Low caloric intake, quality protein powder?

AllyS7
AllyS7 Posts: 483 Member
Hi all, I can use all the help I can get.

I'm currently cutting down on my BF%. I'm in a deficit and because of my stats I'm struggling to get enough protein.

H: 5'1"
CW:126lbs
GW:120
Ultimate Goal: Gain Muscle Mass

Currently I'm only getting .45g per lbs of protein and I'd like to try to keep as much muscle mass as possible. I'm eating a ton of eggs, cottage cheese, chicken, fish, greek yogurt...ect. My ultimate goal is to gain muscle mass after the cut.

My caloric goal is 1290 (set to low activity & .5lb a week loss) I'm slowly losing weight, but I know some of that is muscle. (I lift 5 days a week and do some sort of cardio everyday.)

I'd love to start taking a protein powder to help me reach my goals, but not destroy my calorie intake.

Any suggestions?

Current progress:
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Replies

  • comptonelizabeth
    comptonelizabeth Posts: 1,701 Member
    edited March 2017
    I take MyProtein whey isolate which is 97 calories per scoop- don't know if that's still too high? Mixed with skimmed or almond milk wouldn't add many extra calories.
    Edit : you may be better off getting extra protein from very lean chicken or fish (if you're not vegetarian)as it would probably be more satisfying.
  • AllyS7
    AllyS7 Posts: 483 Member
    Edit : you may be better off getting extra protein from very lean chicken or fish (if you're not vegetarian)as it would probably be more satisfying.

    Shoot, I forgot to put that I also eat mostly chicken and fish (especially during Lent).

    I'll check out the powder you suggested! Thanks!
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,373 MFP Moderator
    What is your current protein intake without powder?
  • AllyS7
    AllyS7 Posts: 483 Member
    psuLemon wrote: »
    What is your current protein intake without powder?

    I avg around 60g daily.
  • bioklutz
    bioklutz Posts: 1,365 Member
    I recently got this when it was on sale at Costco:
    https://www.costco.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Gold-Standard-100%-Whey-Protein,-90-Servings.product.100138794.html

    The vanilla is 110 calories for 24 grams of protein. It mixes really well with water and the taste is OK.

    I am also a big fan of the Kirkland turkey burgers from Costco. 200 calories for 35 grams of protein.
  • Kelll12123
    Kelll12123 Posts: 212 Member
    Oh my gosh you look fantastic... and this only took two months? You're an inspiration.

    I drink optimum nutrition gold standard. I have the chocolate flavor and it's 120 calories. I mix it with about 1/3 cup skim milk and 1/3 cup water. (Milk and water mix sounds gross but I promise it's good).
  • AllyS7
    AllyS7 Posts: 483 Member
    Thank you both for your responses! I can definitely spare ~300 calories by replacing some of my "snacks" with the protein powder.
    Kelll12123 wrote: »
    Oh my gosh you look fantastic... and this only took two months? You're an inspiration.

    I drink optimum nutrition gold standard. I have the chocolate flavor and it's 120 calories. I mix it with about 1/3 cup skim milk and 1/3 cup water. (Milk and water mix sounds gross but I promise it's good).

    Yep, so far 2 months! I'm definitely committed and fairly lucky genetically that my body respond's well to change.

    I'll definitely try out the water trick. I'm not a huge fan of cow's milk thickness anyway so it actually sounds appealing!
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,373 MFP Moderator
    Yea that is a bit light. I generally recommend people looking at labdoor.com for quality ratings. Myprotein is one of the highest quality proteins. I am using ON currently.
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
    edited March 2017
    psuLemon wrote: »
    Yea that is a bit light. I generally recommend people looking at labdoor.com for quality ratings. Myprotein is one of the highest quality proteins. I am using ON currently.

    It still amuses me that MyPro's whey concentrate tests higher than some companies' whey isolates. That shouldn't be even remotely possible. What they hell are these people putting in their powders?
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,373 MFP Moderator
    psuLemon wrote: »
    Yea that is a bit light. I generally recommend people looking at labdoor.com for quality ratings. Myprotein is one of the highest quality proteins. I am using ON currently.

