Protein-how can I hit my goal?

moldovitsa
moldovitsa Posts: 15 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm finding it challenging to hit my protein goals and stay under my calorie goal. My daily calorie goal is 1,600 and my protein goal is about 144 grams, but I'm always short of it and significantly so. I seem to always be over in my carbs and sugar column. If I were to eat steak and lots of protein rich foods, I would go over my calories, so I'm torn. What am I missing?

Replies

  • nikkohli
    nikkohli Posts: 311 Member
    I love Quest bars. And chicken.....lots of grilled chicken. One of my favorite snacks is a few tomato slices, topped with a few small chicken slices, each spread with goat cheese and topped with a leaf of fresh basil!!
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,603 Member
    Eat baked chicken breast, eggs, tuna (in water), fat-free cottage cheese. Some people like protein drinks. I know they're a big hit with college kids who lift weights...but these kids are spouting off nutritional nonsense on a regular basis, so there's that. I know you can get protein from Ensure, so I assume (but don't know) protein drinks/shakes work.

    This may help:

    http://www.fitness.gov/eat-healthy/how-to-eat-healthy/
  • smokeyser
    smokeyser Posts: 9
    As the others said, chicken is #1 for lean protein. Steak is great too, but be wary of the fat. It adds a LOT of calories and makes it harder to fit into your diet. Fish is also good as it's low in calories, high in omega 3's, and high in protein. If you find yourself craving sweets, try a protein shake (100% whey) made with skim (or almond) milk and a tablespoon or two of peanut butter. It satisfies the sweet craving and gives a ton of protein at the same time. My favorite is chocolate whey, peanut butter, and a banana. Tastes incredible and it's loaded with all sorts of nutrients.
  • kazzsj0urney
    kazzsj0urney Posts: 57
    I use protein powder, quest bars, full fat dairy, chicken breast, eggs, tuna. A good idea for high protein and fairly low calories is some greek yoghurt and mix protein powder into it....it kinda comes out like a flavoured mousse texture.
  • neveragain84
    neveragain84 Posts: 534 Member
    It isn't ever going to be a perfect science. Just do your best and enjoy the journey and don't over think it. I eat a lot of low fat cottage cheese or Greek yogurt. I know I push the Greek yogurt a lot, but it really does good things. Tasty, packed with protein, low calorie, etc. Protein powder is also a good idea.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    Muscle milk, protein bars, BEEF, tuna, chicken, Greek yogurt.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    I had this same problem, and finally purchased a pea protein powder, because I am soy and lactose intolerant. It really helps. Pea powder is unflavored and very basic (nothing but....pea powder), so it's taken some experimentation to make it taste better. Some Stevia, a banana, ice, and it takes just fine.
  • DopeItUp
    DopeItUp Posts: 18,771 Member
    Center your meals around some sort of meat. Lots of meat. Supplement if needed. 144g of protein is almost exactly a third of your intake so it should be pretty easy, especially if you threw a protein bar or shake in there.
  • Peacockbutterfly
    Peacockbutterfly Posts: 90 Member
    I have Greek yogurt with protein powder mixed in every morning. That makes getting to my protein goal much easier.
  • moldovitsa
    moldovitsa Posts: 15 Member
    Thank you all for the advice! Chicken seems to be the popular choice, and I've been doing a lot of that, but I'm not a fan of white meat and dark meat is higher in fat and calories. I seem to have a taste for things that are fattening :) I wish I could incorporate greek yogurt, but I'm on a low fodmap diet due to digestive issues and it restricts dairy along along with other things. The other day I tried eating tuna out of a can to try to get more protein, but it just felt like I was force feeding myself, it just felt disgusting and I wasn't really enjoying it, mostly just eating just to meet my goal. It's very strange having to eat for necessity instead of enjoyment. Food has always been a comfort and enjoyment for me, but now since there's so many things I can't enjoy due to the elimination diet I'm on and along with keeping track of calories, eating is not fun anymore and there's been days where I couldn't even eat my calories needed for the day. Has anyone else felt this way? I feel like I've almost lost a good friend or something lol, but I'm determined to make this work, so I just keep reminding myself of what's important.
  • Cc215
    Cc215 Posts: 228 Member
    Thank you all for the advice! Chicken seems to be the popular choice, and I've been doing a lot of that, but I'm not a fan of white meat and dark meat is higher in fat and calories. I seem to have a taste for things that are fattening :) I wish I could incorporate greek yogurt, but I'm on a low fodmap diet due to digestive issues and it restricts dairy along along with other things. The other day I tried eating tuna out of a can to try to get more protein, but it just felt like I was force feeding myself, it just felt disgusting and I wasn't really enjoying it, mostly just eating just to meet my goal. It's very strange having to eat for necessity instead of enjoyment. Food has always been a comfort and enjoyment for me, but now since there's so many things I can't enjoy due to the elimination diet I'm on and along with keeping track of calories, eating is not fun anymore and there's been days where I couldn't even eat my calories needed for the day. Has anyone else felt this way? I feel like I've almost lost a good friend or something lol, but I'm determined to make this work, so I just keep reminding myself of what's important.

    I feel your pain - I'm struggling to hit my protein goal too.

    I've just added protein powder to my diet - half a scoop in each of my morning coffees is working for me at the moment. I also have a protein shake after a lifting work out. These are helping considerably!

    I've also taken to buying precooked chicken and snacking on this.

    As for the tuna out of the can - Yuck!! I couldn't get through that - but take it out of the can, mix with some extra low fat mayonaisse and some chopped up cucumber and tomato, it still low calorie and it's sudddenly much easier to eat :)

    How strict is your calorie deficit? Is there room to up it slightly so that you can eat the occassional steak? Of course you'd lose little more slowly - but if it makes it a happier, easier process for you then it might be worth it in the long run.
  • williams969
    williams969 Posts: 2,528 Member
    I ate a TON of chicken breasts during the first several weeks of my weight loss. Now, I love chicken, but dang, I HATE white meat, lol. Lately I've switched fully to boneless, skinless thighs, and the fat content is so slight. Srs, I think 5g more fat per cooked 100g serving; I'll gladly "pay" ~50 calories for FLAVOR. Don't quote me on the exact numbers, but it's small enough that I will make it work, if it means forgoing a pat of butter for the day for my chicken.

    Don't be afraid to look at "fattier" cuts of meat. More often than not, these cuts can be cooked without adding additional fats, anyway. And if it tastes better, we're more apt to actually eat it all, instead of falling too short on protein.
  • moldovitsa
    moldovitsa Posts: 15 Member
    I should explain that yes, there is room for steak and higher fat foods and I have those, but try to limit to maybe once a week. I have to say, I love meat, but I'm getting kind of sick of meat and eggs. That's why I attempted to add some variety with the tuna :)) and yes, I could have used some mayo and tomatoes and cucumbers (funny, 'cause that's what I was thinking I should have done the entire time I was trying to force down the tuna), but I kept thinking that adding the mayo, it's more fat, I was over on my fat and all I needed was protein. It does play tricks on your mind a little having to break it down like this. I'll get the hang of it and I don't want to supplement it with whey, because I want to change what I eat and develop sustainable long-term habits of including more protein in my diet on a daily basis over carbs (which I love oh so much). If I allowed myself to eat what I really want, it would be cake and pastries all day, everyday paired with a nice glass of wine and then maybe followed by fresh fruit. Basically sugar in various forms. :)
  • itsbasschick
    itsbasschick Posts: 1,584 Member
    i either eat some plain fage 0% greek yogurt or have a fat free, no or ultra low carb whey protein drink on days when i need more protein. they're both quick and easy, and are almost pure protein.

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