Hi. I am new to fitness pal and wondering - Do I really need to eat this much Protein?
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What many people are saying is correct;R" but remember that your guided amount of protein is worked out by a mathematical calculation based on data you've given them, and isn't 100% specific. Also it's only a guided recommendation. I am a power lifter and for my size I have a very high protein intake. Personally, I use shakes that are high in protein and low is carbs and fat to top at meal times. I order them from MyProtein, they do many varieties for differing diets and you can see the macros that are in the products. They also do protein cookies and all sorts so good for cravings!
Ask more if you need xx
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MimiJaneFitness wrote: »Remember that your guided amount of protein is worked out by a mathematical calculation based on data you've given them, and isn't 100% specific.
It's even simpler than that. MFP by default says to eat 20% of your calories from protein. There's no basis for that ratio -- it's just arbitrary.
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gabrielleelliott90 wrote: »Course not. Eat whatever you want. Just make sure you eat your calories.
This made me laugh, there is a lot more to dieting than just calorie counting. In fact I'd go as far to say calories are less important than looking at the specifics. What's going to be better for you, 1500 calories of a high % fat crisp, or 1500 of a balanced diet filled with essential proteins and fibres? Duh!!0 -
Wow! Everybody has been so helpful! I don't really exercise as yet very much so from what I am hearing, eating protein is good for gaining muscle as you increase activity. I definitely was helped by some of this information like how much protein per kilogram and all your comments. As I am very overweight, the amount of protein suggested is very high so that is why I was a bit surprised. I will definitely try some other protein sources suggested by different members like protein supplements or yogurt seems to be a favorite with a lot of you.. Many thanks for everyone's support!0
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I hope you are eating more than 1200 calories a day. At that level the protein level is important to keep your body from pirating needed protein from your muscles.
Look at it this way. Focus on your calorie target first of all and work at getting close to the protein goal.
Even when I was morbidly obese I hit my protein targets by including protein of one sort or another at every meal. Part of my diabetic training.0 -
Wow! Everybody has been so helpful! I don't really exercise as yet very much so from what I am hearing, eating protein is good for gaining muscle as you increase activity. I definitely was helped by some of this information like how much protein per kilogram and all your comments. As I am very overweight, the amount of protein suggested is very high so that is why I was a bit surprised. I will definitely try some other protein sources suggested by different members like protein supplements or yogurt seems to be a favorite with a lot of you.. Many thanks for everyone's support!
How much is your calorie intake currently?
Protein is not only for gaining muscle, but the fact that you have quite a bit of weight to lose will mitigate how much protein you need
Greek yoghurt is a great way to get your protein up. I often have a bowl with some fruit added (fruit does not contain more than trace amounts of protein) for flavor.
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You do not need to focus on protein. Focus on high quality calories.0
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No, this is not right. You gain weight from eating too much food in general. Macro balance is for health, calories in/calories out is for weight loss.azulvioleta6 wrote: »Not getting enough protein and getting too much of other things might be part of why you are overweight in the first place.
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MimiJaneFitness wrote: »This made me laugh, there is a lot more to dieting than just calorie counting. In fact I'd go as far to say calories are less important than looking at the specifics. What's going to be better for you, 1500 calories of a high % fat crisp, or 1500 of a balanced diet filled with essential proteins and fibres? Duh!!
In terms of losing weight, it's calories in, calories out. It doesn't actually matter if your 1500 calories come from a balanced diet or from chips. There are no "good" or "bad" foods; there's just food.
In terms of being healthy, getting your nutritional needs met, and feeling full and satiated, then yes, you want to make sure to get a reasonably balanced diet.
However, a reasonably balanced diet still has room for some crisps with a high % percentage, if those are your thing. 100% "clean" eating is NOT necessary to lose weight. I've lost 30 pounds since October, and I eat chocolate almost every day. In fact I'd argue that excessively restricting yourself is a great way to end up giving up and quitting before you achieve your goals.Wow! Everybody has been so helpful! I don't really exercise as yet very much so from what I am hearing, eating protein is good for gaining muscle as you increase activity.
