Too much protein left to eat by end of day.

joyrachael
joyrachael Posts: 24 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Sometimes by the end of the day i have used up mostly all of my carbs and fat allowance but still have 500 or more calories to go for protein. Just wondering what to eat that's mostly all protein. Any suggestions?

Replies

  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    Sometimes by the end of the day i have used up mostly all of my carbs and fat allowance but still have 500 or more calories to go for protein. Just wondering what to eat that's mostly all protein. Any suggestions?

    Chicken, steak, fish, shrimp
  • joyrachael
    joyrachael Posts: 24 Member
    Ok that's what I was thinking. I guess i have to be more balanced during the day.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Greek yogurt too (plain and fat free for less calories).
  • markja
    markja Posts: 270 Member
    I like yogurt, cheese and meat.
  • csy108
    csy108 Posts: 58 Member
    Cottage cheese has more protein than I expected (as I used to never eat it). I'm sure it's not as dense as lean meats, but it's something that might be easier to fit into breakfast or snacks.
  • joyrachael
    joyrachael Posts: 24 Member
    Thanks so much everyone!
  • izu87
    izu87 Posts: 267 Member
    I'm having the same problem... well not the same, but close to it - I fill my calories just fine, but my protein is always 20-30g away from my goal. :/ I physically cannot force myself to eat anymore meat -___- I used to eat meat once a week, twice at most, and now on a daily basis is just too much :x

    Considering protein powder to use in mornings with my milk and oat flakes... But somewhat panicky about it as a long time ago (8-9 years ago) I was on a herbalife protein shake diet (huuuuuge mistake) and I ended up gaining weight (had to have 2 shakes a day + a normal meal once a day) and living on it for 6 months really made me hate powders and such... Uh.. yeah...

    </end of kidnapping thread>
  • LianaG1115
    LianaG1115 Posts: 453 Member
    Chicken ,turkey. beef (try to keep it lean if you can), fish, greek yogurt, mozzarella sticks (reduced fat), feta cheese, low fat cottage cheese, almonds and other nuts, protein shakes and bars. There's a lot out there ya just gotta read the labels.
  • Booda101
    Booda101 Posts: 161 Member
    Whey protein powder added to Greek yogurt to make a smoothie or with almond milk.
  • ccm1912
    ccm1912 Posts: 39 Member
    I am in the same boat as you, and i naturally dont eat much meat! I'm not vegetarian by any means, but i just dont crave/want it often, so it's hard for me to get protein in the day; i try other sources, like nuts ,but dont have too many because of high calorie count. I also try to include more chickpeas (hummus specifically) and broccoli, but it isn't enough to get it up there.

    Count me in on needing some protein-upping advice!
  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    plan better basically...

    I have to preplan to get all my protien in...and that usually means protien with every meal...eggs, cheese, bacon, seafood, fish, lean cuts of pork, beef, chicken...

    I eat weird combination of foods now...shrimp in my eggs..it wasn't bad actually.
  • izu87
    izu87 Posts: 267 Member
    I am trying to do this - breakfast - milk, lunch - some meat, cheese, snack - milk/yogurt based smoothie, dinner more dairy or meats or eggs... but I still can't get it high enough. I know I should eat more of those, but physically I can't - I'm currently learning how to eat so much protein, and it's haaaard... I feel like a 2-year-old who is being forced to eat some ewie thing... >.>
  • jstout365
    jstout365 Posts: 1,686 Member
    Ok that's what I was thinking. I guess i have to be more balanced during the day.

    Yep.....

    I make sure I fit protein into EVERY meal and snack. I've even had a can of tuna as a snack....just tuna with pepper and lemon juice. Also don't underestimate the power of a protein powder. I use them in recipes like my no-cook fridge oatmeal, cookies, and cheese cake. I know some people add it to their coffee (I haven't had good luck with this one).

    Have protein at every meal. Lean meats will give you the best bang for the buck, but there are grains (quinoa) and veggies (spinach) that have a good protein amount for being plant based. My go to meats are (well, about anything really) chicken thighs, salmon, tuna, shrimp, lean ground beef or lean cuts, pork tenderloin/pork chops, and bacon. I also eat eggs, cheese, yogurt, protein bars, nuts, and the occasional protein shake.

    My diary is open, not really populated the past few weeks, but if you are willing to dig, you can get some ideas of how to fill out the protein.
  • joyrachael
    joyrachael Posts: 24 Member
    Great. Thanks so much for your ideas. I will look through your entries to get more ideas.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    Sometimes by the end of the day i have used up mostly all of my carbs and fat allowance but still have 500 or more calories to go for protein. Just wondering what to eat that's mostly all protein. Any suggestions?

