Can you eat too much protein?

carolionlyons · October 2016

I've seen varying threads. I'm 165 lbs. I was 170 4 weeks ago and have been busting my *kitten* 6 days a week with a personal trainer and eating a clean 1000-1200 calorie diet that's made largely up of lean protein. I don't feel like I'm making the progress I should and am worried I'm "bulking" due to the high protein. Any tips?

Anvil_Head · October 2016

1) You're not bulking on 1000-1200 calories. To bulk, you have to be in a caloric surplus. You're actually in an unreasonably large deficit, so if anything you're losing muscle mass.

2) One *can* eat too much protein, but it would be at ridiculously inhumanly high levels. I wouldn't even start worrying about it until you're surpassing maybe 400-500g/day.

dreamsignals · October 2016

I echo @Anvil_Head words. At 1200cal daily I can't imagine you're eating more than 1g per pound of body weight, which, though probably overkill, is very common among lifters, with no liver damage.

What do you mean when you say you don't feel you're making the progress you should? Weight loss? Waist size? Weights you lift? How long you can do cardio for?

rainbowbow · October 2016

If you think even for a second that losing over a pound a week is not "good enough" then you need to adjust your expectations. This is an excellent rate of loss, and your calorie deficit is pretty damn high.

You aren't "bulking" or "putting on muscle" and this is irrelevant of your protein intake.

If you aren't happy with your diet because it's unpleasant for you, then change it. Lower protein and increase carbs if that will make you happy. Remember to keep protein in the right range (.8-1.2g per pound LBM).

Is it possible for someone to eat too much protein? certainly, but we're talking about far more protein than your current calories allow.

kwtilbury · October 2016

Anvil_Head wrote: »

1) You're not bulking on 1000-1200 calories. To bulk, you have to be in a caloric surplus. You're actually in an unreasonably large deficit, so if anything you're losing muscle mass.

2) One *can* eat too much protein, but it would be at ridiculously inhumanly high levels. I wouldn't even start worrying about it until you're surpassing maybe 400-500g/day.

This. You're not making desired progress because you're not consuming enough calories.

fishshark · October 2016

it always blows my mind a little when people think they are gonna get bulky on a deficit. they are two polar opposites.... bulking and cutting.. they are not one in the same.

and on 1000-1200 calories you for sure are not even close to too much protein.

bagge72 · October 2016

carolionlyons wrote: »

I've seen varying threads. I'm 165 lbs. I was 170 4 weeks ago and have been busting my *kitten* 6 days a week with a personal trainer and eating a clean 1000-1200 calorie diet that's made largely up of lean protein. I don't feel like I'm making the progress I should and am worried I'm "bulking" due to the high protein. Any tips?

How could you be bulking if you actually lost weight?

carolionlyons · October 2016

Thanks for the responses all. I feel much more informed. I guess I just feel like while my legs feel like they are getting stronger and more toned, they don't seem like they are getting smaller, and they used to be a lot smaller. My conditioning is getting better and I'm able to do cardio longer. I'm lifting weights and giving 110% with my trainer and without, both working out and nutritionally.

Mind you I used to be 110 and at the highest was 175. At a little under 5feet, clearly this is unhealthy. I know I've made progress on the scale, I guess I'm just being impatient with the process and I appreciate all your words to get me back into the mind frame of little by little, one day at a time.

On a side note, any diet tips are appreciated. Grilled chicken is getting boring.

Thanks again MFP community.

carolionlyons · October 2016

Also as a side note I believe my nutrition log is viewable. Constructive criticism and feedback is encouraged.

jenluvs2sing · October 2016

Here's a question, are you subtracting your exercise calories from calories ingested? Is that 1200 calories before or after exercise? Remember your net calories has to be above a threshold amount or your body goes into starvation mode. More than likely you're not eating enough.

fishshark · October 2016

jenluvs2sing wrote: »

Here's a question, are you subtracting your exercise calories from calories ingested? Is that 1200 calories before or after exercise? Remember your net calories has to be above a threshold amount or your body goes into starvation mode. More than likely you're not eating enough.

starvation mode is not real.

arditarose · October 2016

So....nope

carolionlyons · October 2016

I think I changed settings so it's public. Please let me know. And no, I don't count calorie burn into my calories consumed.

carolionlyons · October 2016

amyrebeccah wrote: »

You are using tons of "homemade" recipe entries. Unless you have created those entries, you have no idea what's in those things or how accurate they are. Frankly, based on the calorie counts, accuracy looks pretty suspect. You are better off creating your own recipes or logging the components. (ex, you could either make your own recipe for tuna salad, or log one can of tuna salad, two tbsp of mayo, one stalk of celery).