Just to clarify: You're unlikely to actually gain muscle while eating at a calorie deficit. What you want to do is hang onto as much as possible of the muscle that you have right now, so that the weight you lose comes from fat and not muscle. Protein is good to help repair muscles after strength training, but there's a limit to how much is beneficial so no need to go overboard here.I definitely was helped by some of this information like how much protein per kilogram and all your comments. As I am very overweight, the amount of protein suggested is very high so that is why I was a bit surprised.
MFP gives a default goal of getting 20% of your calories from protein. You can go into "goals" and customize it to whatever you like, if you want to use a number that's closer to one of the formulas that people suggested. Totally up to you. But since you're new at this, the 20% rule isn't a bad place to start, especially if you're having trouble getting even that much.
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No, this is not right. You gain weight from eating too much food in general. Macro balance is for health, calories in/calories out is for weight loss.azulvioleta6 wrote: »Not getting enough protein and getting too much of other things might be part of why you are overweight in the first place.
Sure...but if you are chronically not getting enough protein to keep you feeling full, you are more likely to overeat...leading to eating too much in general.0 -
Eisenstein & Roberts (2002): In short-term studies, dietary protein modulates energy intake via the sensation of satiety and increases total energy expenditure by increasing the thermic effect of feeding. Whereas these effects did not contribute to weight and fat loss in those studies in which energy intake was fixed, one ad libitum study does suggest that a high-protein diet results in a greater decrease in energy intake, and therefore greater weight and fat loss. In terms of safety, there is little long-term information on the health effects of high-protein diets.
Westerterp-Plantenga et al (2009): The role of dietary protein in weight loss and weight maintenance encompasses influences on crucial targets for body weight regulation, namely satiety, thermogenesis, energy efficiency, and body composition... Dietary protein even increases bone mineral mass and reduces incidence of osteoporotic fracture. During weight loss, nitrogen intake positively affects calcium balance and consequent preservation of bone mineral content... However, the long-term relationship between net protein synthesis and sparing fat-free mass remains to be elucidated.
Layman et al (2003): the ideal ratio of dietary carbohydrate to protein for adult health and weight management remains unknown... Weight loss in the Protein Group was partitioned to a significantly higher loss of fat/lean (6.3 ± 1.2 g/g) compared with the CHO Group (3.8 ± 0.9)... This study demonstrates that increasing the proportion of protein to carbohydrate in the diet of adult women has positive effects on body composition, blood lipids, glucose homeostasis and satiety during weight loss.
There are a lot more articles out there, but these are three I could find off the top that I thought might help with your question
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billieljaime wrote: »happyfeetrebel1 wrote: »My dietician recommended one gram of protein per inch of height. IE, I'm 71 inches tall so I should aim for 71 grams. Some cottage cheese, greek yogurt and a chicken breast will do it for me.
I think the USRDA for protein in general is around 50 g per day.billieljaime wrote: »the USDA recommends 49 grams per day for an adult woman
Wrong. The USDA gives a recommended range which is 10-35% of your daily calories which, based on a 2000 calorie diet, can range from 50 to 175 grams a day.
its only a minimum requirement simply stating one does not "need" to get more than one needs
people get too caught up in the protein craze which can lead to unsatisfaction and weight GAIN
we often dont need as much as we eat. .6 - 1 gram x lb of body weight. I even do it times lb of desired body weight not current body weight. Also people get hung up on "meat" forgetting other numerous protein sources including nuts and plants.
Depending on where you're starting from, .6 times body weight can still be a lot!
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FoCoAlphaNerd wrote: »I eat mostly vegan and have been overweight my whole life. For the first time ever I have seriously paid attention to my protein intake. It has made a HUGE difference for me. I'm actually able to build muscle and daily tasks are easier than they've ever been, and I have more energy.
I am not going to say that I hit my goal every day but I get as much protein in as possile for the way I prefert to eat.
Here's some recommendations.
- Find a protein powder you like, I do two scoops daily. Try to find one with high protein, low calories, and low sugar. I would recommend Abouttime or Quest.
