Am I eating enough?

Hi, just wanted some opinions if I am eating enough food. Daily recommendation is to eat 225g of protein a day- this would be my typical day of eating whilst training.

8am- Omelette or Greek yogurt or fruit
10am- Protein Shake
12pm- 250g Chicken and 1/2 packet of Uncle bens rice, BCCA Powder
2-3pm- Fruit, protein bar
5pm- (pre workout) Protein Shake and BCCA Powder
7pm- Eveining Meal- 250g Chicken/Fish and 1/2 packet of uncle bens rice
10pm- Protein Shake/bar
«1

Replies

  • richardpkennedy1
    richardpkennedy1 Posts: 1,890 Member
    It's a lot more than I eat. What's your current weight and goal?
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
    Plug it into your food diary and it will give you a cals plus P/C/F breakdown.

    By the way 225g P is pretty high - not sure on your stats but when strength training/body building etc recommendation is 1g per lb lean body mass. Anymore isn't bad (unless you have health issues in which case you need to eat as per Dr recommendations) but will give no extra benefit.
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    I weigh 13.5 Stone or 189 pounds, Goal is a tricky one, I'm trying to cut but gain a bit of size too, so im weight training 4 times a week at least, and doing HIT training 3 times a week.....I play football also once a week.
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    Yes, no, maybe. How many calories is that in total?

    Enough for what?

    You're consuming very little fat.
    You have no variety.

    Are you meeting your calorie, macro and micronutritional needs?
    Are you satisfied?
    Are you maximising your training potential?

    Short answer, dunno.
  • richardpkennedy1
    richardpkennedy1 Posts: 1,890 Member
    I weigh 13.5 Stone or 189 pounds, Goal is a tricky one, I'm trying to cut but gain a bit of size too, so im weight training 4 times a week at least, and doing HIT training 3 times a week.....I play football also once a week.

    225g of protein is plenty for a guy your size. You can even lower it to 170 or 180. I'm 10.5 stone (147 lbs) and I'm on around 110g of protein. 2000 calories per day and weight training 3 days a week and cardio on 3 other days.

  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    Answer is I don't know as that's why im asking :) I agree with you on variety, I eat a lot of variety of meet, and I will mix the carb up from rice, sweet potatoes, egg noodles, or Risotto....etc. I really struggle to eat Vegetables.....Cant stand any of them, someone suggested blending them up, but do I just drink one vegetable shake a day? Im trying to Cut tbf, hence low fats, if I do have fats generally healthy fats. Ive only started training again as been out of about 5 months with a broken collar bone
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
    I weigh 13.5 Stone or 189 pounds, Goal is a tricky one, I'm trying to cut but gain a bit of size too, so im weight training 4 times a week at least, and doing HIT training 3 times a week.....I play football also once a week.

    If we assume that you are at 15% BF (no idea if that is the case because I'm hopeless at judging BF from pictures and the tattoos make it a little harder) then you would need about 160g P per day.

    Trying to cut fat and gain muscle at the same time is not easy and can be a slow process (for some, slower than bulking then cutting) but in order to do that the strength training is of paramount importance. Get on a respected, progressive program (http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10332083/which-lifting-program-is-the-best-for-you).

    Next, ensure that your calories are spot on - To lose fat you need to be eating less than you need, but in your position (not in the overweight or obese categories) you should only shoot for about 1lb per week of fat loss. This is a 500 cal drop from your maintenance cals.
  • rebellez
    rebellez Posts: 11 Member
    Yes you're not eating enough vegetables and you know it! Try different recipes because you may not be cooking/preparing them in the most delicious ways. You can always make recipes that hide veges - like burgers with grated zucchini and carrot or mashed "sweet potato" with cauliflower mixed in it.
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    Can I try blending Veg with fruit and do it that way- id imagine that will be a lot more tolerable. if so how many should I drink a day? or does that depend on what I put in it and how much?
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    How many calories is all that?

    You probably need to decide if you're bulking, cutting or doing recomp?
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    How many calories is all that?

    You probably need to decide if you're bulking, cutting or doing recomp?

    Recomp- not heard of that one? Im trying to do both....or at least sustain muscle mass.....im trying to lose the belly again, cut up and get shredded.
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    and around 1800-2000 calories a day
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    You need to know how many calories you are consuming by logging accurately.

    Monitor results and trends over a sustained period.

