Quest bars, greek yogurt, cheese, beef jerky are some good protein snack ideas. You could also add grilled chicken to your salads. You can have a bigger breakfast in the morning and eat eggs, sausage or bacon in the morning.

Nuts have protein but they don't have a huge protein to calorie ratio.

Mozzarella sticks, greek yogurt, I buy rotisserie chickens or turkey breast and cut them into 2-4oz pieces and put them in baggies. They last me about 2-4 snack or meal times and they're chock full of proteins without any of the preservatives you find in lunch meat. I eat tuna fish (but trainer says not everyday), haddock, organic granola with protein, 2 hard boiled egg whites and one egg. Just some ideas

Lately I've been enjoying Epic Greek Yogurt + Chia Seeds (17g of protein). I also pressure cook chicken breast, shred it, portion it out into tupperware or ziploc bags (I do 4 oz), put some kind of seasoning on it and snack on it. Trader Joe's has peeled, boiled cage-free eggs. Those are my protein go-tos.

I eat a ton of jerky for the protein. High sodium, but if you don't have to worry about that, it's a good way to get some protein in.

Oh i love the boiled eggs! I found some at my local grocery store and they were on sale. Buy one get one free! SCORE!

I eat lots of string cheese. Also, cottage cheese is great as is Greek yogurt. (Hope you can eat dairy) .

I think most of these have been already mentioned in some fashion but worth restating...

- Protein bars when you are on the go or just need to grab something quick. A lot of these taste like candy bars except they'll give you about 14-20g protein, around 200 calories.

- Ziplock with almonds

- Cut some cheddar cheese cubes up and put in a ziplock

- Beef or turkey jerky

- Boil up some hard boiled eggs

- Grilled Chicken tenders with Montreal steak seasoning (mostly pepper and salt). Stick them on a salad or eat like chicken fingers.

- When you are at home a smoothie with chocolate protein powder and berries (frozen works best), and plain Greek yogurt is real easy and tasty with lots of protein

In a rush so I didn't look at your food diary. I don't know how much protein you're getting, but I'm a vegetarian (and for the most part don't eat dairy, maybe 6 eggs a week) and I average about 60g per day (on 1500 calories). Feel free to add me/look at my diary for ideas. Nuts are actually pretty low concentrations of protein. Beans have a lot (without loading you up on the calories).

Here is a bunch of examples for about 10g of protein (some have been mentionned)

1 oz. of meat, poultry, seafood or fish
1 extra large egg
2 flattened Tbsp. of peanut butter
2 Tbsp. (1/8 cup OR 10-12) nuts
¼ cup seeds (except chia)
½ cup legumes (e.g. lentils, chick peas, kidney beans…)
½ cup of hummus
1/3 cup tofu
2 ½ Tbsp dry Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
¼ cup fat-free cottage cheese
1 oz. reduced-fat cheese
1/3 cup of plain greek yogurt

In a rush so I didn't look at your food diary. I don't know how much protein you're getting, but I'm a vegetarian (and for the most part don't eat dairy, maybe 6 eggs a week) and I average about 60g per day (on 1500 calories). Feel free to add me/look at my diary for ideas. Nuts are actually pretty low concentrations of protein. Beans have a lot (without loading you up on the calories).

you'd have to pair rice with beans in order to get complete protein. Beans alone (not soy) are not complete proteins.

Definitely eat lunch--bring things that are easy, maybe that you don't even have to heat up.

Hard boiled eggs (I don't actually like these, but I'm trying. I'll bring two--even today actually--along with 2 packets of Taco Bell sauce, plus some fresh strawberries as a snack.)

Homemade smoothies are way better than the bottled stuff. Sample multiple brands to find one you like. Same with the bottled ones actually. They're not all horrible. (And for adding protein, I'd go with one that more like 25-30g of protein. I think ones like Boost are more like 10-15g.)

Lean meats--they don't have to go on a sandwich. Bring leftovers of meat with steamed veggies. I often even eat these cold. Or put the meat in a salad.

Protein bars-- again some are absolutely delicious, just stick with the high protein varieties for your purpose (like 25-30g per bar)

Yum to full-fat Greek yogurt! I'll often add fruit and nuts, but just some stevia with vanilla or almond extract is awesome!

I've tried to like cottage cheese, but since Greek yogurt is actually a little better for my needs (and I love it), I don't eat cottage cheese. But a lot of people love it and it could help you.

Glass of milk

Good luck!

A lot of times I just open a can of tuna and eat it with a spoon. It's not the most exciting meal but it's quick, easy to carry around, low-cal, high-protein, blah blah blah.