- Eat a protein bar daily. Again I recommend Quest. 170 cal, 20g Protein, 1g sugar, 19g fiber. The best thing. They taste like a candy bar and have clean ingredients.
- Dannon light and fit yogurt. Great flavors, 80 cal and I think 15g protein...the highest cal to protein ratio I've found.
- I eat an everything bagel( Franz -9g protein) with a mixture of a can of tuna (25 g protein), half an avocado, and plain greek yogurt ( I use tillamook farmstyle, 13g in 1/4 of a cup I believe) and I put a little lemon juice in it.
Hope this helps feel free to add or message me!!!!
haha, Is it just me, or was there not one vegan thing on that list?
Lol, that's why I said MOSTLY, I love yogurt. But I use the vegan abouttime. I've found that with me being 200lbs, I can't be strictly vegan and still get enough protein. So a serving and a half of yogurt, a protein bar, and a can of tuna are my non-vegan foods in a day, lol. I just try to keep it minimal.0 -
FoCoAlphaNerd wrote: »I eat mostly vegan and have been overweight my whole life. For the first time ever I have seriously paid attention to my protein intake. It has made a HUGE difference for me. I'm actually able to build muscle and daily tasks are easier than they've ever been, and I have more energy.
I am not going to say that I hit my goal every day but I get as much protein in as possile for the way I prefert to eat.
Here's some recommendations.
- Find a protein powder you like, I do two scoops daily. Try to find one with high protein, low calories, and low sugar. I would recommend Abouttime or Quest.
- Eat a protein bar daily. Again I recommend Quest. 170 cal, 20g Protein, 1g sugar, 19g fiber. The best thing. They taste like a candy bar and have clean ingredients.
- Dannon light and fit yogurt. Great flavors, 80 cal and I think 15g protein...the highest cal to protein ratio I've found.
- I eat an everything bagel( Franz -9g protein) with a mixture of a can of tuna (25 g protein), half an avocado, and plain greek yogurt ( I use tillamook farmstyle, 13g in 1/4 of a cup I believe) and I put a little lemon juice in it.
Hope this helps feel free to add or message me!!!!
haha, Is it just me, or was there not one vegan thing on that list?
Lol, that's why I said MOSTLY, I love yogurt. But I use the vegan abouttime. I've found that with me being 200lbs, I can't be strictly vegan and still get enough protein. So a serving and a half of yogurt, a protein bar, and a can of tuna are my non-vegan foods in a day, lol. I just try to keep it minimal.
Sorry but you're not mostly vegan if you eat those things. There is no such thing as mostly vegan.
You're either vegan, vegetarian, pescetarian or omnivore. You appear to be a pescetarian.0 -
When I first joined MFP four years ago (different account), I just paid attention to calories. Once I started aiming for about 100g of protein a day, I was amazed at how much better I felt. Able to run longer and faster, able to hold planks longer, doing pushups from toes instead of from knees, etc. My hair and nails grew faster, too. Sometimes annoyingly so... it's like I'm constantly trimming my bangs and filing my nails to keep from poking my eyes out.
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Worry about calories to begin with and macros later, once you get the hang of it.0
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MimiJaneFitness wrote: »Remember that your guided amount of protein is worked out by a mathematical calculation based on data you've given them, and isn't 100% specific.
It's even simpler than that. MFP by default says to eat 20% of your calories from protein. There's no basis for that ratio -- it's just arbitrary.
It isn't totally arbitrary. Like the other macro defaults, they picked a number that is in the middle of the range recommended by the USDA. It isn't totally arbitrary
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FoCoAlphaNerd wrote: »I eat mostly vegan and have been overweight my whole life. For the first time ever I have seriously paid attention to my protein intake. It has made a HUGE difference for me. I'm actually able to build muscle and daily tasks are easier than they've ever been, and I have more energy.
I am not going to say that I hit my goal every day but I get as much protein in as possile for the way I prefert to eat.
Here's some recommendations.
- Find a protein powder you like, I do two scoops daily. Try to find one with high protein, low calories, and low sugar. I would recommend Abouttime or Quest.