    Adjust as necessary according to goal.
    Answer is I don't know as that's why im asking :) I agree with you on variety, I eat a lot of variety of meet, and I will mix the carb up from rice, sweet potatoes, egg noodles, or Risotto....etc. I really struggle to eat Vegetables.....Cant stand any of them, someone suggested blending them up, but do I just drink one vegetable shake a day? Im trying to Cut tbf, hence low fats, if I do have fats generally healthy fats. Ive only started training again as been out of about 5 months with a broken collar bone

    Dietary fats do not make you fat. Excess calories do. Dietary fats are a massively important in hormone regulation and vitamin absorption.

    In your position I'd be looking at a very small calorie deficit with appropriate macronutritional goals whilst maintaining your training regime.
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    cityruss wrote: »
    You need to know how many calories you are consuming by logging accurately.

    Monitor results and trends over a sustained period.

    Adjust as necessary according to goal.
    Answer is I don't know as that's why im asking :) I agree with you on variety, I eat a lot of variety of meet, and I will mix the carb up from rice, sweet potatoes, egg noodles, or Risotto....etc. I really struggle to eat Vegetables.....Cant stand any of them, someone suggested blending them up, but do I just drink one vegetable shake a day? Im trying to Cut tbf, hence low fats, if I do have fats generally healthy fats. Ive only started training again as been out of about 5 months with a broken collar bone

    Dietary fats do not make you fat. Excess calories do. Dietary fats are a massively important in hormone regulation and vitamin absorption.

    In your position I'd be looking at a very small calorie deficit with appropriate macronutritional goals whilst maintaining your training regime.

    Thanks mate, I really struggle with Veg....I do eat healthy fats like nuts and stuff....its hard when im a fussy eater, makes it 10 times harder..... its true what they say abs are not made in the gym- they're made in the kitchen
  • rebellez
    rebellez Posts: 11 Member
    I think 5 serves of veges minimum and maximum of 2 serves a fruit a day is what you should be aiming just for general good health. For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones. I also think you can learn to love your veges if cooked/prepared the right way - I personally don't like my veges in a smoothie - I love soups in winter and salads in summer. Tonight I had stuffed red pepper/capsicum with a chili con carne and cheese filing. My homemade chili had lots of tomatoes, onion, garlic and mushrooms.
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    rebellez wrote: »
    I think 5 serves of veges minimum and maximum of 2 serves a fruit a day is what you should be aiming just for general good health. For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones. I also think you can learn to love your veges if cooked/prepared the right way - I personally don't like my veges in a smoothie - I love soups in winter and salads in summer. Tonight I had stuffed red pepper/capsicum with a chili con carne and cheese filing. My homemade chili had lots of tomatoes, onion, garlic and mushrooms.

    Please explain why "For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones".
  • smotheredincheese
    smotheredincheese Posts: 559 Member
    Doesn't look like there's much fibre or fat in there...you must get awfully bunged up.
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    cityruss wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I think 5 serves of veges minimum and maximum of 2 serves a fruit a day is what you should be aiming just for general good health. For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones. I also think you can learn to love your veges if cooked/prepared the right way - I personally don't like my veges in a smoothie - I love soups in winter and salads in summer. Tonight I had stuffed red pepper/capsicum with a chili con carne and cheese filing. My homemade chili had lots of tomatoes, onion, garlic and mushrooms.

    Please explain why "For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones".

    Vegetable are all low carb....bar spuds and sweet pot....or am I missing something
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    Doesn't look like there's much fibre or fat in there...you must get awfully bunged up.

    bunged up?
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,428 MFP Moderator
    Doesn't look like there's much fibre or fat in there...you must get awfully bunged up.

    bunged up?

    Constipated.

    Calories might be low, but that will depend on how active you are. Have you tried to input everything in MFP and see how much weight you are losing per week? We can only guesstimate anyways, so at some point, you need to track for 4-6 weeks and adjust based on the rules. For me (5'11, 33, desk job, exercise 5-6 hours a week, 175 lbs), 1800-2000 would be very aggressive. I maintain at 3k. So I cut around 2400.
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    psulemon wrote: »
    Doesn't look like there's much fibre or fat in there...you must get awfully bunged up.

    bunged up?

    Constipated.

    Calories might be low, but that will depend on how active you are. Have you tried to input everything in MFP and see how much weight you are losing per week? We can only guesstimate anyways, so at some point, you need to track for 4-6 weeks and adjust based on the rules. For me (5'11, 33, desk job, exercise 5-6 hours a week, 175 lbs), 1800-2000 would be very aggressive. I maintain at 3k. So I cut around 2400.

    No I don't get bunged up at all!! far from it, I eat a lot of fruit too so that may help!