You would be even better off using a food scale to weigh your portions. You have logged a half tbsp of almond butter. If you were to place the jar on a food scale, zero it, and weigh what you scoop out, you dirty no further dishes and have a more accurate serving (most people who start weighing food on here are especially surprised at how little nut butter you get for a serving). Bananas, salmon, quinoa, same thing.

Now, right now you're losing anyway because you've set your goal so low, but you are in fact eating more than you think. If you improve your accuracy, you will have more power to know when and how to make adjustments if it stops working.

That's really good advice. Totally was sort of an anomaly since I went out to lunch (I typically always bring). You're right, I've been eyeballing most things but I do weigh out my chicken or guesstimate based on the serving size I normally eat and how big/small the breast is, but you can't beat total accuracy.

In regards to setting my goal so low- do you think my daily 1,270 calorie setting is too low? I'm honestly not hungry after eating my meals because they are more nutritious than anything I'm used to.

I really appreciate your response.

carolionlyons · October 2016

Today*

BoxerBrawler · October 2016

For endurance athletes the recommended range is 1.4 g to 1.7 g per kilogram of body weight per day. If you're eating in excesses of that whatever your body doesn't use for fuel will be stored as fat or will come out in your urine.

Guitarman1994 · October 2016

Can't eat too much protein. Your body will only absorb 30 grams at one sitting anyway. So anything past that is not getting used. To gain muscle stay around 1.5 grams per pound of body weight daily. Just don't try and fit it all in one meal bc it won't do any good. Stagger it out through the day!

TR0berts · October 2016

Guitarman1994 wrote: »

Can't eat too much protein. Your body will only absorb 30 grams at one sitting anyway. So anything past that is not getting used. To gain muscle stay around 1.5 grams per pound of body weight daily. Just don't try and fit it all in one meal bc it won't do any good. Stagger it out through the day!

That is completely incorrect. Here, Dr. Layne Norton (his speciality/doctorate is in protein synthesis, I believe) explains a number of myths regarding protein.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjmV8BlsJTQ

Red_Pill · October 2016

Guitarman1994 wrote: »

Can't eat too much protein. Your body will only absorb 30 grams at one sitting anyway. So anything past that is not getting used. To gain muscle stay around 1.5 grams per pound of body weight daily. Just don't try and fit it all in one meal bc it won't do any good. Stagger it out through the day!

I used to believe this BS too until I started eating 2 meals a day getting around 155 - 180 g of protein daily at 205 lbs. I gained muscle.

cwolfman13 · October 2016

There is a point at which more protein ceases to provide any benefit...that point is different for someone who is sedentary vs an endurance athlete vs a strength athlete...at that point, you're just making really expensive fuel.

Here's a nice article and illustrative graph...

http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/the-myth-of-1glb-optimal-protein-intake-for-bodybuilders/

withoutasaddle · October 2016

rainbowbow wrote: »

Remember to keep protein in the right range (.8-1.2g per pound LBM).

Yes. Remember to keep it in the right range of .8-1.2 (sometimes 1.4)g per KILOGRAM.

rileysowner · October 2016

cwolfman13 wrote: »

There is a point at which more protein ceases to provide any benefit...that point is different for someone who is sedentary vs an endurance athlete vs a strength athlete...at that point, you're just making really expensive fuel.

Here's a nice article and illustrative graph...

http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/the-myth-of-1glb-optimal-protein-intake-for-bodybuilders/

The other group that you don't mention is those in a caloric deficit. Then protein requirements are higher as well. Even then there is a point where the benefits stop increasing.

cushman5279 wrote: »

For endurance athletes the recommended range is 1.4 g to 1.7 g per kilogram of body weight per day. If you're eating in excesses of that whatever your body doesn't use for fuel will be stored as fat or will come out in your urine.

At 1000-1200 calories a day it will be used as fuel. The only time it will turn to fat is when total calories exceed maintenance.

Anvil_Head · October 2016

Guitarman1994 wrote: »

Can't eat too much protein. Your body will only absorb 30 grams at one sitting anyway. So anything past that is not getting used. To gain muscle stay around 1.5 grams per pound of body weight daily. Just don't try and fit it all in one meal bc it won't do any good. Stagger it out through the day!

No.

http://atlargenutrition.com/is-there-a-limit-to-how-much-protein-the-body-can-use-in-a-single-meal/
(Research review by Alan Aragon - study references included)

Anvil_Head · October 2016

cwolfman13 wrote: »

There is a point at which more protein ceases to provide any benefit...that point is different for someone who is sedentary vs an endurance athlete vs a strength athlete...at that point, you're just making really expensive fuel.