- Eat a protein bar daily. Again I recommend Quest. 170 cal, 20g Protein, 1g sugar, 19g fiber. The best thing. They taste like a candy bar and have clean ingredients.
- Dannon light and fit yogurt. Great flavors, 80 cal and I think 15g protein...the highest cal to protein ratio I've found.
- I eat an everything bagel( Franz -9g protein) with a mixture of a can of tuna (25 g protein), half an avocado, and plain greek yogurt ( I use tillamook farmstyle, 13g in 1/4 of a cup I believe) and I put a little lemon juice in it.
Hope this helps feel free to add or message me!!!!
haha, Is it just me, or was there not one vegan thing on that list?
Lol, that's why I said MOSTLY, I love yogurt. But I use the vegan abouttime. I've found that with me being 200lbs, I can't be strictly vegan and still get enough protein. So a serving and a half of yogurt, a protein bar, and a can of tuna are my non-vegan foods in a day, lol. I just try to keep it minimal.
Vegan isn't one of those things that you can be "mostly". You are or you aren't.0 -
cosmo_momo wrote: »Unless you are a growing child, or are body building you do not need to eat an excess of protein. I repeat, YOU DO NOT NEED TO EAT AN EXCESS OF PROTEIN. Having said that, if protein helps keep you full longer, by all means eat it. I eat very little protein (averaging 9-15% of my daily calories, usually 30-50g) and have done so for the last two months. Unless you are literally starving yourself, you WILL NOT have a protein deficiency. That is not a thing.
calories in/calories out.
You realize that we need protein to maintain/build muscle and for a bunch of other stuff like cell turnover. 30 - 50g of protein, especially on a deficit and if active is too low to be adequate to maintain muscle mass, particularly if not significantly overweight.
You do not need an excess of anything, but having a sufficient amount is beneficial.
Pshhh. You probably don't even lift.
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Iron_Feline wrote: »FoCoAlphaNerd wrote: »I eat mostly vegan and have been overweight my whole life. For the first time ever I have seriously paid attention to my protein intake. It has made a HUGE difference for me. I'm actually able to build muscle and daily tasks are easier than they've ever been, and I have more energy.
I am not going to say that I hit my goal every day but I get as much protein in as possile for the way I prefert to eat.
Here's some recommendations.
- Find a protein powder you like, I do two scoops daily. Try to find one with high protein, low calories, and low sugar. I would recommend Abouttime or Quest.
- Eat a protein bar daily. Again I recommend Quest. 170 cal, 20g Protein, 1g sugar, 19g fiber. The best thing. They taste like a candy bar and have clean ingredients.
- Dannon light and fit yogurt. Great flavors, 80 cal and I think 15g protein...the highest cal to protein ratio I've found.
- I eat an everything bagel( Franz -9g protein) with a mixture of a can of tuna (25 g protein), half an avocado, and plain greek yogurt ( I use tillamook farmstyle, 13g in 1/4 of a cup I believe) and I put a little lemon juice in it.
Hope this helps feel free to add or message me!!!!
haha, Is it just me, or was there not one vegan thing on that list?
Lol, that's why I said MOSTLY, I love yogurt. But I use the vegan abouttime. I've found that with me being 200lbs, I can't be strictly vegan and still get enough protein. So a serving and a half of yogurt, a protein bar, and a can of tuna are my non-vegan foods in a day, lol. I just try to keep it minimal.
Sorry but you're not mostly vegan if you eat those things. There is no such thing as mostly vegan.
You're either vegan, vegetarian, pescetarian or omnivore. You appear to be a pescetarian.
Many I know just say that they eat a primarily plant based diet and forget the labels.
On the same note, I thing vegan is being misrepresented. Vegan does not "just" mean that you do not eat meat, it means that you use no animal products for any reason. You do not eat meat, dairy, eggs, gelatin, lard, suet, or honey. You do not use anything made from leather, fur, or wool. You do not use perfumes that include musk or ambergris.
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Liftng4Lis wrote: »Worry about calories to begin with and macros later, once you get the hang of it.
