Is it true I will lose muscle instead of fat if I don't eat enough protein?

GA_1019 wrote: »

I have lost a lot of weight through diet and walking alone. I have about 40 pounds left to go. Weird thing is....I seem to still have A LOT of fat on my body.

My friend told me today that if I don't eat enough protein, I will lose muscle instead of fat. Is this true? Is this why I still have a lot of fat? I don't strength train, I'm currently only walking/jogging 3x a week.

I eat as healthy as I can, but I admit I don't eat much protein.

If you have fat, you need to continue to eat at a calorie deficit.
How many calories a day are you eating?

You need to eat protein. It is in meat, cheese, nuts, peanut butter, beans, green vegetables.
If you do not eat enough protein, you will lose muscle.
How many grams of protein a day are you eating?

GA_1019 wrote: »

I am eating about 40 grams of protein or so.

Sounds low to me. I think 1g per pound or 1g per pound of lean body mass is recommended.

But then again I can never get a clear answer.

But 40 that would be under what mfp recommends right?

I think the best way to go about it would be to make sure you reach or exceed you protein and fat macros and fill in the remain calories with carbs.

Try chicken fish lentils Greek yogurt.

GA_1019 wrote: »

I don't purposely not eat enough protein, it just kind of happens that way. i'm somewhat of a picky eater, I don't like meat/fish and the powder-based protein shakes. I have a lot of fat to lose, and I don't have any muscle mass. I really just want to make sure I'm not losing muscles though because I need to lose this fat. What should I do? Do I have to start weight lifting?
I'm a female, and have about 40-50 pounds left to go. If this makes a difference.

You can eat eggs, lentils, beans (pinto beans, black beans, . . .) pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, cheese.
Name twelve things that you eat.

GA_1019 wrote: »

I don't purposely not eat enough protein, it just kind of happens that way. i'm somewhat of a picky eater, I don't like meat/fish and the powder-based protein shakes. I have a lot of fat to lose, and I don't have any muscle mass. I really just want to make sure I'm not losing muscles though because I need to lose this fat. What should I do? Do I have to start weight lifting?
I'm a female, and have about 40-50 pounds left to go. If this makes a difference.

If by protein shakes you mean some supermarket rubbish or, even worse, some fad-diet based rubbish, then I can see why you don't like them. The Optimum Nutrition chocolate/strawberry Pro Complex ones taste exactly like milkshakes. Like... EXACTLY like nesquick. Pricey, but a "picky eater's" dream.

As Pu_239 said, at the end of the day you don't have a lot of choice if you want to maintain muscle.

P.S. I hate that phrase...

Well here is a thread that demonstrated quite brilliantly the difference between fat and muscle:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10165445/fat-skinny-fat-fit-imgz#latest

Pay very close attention to the "lightest" and "healthiest" photos and the difference between them, even though "lightest" is 10 lbs lighter.

Bread isn't protein

greek yogurt is low-fat to fat free and has 10-15g protein per serving. fruit tends to have a lot of sugar which can slow the fat burning process. protein bars can be ok if you don't like the shakes, i buy premier brand at walmart they're cheap have 30g protein and only 6-8g fat 8-10g sugar. lifting will help but then you really want protein, doesn't need to be heavy weightlifting and don't worry you won't get all buff and manly looking or whatever (women seem to think that will happen, getting big muscles takes a lot of work or more dudes would have them)

Hello I will add my own experience for you. I managed to get down to my goal weight with diet and only walking for exercise- so I have already gone where you are headed. I did not eat enough protein and I lost a LOT of muscle. I am finally succeeding in putting it back by lifting weights and eating protein. I hear you- I would much rather have bread and butter too, but I now eat a lot more chicken and fish and even lean beef. Gotta do it.

GA_1019 wrote: »

Can someone tell me how many grams of protein I should be having daily? Weight is 187.

You are to calculate based on your Lean Body Mass - not the same thing as Body Mass.
--
Here is a us gov site that does the calculation for you but the number they come up with is for the bare minimum. You can over it.
http://fnic.nal.usda.gov/fnic/interactiveDRI/index.php

GA_1019 wrote: »

I like oatmeal or a somewhat healthy cereal for breakfast - I use almond milk and add fruit
lunch I usually make a chicken (yes I will eat chicken :P) sandwich and I will put cheese on it, and something like spinach or lettuce.
dinner is usually mostly a carb based meal with veggies - like a potato or rice with veggies. I don't usually eat much protein at dinner because I'm having trouble finding other protein sources that I like.

Getting lots of protein from non meat and no supplements takes a bit of planning, but it's certainly not impossible. I am vegetarian and aim for 100-105 grams per day, no supplements.
Greek yoghurt, cheese (mainly cheddar, haloumi, and fetta around here), non-fat milk, green lentils, eggs, tofu, vegie sausages, other gluten-based vegie protein products, and nuts are all good protein sources.

A large bowl of non-fat greek yoghurt with chopped almonds, a cut up apple or two, and a few tablespoons of oats gives me about 40 grams of protein in a single meal (around 550-600 calories and if I was still losing rather than maintaining, I'd just cut out the oats).
I made shepherd's pie this week with green lentils and roast vegies in the stew topped with cheesy mashed potato, just over 500 calories per serve and 27 grams of protein.