    I cant physically eat any more then I currently do, I feel so full....what do you eat on your 'typical day'
  • rebellez
    rebellez Posts: 11 Member
    cityruss wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I think 5 serves of veges minimum and maximum of 2 serves a fruit a day is what you should be aiming just for general good health. For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones. I also think you can learn to love your veges if cooked/prepared the right way - I personally don't like my veges in a smoothie - I love soups in winter and salads in summer. Tonight I had stuffed red pepper/capsicum with a chili con carne and cheese filing. My homemade chili had lots of tomatoes, onion, garlic and mushrooms.

    Please explain why "For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones".

    I believe if you want to burn fat you should be eat low carb and avoid sugar. The carbs you eat should be from vegetables, fruit, legumes and small amounts of whole grains. You're not going to easily burn fat if you're eating your calories following a low fat high carb eating plan.
    Vegetable are all low carb....bar spuds and sweet pot....or am I missing something

    I mostly try to eat low carb vegetable (no spuds) careful with corn etc but I was mostly referring to choosing 2 serves of low carb fruit the best are berries - I avoid high sugar fruits like bananas. I find the sugar affects my leptin "satiety hormone" - so I never feel satisfied after eating a banana - give me an apple any day.
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,428 MFP Moderator
    rebellez wrote: »
    cityruss wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I think 5 serves of veges minimum and maximum of 2 serves a fruit a day is what you should be aiming just for general good health. For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones. I also think you can learn to love your veges if cooked/prepared the right way - I personally don't like my veges in a smoothie - I love soups in winter and salads in summer. Tonight I had stuffed red pepper/capsicum with a chili con carne and cheese filing. My homemade chili had lots of tomatoes, onion, garlic and mushrooms.

    Please explain why "For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones".

    I believe if you want to burn fat you should be eat low carb and avoid sugar. The carbs you eat should be from vegetables, fruit, legumes and small amounts of whole grains. You're not going to easily burn fat if you're eating your calories following a low fat high carb eating plan.
    Vegetable are all low carb....bar spuds and sweet pot....or am I missing something

    I mostly try to eat low carb vegetable (no spuds) careful with corn etc but I was mostly referring to choosing 2 serves of low carb fruit the best are berries - I avoid high sugar fruits like bananas. I find the sugar affects my leptin "satiety hormone" - so I never feel satisfied after eating a banana - give me an apple any day.

    You can believe that you need to go low carb to burn fat, but you would wrong. Weight loss comes from a calorie deficit. You can be just as fit following a very low fat, raw vegan diet as you can with a lchf. Both can achieve greater periods of lipolysis as compared to lipogenesis.


    Satiety is affected by the types of foods you eat. Protein and fiber have the highest values. Fats and carbs are individualize (fats don't fill me up, but starches do). Gram for gram, apples and bananas are not too far different in terms of sugar. They are both high GI fruits.

  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,428 MFP Moderator
    psulemon wrote: »
    Doesn't look like there's much fibre or fat in there...you must get awfully bunged up.

    bunged up?

    Constipated.

    Calories might be low, but that will depend on how active you are. Have you tried to input everything in MFP and see how much weight you are losing per week? We can only guesstimate anyways, so at some point, you need to track for 4-6 weeks and adjust based on the rules. For me (5'11, 33, desk job, exercise 5-6 hours a week, 175 lbs), 1800-2000 would be very aggressive. I maintain at 3k. So I cut around 2400.

    No I don't get bunged up at all!! far from it, I eat a lot of fruit too so that may help!

    I cant physically eat any more then I currently do, I feel so full....what do you eat on your 'typical day'

    You can eat higher calories, you just have to modify the foods you are eating. Calories don't dictate fullness, volume and macronutrient composition do. So replace low calorie foods with higher calorie foods, found in the list below.

    But I wouldn't do that until you track for a period to monitor weight loss. If you are losing aggressively, then I would increase in hopes to muscle preservation. If you aren't losing aggressively (like 1 lb per week or less), you are in a good spot.


    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10326769/are-you-a-hard-gainer-please-read/p1
  • cityruss
    cityruss Posts: 2,493 Member
    rebellez wrote: »
    cityruss wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I think 5 serves of veges minimum and maximum of 2 serves a fruit a day is what you should be aiming just for general good health. For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones. I also think you can learn to love your veges if cooked/prepared the right way - I personally don't like my veges in a smoothie - I love soups in winter and salads in summer. Tonight I had stuffed red pepper/capsicum with a chili con carne and cheese filing. My homemade chili had lots of tomatoes, onion, garlic and mushrooms.