I fully agree with this. Those who have a lot to lose have a lot of time to play around with the macros to figure out what works best. Learn portion control first, then work out the best way for you to get the best nutritional bang for your buck.
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^^ This once you master the calorie mastered, then you can master the macro. IIFIYM0
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Timorous_Beastie wrote: »My hair and nails grew faster, too. Sometimes annoyingly so... it's like I'm constantly trimming my bangs and filing my nails to keep from poking my eyes out.
Many years ago I lost a lot of weight and ate low fat, which also didn't give me enough protein. 6 months in, I ended up losing 1/2 my hair. It was coming out in clumps. It also took a couple of years before it totally recovered.
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Just lol@ assorted wrongness on this thread.The DRI (Dietary Reference Intake) is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, or 0.36 grams per pound (1). This amounts to (2, 3): 56 grams per day for the average sedentary man. 46 grams per day for the average sedentary woman.
Its more if you are exercising.
Keep it simple OP, hit that target as a minimum, but eat more if working out. Just google for a list of foods that contain protein. Meat is a good source. Iy will normally sort it out of you just manage the calories as well as eat a balanced varied diet.0 -
billieljaime wrote: »happyfeetrebel1 wrote: »My dietician recommended one gram of protein per inch of height. IE, I'm 71 inches tall so I should aim for 71 grams. Some cottage cheese, greek yogurt and a chicken breast will do it for me.
I think the USRDA for protein in general is around 50 g per day.billieljaime wrote: »the USDA recommends 49 grams per day for an adult woman
Wrong. The USDA gives a recommended range which is 10-35% of your daily calories which, based on a 2000 calorie diet, can range from 50 to 175 grams a day.
its only a minimum requirement simply stating one does not "need" to get more than one needs
people get too caught up in the protein craze which can lead to unsatisfaction and weight GAIN
we often dont need as much as we eat. .6 - 1 gram x lb of body weight. I even do it times lb of desired body weight not current body weight. Also people get hung up on "meat" forgetting other numerous protein sources including nuts and plants.
Right, nuts have protein but theyre a pretty crap way about hitting your protein goal since they're a better fat source.0 -
billieljaime wrote: »happyfeetrebel1 wrote: »My dietician recommended one gram of protein per inch of height. IE, I'm 71 inches tall so I should aim for 71 grams. Some cottage cheese, greek yogurt and a chicken breast will do it for me.
I think the USRDA for protein in general is around 50 g per day.billieljaime wrote: »the USDA recommends 49 grams per day for an adult woman
Wrong. The USDA gives a recommended range which is 10-35% of your daily calories which, based on a 2000 calorie diet, can range from 50 to 175 grams a day.
its only a minimum requirement simply stating one does not "need" to get more than one needs
Why would you eat the bare minimum needed for survival when you can eat more and be healthier? How much more than the survival minimum varies from person to person depending on their needs and preferences. The very overweight actually have more lean body mass than people assume. It takes a lot of muscle to move all of that weight around, it just is covered by a lot of fat also. Eating enough protein to maintain those muscles while losing the fat is imperative.
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No, this is not right. You gain weight from eating too much food in general. Macro balance is for health, calories in/calories out is for weight loss.azulvioleta6 wrote: »Not getting enough protein and getting too much of other things might be part of why you are overweight in the first place.
But proper macro balance makes it much easier to achieve one's desired CICO goals.
Eating low protein while trying to lose weight is a bad idea for a lot of reasons already written in this particular thread several times.0 -
Iron_Feline wrote: »There is no such thing as mostly vegan.
Actually there are a lot of people who eat a "mostly vegan" diet. For some reason this offends the purists. How dare they!?!?!?!0 -
Iron_Feline wrote: »There is no such thing as mostly vegan.
Actually there are a lot of people who eat a "mostly vegan" diet. For some reason this offends the purists. How dare they!?!?!?!
Then they are not vegan, they are vegetarian. Vegetarian is a way of eating, vegan is a total lifestyle. (BTW, I am neither. I like my meat and dairy and I live in wool and my moosehide mukluks all winter.)
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