Here's a nice article and illustrative graph...

http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/the-myth-of-1glb-optimal-protein-intake-for-bodybuilders/

Be sure to read the entire back and forth between Menno Henselmans and Eric Helms in this follow-up article: http://bayesianbodybuilding.com/eric-helms-protein/

It's not as clear cut as it seems.

rainbowbow · October 2016

withoutasaddle wrote: »

rainbowbow wrote: »

Remember to keep protein in the right range (.8-1.2g per pound LBM).

Yes. Remember to keep it in the right range of .8-1.2 (sometimes 1.4)g per KILOGRAM.

No, this is wrong. I provided the range for muscle retention in athletic individuals.

You provided (??). The per kg of total body weight is only applicable to individuals who are 1.) not overweight and 2.) sedentary

psuLemon · October 2016

For protien, it's reasonable to maintain muscle mass with 1.5-2.2g/kg of weight. Below is a good paper on it.

http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/apnm-2015-0549

"In practice, 1.5 to 2.2 g/(kg·day) of high-quality protein constitutes a reasonable recommendation for adults as part of a complete diet."

rainbowbow · October 2016

psulemon wrote: »

For protien, it's reasonable to maintain muscle mass with 1.5-2.2g/kg of weight. Below is a good paper on it.

http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/apnm-2015-0549

"In practice, 1.5 to 2.2 g/(kg·day) of high-quality protein constitutes a reasonable recommendation for adults as part of a complete diet."

Yes, this is the equivalent to the suggestion i made based upon LBM.

Here's more on this:

Beyond the zone: protein needs of active individuals.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11023001

Based on laboratory measures, daily protein requirements are increased by perhaps as much as 100% vs. recommendations for sedentary individuals (1.6-1.8 vs. 0.8 g/kg). Yet even these intakes are much less than those reported by most athletes.

Dietary protein for athletes: from requirements to optimum adaptation.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22150425
Elevated protein consumption, as high as 1.8-2.0 g · kg(-1) · day(-1) depending on the caloric deficit, may be advantageous in preventing lean mass losses during periods of energy restriction to promote fat loss.

Increased protein intake reduces lean body mass loss during weight loss in athletes.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19927027

These results indicate that approximately 2.3 g x kg(-1) or approximately 35% protein was significantly superior to approximately 1.0 g x kg(-1) or approximately 15% energy protein for maintenance of lean body mass in young healthy athletes during short-term hypoenergetic weight loss.

From the Journal of Sports Sciences
olympiatoppen.no/fagomraader/idrettsernaering/Fagstoff/artikler/media39080.media

To optimize the ratio of fat-to-lean tissue mass loss during hypoenergetic periods, athletes are advised to ensure that they lower their carbohydrate intake to *40% of their energy intake (with an emphasis on consumption of lower GI carbohydrates), which usually means no more than 3–4 g kg71 day71 , and increase their protein intake to *20–30% of their energy intake or *1.8–2.7 g kg lean body tissue .... By engaging in resistance exercise during a hypoenergetic dieting period, athletes will also provide a markedly anabolic stimulus to retain muscle protein. All of the aforementioned strategies will, however, result in less absolute weight loss than if protein is not increased and resistive exercise is not performed, which may be important for some athletes.

Dietary Reference Intakes for Energy, Carbohydrate, Fiber, Fat, Fatty Acids, Cholesterol, Protein, and Amino Acids
fnic.nal.usda.gov/sites/fnic.nal.usda.gov/files/uploads/recommended_intakes_individuals.pdf

Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs): Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges : Carbohydrates 45–65%, Dietary Fat 20–35%, Protein 10-35%

Essentially the USDA and ACSM recommend minimum intakes for fat and protein to active individuals while carbohydrates can vary. Active individuals require more protein to maintain a positive nitrogen balance. An acceptable macronutrient ratio which generally meets minimum protein, fats, AND carbs is 40%carbs, 30%protein, 30% fat. This falls within the guidelines of the RDA and also supplies adequate protein to assist with lean muscle retention during exercise and/or calorie deficit.

Edit:
Also, as stated you can run into issues with "per KG" of total body weight when individuals are overweight as this does not take into account lean body mass and minimum requirements. This is why according to my training we've been advised to base protein needs off of LBM and as we work with clients who mostly use the imperial system base it off of pounds. In KG our recommendation has been 1.3-2.0g per KG lean body mass.

For a 150 pound female (68.03 KG) with 25% body fat, this would be a range of:
90-135 grams of protein.

Can you eat too much protein?

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