    Please explain why "For fat loss you just have to choose the low carb ones".

    I believe if you want to burn fat you should be eat low carb and avoid sugar. The carbs you eat should be from vegetables, fruit, legumes and small amounts of whole grains. You're not going to easily burn fat if you're eating your calories following a low fat high carb eating plan.

    What has led you to this belief?

    Could you go in to a bit more detail of the physiological and biological processes involved?

  • Michael190lbs
    Michael190lbs Posts: 1,510 Member
    edited July 2016
    For a


    I'm 10 pounds lighter than you carry great muscle and don't lose much if I keep protein in the 140-170 range my fat level is 80-100 grams a day, carbs under 150 most days calories around 2500 to 3000 ( cutting to 170- 175lbs for performance). I do a minimum of 30 min on a bike 7 days a week and do weights 6 days a week.

    I tend to eat a lot of fruit during summer so carbs are more than likely higher than 150 as I rarely log the fruit and don't have an issue with weight control. I use this site mainly to get macro's in check but the people are so Awesome I just can't leave:):)
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    cheers guys....
  • pompeyjosh1990
    pompeyjosh1990 Posts: 90 Member
    Totals 1,677 154 44 149 1,682 62
    Your Daily Goal 2,510 288 57 224 2,300 96
    Remaining 833 134 13 75 618 34
    Calories carbs fat protein sodium sugar

    that will be today (added in snack and my dinner later), but normally calorie intake is a bit higher then that.....not been feeling too great today hence lack of calories
  • rebellez
    rebellez Posts: 11 Member
    psulemon wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I mostly try to eat low carb vegetable (no spuds) careful with corn etc but I was mostly referring to choosing 2 serves of low carb fruit the best are berries - I avoid high sugar fruits like bananas. I find the sugar affects my leptin "satiety hormone" - so I never feel satisfied after eating a banana - give me an apple any day.

    You can believe that you need to go low carb to burn fat, but you would wrong. Weight loss comes from a calorie deficit. You can be just as fit following a very low fat, raw vegan diet as you can with a lchf. Both can achieve greater periods of lipolysis as compared to lipogenesis.

    Satiety is affected by the types of foods you eat. Protein and fiber have the highest values. Fats and carbs are individualize (fats don't fill me up, but starches do). Gram for gram, apples and bananas are not too far different in terms of sugar. They are both high GI fruits.

    I acknowledge that there are many diets you can follow to burn fat and I might be wrong about my belief for the need to go low carb to burn fat but I will be happier and healthier on my low carb Mediterranean style eating plan than anyone following an Atkins style lchf (which is nearly a no carb diet) or a low fat raw vegan diet (eeek). I also don't think Atkins or vegan are easy diets to follow. Both are too restrictive and both cut out way too many healthy food groups.

    I totally agree with you on the satiety note I mostly use good fats/protein/legumes to fill me up (not apples).

    The whole banana/apple discussion about high sugar fruits I got that from the latest book I was reading and the recommendation comes from a renowned UK dietitian. I was also only making a personal comment about how I feel after eating bananas but I am affected the same way by eating white bread/potato/white rice. I got to eat whole grains to feel satisfied.
    cityruss wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I believe if you want to burn fat you should be eat low carb and avoid sugar. The carbs you eat should be from vegetables, fruit, legumes and small amounts of whole grains. You're not going to easily burn fat if you're eating your calories following a low fat high carb eating plan.

    What has led you to this belief?

    Could you go in to a bit more detail of the physiological and biological processes involved?

    I am certainly no dietitian but I love reading about diets however I don't read medical journals. I love reading books about healthy eating and have heard so much positive press about the Mediterranean style of eating. I've read a lot about quitting sugar, JERF "Just Eat Real Food", gut health and lately fasting and Mediterranean.

    So this is my layman terms way of explaining the biology. You eat carbs like sugar/cereal/pasta/bread/potato. Your gut easily breaks these down releasing sugar into your system. Your pancreas responds by producing insulin to bring the sugar levels back down however if you have an excess of sugar in your blood it converts the sugar to fat but there is no fat accumulation without insulin.

    So my understanding is if you don't eat sugar and other easily digestible carbohydrates then you won't produce excess amounts of insulin and therefore you won't store any fat. Even a thin healthy looking person can store excess fat around their organs called visceral fat - they are known as TOFIs "Thin Outside Fat Inside".