    You can also substitute some carbs like rice for similar types of foods that have more protein like lentils. Rice is pretty much all carb while lentils are 1 to 1 carb and protein. Both can be used in a similar way for foods though.

    A can of tuna is very lean almost entirely protein very little fat. Chicken and turkey breast are also very lean sources of protein.
  • joyrachael
    joyrachael Posts: 24 Member
    Great info. thank you so much.
  • ottermotorcycle
    ottermotorcycle Posts: 654 Member
    Have a protein shake! I mean honestly... what's better than a milkshake at night? Try protein powder, skim milk, and nonfat greek yogurt... maybe freeze the yogurt or add in some frozen fruit. Actually, just having greek yogurt works too.

    I've never been a big fan of eating meat alone but if you've got shrimp and sauce that's a good one. Or jerky if you can take the sodium.
  • joyrachael
    joyrachael Posts: 24 Member
    Wow I love that idea. What exactly do you put in your protein shakes?
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Your protein goal is really high, and your fat goal is pretty low. Where did you get your target macro distribution from? You have it set at 40% carbs, 25% fat and 35% protein. You could easily take some calories from protein and put them toward your fat macro.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    Wow I love that idea. What exactly do you put in your protein shakes?

    Well generally you just buy a powder and add it to either water or milk.

    Personally I love this stuff:

    http://www.vitaminshoppe.com/p/optimum-nutrition-100-whey-gold-double-rich-chocolate-2-lb-powder/op-1009?sourceType=sc&source=FG&adGroup=0-20&keyword=OP-1009&cm_mmc=Google+Shopping-_-Product+Listing+Ads-_-0-20-_-OP-1009&gclid=CLnqxcfFlb4CFQmDfgodPSIAjg&gclsrc=aw.ds

    Tastes like chocolate milk even in water, add it to milk and its extra good. Very high protein, low carb low fat. The shake I have each day has about 70 grams of protein in it.
  • rosebette
    rosebette Posts: 1,660 Member
    I'm having the same problem... well not the same, but close to it - I fill my calories just fine, but my protein is always 20-30g away from my goal. :/ I physically cannot force myself to eat anymore meat -___- I used to eat meat once a week, twice at most, and now on a daily basis is just too much :x

    Considering protein powder to use in mornings with my milk and oat flakes... But somewhat panicky about it as a long time ago (8-9 years ago) I was on a herbalife protein shake diet (huuuuuge mistake) and I ended up gaining weight (had to have 2 shakes a day + a normal meal once a day) and living on it for 6 months really made me hate powders and such... Uh.. yeah...

    </end of kidnapping thread>

    My issue is similar to yours. I end up filling my calories but come up short on protein, and I actually increased my protein macro because I'm trying to build more lean muscle mass. It's also hard to get to my protein goals without going over the fat and cholesterol limits, which I should avoid, since I have high cholesterol.
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member

    My issue is similar to yours. I end up filling my calories but come up short on protein, and I actually increased my protein macro because I'm trying to build more lean muscle mass. It's also hard to get to my protein goals without going over the fat and cholesterol limits, which I should avoid, since I have high cholesterol.

    You will gain lean muscle mass by eating at a caloric surplus while supplying with protein and heavy lifting exercise. You will not build lean muscle mass if you are at a caloric deficit no matter how much protein you eat.

    If your body feels it needs to harvest its own tissue (fat stores) to supply you with enough calories (what happens in caloric deficit) its not going to bother to try to build muscle at the same time.
  • rosebette
    rosebette Posts: 1,660 Member

    My issue is similar to yours. I end up filling my calories but come up short on protein, and I actually increased my protein macro because I'm trying to build more lean muscle mass. It's also hard to get to my protein goals without going over the fat and cholesterol limits, which I should avoid, since I have high cholesterol.

    You will gain lean muscle mass by eating at a caloric surplus while supplying with protein and heavy lifting exercise. You will not build lean muscle mass if you are at a caloric deficit no matter how much protein you eat.

    If your body feels it needs to harvest its own tissue (fat stores) to supply you with enough calories (what happens in caloric deficit) its not going to bother to try to build muscle at the same time.

    Will I gain weight if I start eating more? I'm small female around 5'1.5" and around 120 lbs, and older (55). The nutritionist suggested I may have plateaued in weight loss both because I'm at a normal BMI for my size and because I do strength training and quite a bit of cardio. I am a bit concerned that if I up my calories, I'll start gaining back since maintenance isn't very high for my size.
    It took me about 3 months to lose 4 lbs. and 1% bodyfat on a 1200 net. Most of the time, I eat back all my exercise calories.

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