    I do eat fruit and whole grain carbs just not a lot and I try to avoid the easily digestible kind. I do love them I am human - fries and fresh bread are heaven in my mouth just not in my gut.

    I do track my calories to ensure I have the required calorie deficit in order to lose weight as well.
  • StealthHealth
    StealthHealth Posts: 2,417 Member
    rebellez wrote: »
    psulemon wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I mostly try to eat low carb vegetable (no spuds) careful with corn etc but I was mostly referring to choosing 2 serves of low carb fruit the best are berries - I avoid high sugar fruits like bananas. I find the sugar affects my leptin "satiety hormone" - so I never feel satisfied after eating a banana - give me an apple any day.

    You can believe that you need to go low carb to burn fat, but you would wrong. Weight loss comes from a calorie deficit. You can be just as fit following a very low fat, raw vegan diet as you can with a lchf. Both can achieve greater periods of lipolysis as compared to lipogenesis.

    Satiety is affected by the types of foods you eat. Protein and fiber have the highest values. Fats and carbs are individualize (fats don't fill me up, but starches do). Gram for gram, apples and bananas are not too far different in terms of sugar. They are both high GI fruits.

    I acknowledge that there are many diets you can follow to burn fat and I might be wrong about my belief for the need to go low carb to burn fat but I will be happier and healthier on my low carb Mediterranean style eating plan than anyone following an Atkins style lchf (which is nearly a no carb diet) or a low fat raw vegan diet (eeek). I also don't think Atkins or vegan are easy diets to follow. Both are too restrictive and both cut out way too many healthy food groups.

    I totally agree with you on the satiety note I mostly use good fats/protein/legumes to fill me up (not apples).

    The whole banana/apple discussion about high sugar fruits I got that from the latest book I was reading and the recommendation comes from a renowned UK dietitian. I was also only making a personal comment about how I feel after eating bananas but I am affected the same way by eating white bread/potato/white rice. I got to eat whole grains to feel satisfied.
    cityruss wrote: »
    rebellez wrote: »
    I believe if you want to burn fat you should be eat low carb and avoid sugar. The carbs you eat should be from vegetables, fruit, legumes and small amounts of whole grains. You're not going to easily burn fat if you're eating your calories following a low fat high carb eating plan.

    What has led you to this belief?

    Could you go in to a bit more detail of the physiological and biological processes involved?

    I am certainly no dietitian but I love reading about diets however I don't read medical journals. I love reading books about healthy eating and have heard so much positive press about the Mediterranean style of eating. I've read a lot about quitting sugar, JERF "Just Eat Real Food", gut health and lately fasting and Mediterranean.

    So this is my layman terms way of explaining the biology. You eat carbs like sugar/cereal/pasta/bread/potato. Your gut easily breaks these down releasing sugar into your system. Your pancreas responds by producing insulin to bring the sugar levels back down however if you have an excess of sugar in your blood it converts the sugar to fat but there is no fat accumulation without insulin.

    So my understanding is if you don't eat sugar and other easily digestible carbohydrates then you won't produce excess amounts of insulin and therefore you won't store any fat. Even a thin healthy looking person can store excess fat around their organs called visceral fat - they are known as TOFIs "Thin Outside Fat Inside".

    I do eat fruit and whole grain carbs just not a lot and I try to avoid the easily digestible kind. I do love them I am human - fries and fresh bread are heaven in my mouth just not in my gut.

    I do track my calories to ensure I have the required calorie deficit in order to lose weight as well.



    My understanding (no expert on though and I'm completely happy to be proved wrong on this - I'm here to learn) is contrary to the section in bold and is that both protein and carbohydrate will stimulate the release of insulin and, in that instance, insulin will promote use of the protein and carbohydrate as fuel. When there is no insulin present energy requirements come from fat (stored when fasted or when fat is consumed dietary).

    When present insulin prohibits fat release from your fat cells.

    So, even though in a carb rich meal the insulin released prioritizes carb usage and prohibits stored (body) fat usage, and that when in excess, the surplus energy will be stored as fat, the end result is the same as if the meal where high in fat and/or protein. That is: The, immediate energy requirements are satisfied from the carbohydrate in the food (as controlled by insulin), excess energy (of any type) is converted and stored as fat, the insulin levels drop, and the future fuel requirements are eventually drawn from fat reserves* (since the lack of insulin now allows body fat usage).

    * unless more energy is provided to the system.

    TLDNR version - Excess energy causes net fat storage. Scarcity of energy causes net fat usage. Insulin prohibits fat release but does not promote or facilitate storage.