    It still amuses me that MyPro's whey concentrate tests higher than some companies' whey isolates. That shouldn't be even remotely possible. What they hell are these people putting in their powders?

    If you ever dig into some of the test, you would ask why some are rated low. I actually would love to see if they post creteria... because you get docked points for your label accuracy on everything. So you get deducted points for cholesterol and vitamins being off.

    Its one reason i concentrate on things like protein amounts being correct and calorie levels. Some other areas i actually could care less about.
  • VintageFeline
    VintageFeline Posts: 6,771 Member
    I can get my protein in pretty easily for 700 calories (100+ grams) with chicken, fish and greek yoghurt. Why is it you are struggling with eating your protein? 1 tin of tuna 126g, one chicken breast of about 180 grams and I'm pretty much there. Throw in some Greek yoghurt and an egg and I am easily over the line.
  • CaireenKinley
    CaireenKinley Posts: 2 Member
    I can get my protein in pretty easily for 700 calories (100+ grams) with chicken, fish and greek yoghurt. Why is it you are struggling with eating your protein? 1 tin of tuna 126g, one chicken breast of about 180 grams and I'm pretty much there. Throw in some Greek yoghurt and an egg and I am easily over the line.


    Me too. I ate around 1250-1300 on rest days and have no problem hitting protein most of the time. 1 whole egg + half cup of egg whites for breakfast, then chicken, turkey, or beef + carbs and veggies for lunch or dinner.


    IMO the best tasting protein powder is dymatize. You can get the ISO 100% which is low carb too. I'm intolerant to dairy so I can't eat it but wish I could..
  • AllyS7
    AllyS7 Posts: 483 Member
    I can get my protein in pretty easily for 700 calories (100+ grams) with chicken, fish and greek yoghurt. Why is it you are struggling with eating your protein? 1 tin of tuna 126g, one chicken breast of about 180 grams and I'm pretty much there. Throw in some Greek yoghurt and an egg and I am easily over the line.

    I'm honestly not sure. I suppose I was struggling all around to make the protein a priority. Which you made me reevaluate some of my protein sources like almonds, PB...ect.

    I do usually eat tuna 2x a week, but will incorporate that more. I also got some Fair Life Chocolate Milk which has 15g of protein per serving.

    Thank you all for your help!
  • ashleyhauser8
    ashleyhauser8 Posts: 5 Member
    I use Wheybolic Protein from GNC. I love the birthday cake flavor, 1 scoop is around 90 calories.
  • AnvilHead
    AnvilHead Posts: 18,344 Member
    AllyS7 wrote: »
    I can get my protein in pretty easily for 700 calories (100+ grams) with chicken, fish and greek yoghurt. Why is it you are struggling with eating your protein? 1 tin of tuna 126g, one chicken breast of about 180 grams and I'm pretty much there. Throw in some Greek yoghurt and an egg and I am easily over the line.

    I'm honestly not sure. I suppose I was struggling all around to make the protein a priority. Which you made me reevaluate some of my protein sources like almonds, PB...ect.
    I consider things like almonds and peanut butter great fat sources, but lousy protein sources. They're awfully high in calories for the scant amounts of protein you get out of them. Don't get me wrong, I love peanut butter - but I just don't consider it as a good protein source.
  • _runnerbean_
    _runnerbean_ Posts: 640 Member
    I use Wheybolic Protein from GNC. I love the birthday cake flavor, 1 scoop is around 90 calories.
    This has woken me right up! Never tried a protein powder before but this has me interested;) what flavour is it? Choc? Vanilla?
  • VintageFeline
    VintageFeline Posts: 6,771 Member
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    AllyS7 wrote: »
    I can get my protein in pretty easily for 700 calories (100+ grams) with chicken, fish and greek yoghurt. Why is it you are struggling with eating your protein? 1 tin of tuna 126g, one chicken breast of about 180 grams and I'm pretty much there. Throw in some Greek yoghurt and an egg and I am easily over the line.

    I'm honestly not sure. I suppose I was struggling all around to make the protein a priority. Which you made me reevaluate some of my protein sources like almonds, PB...ect.
    I consider things like almonds and peanut butter great fat sources, but lousy protein sources. They're awfully high in calories for the scant amounts of protein you get out of them. Don't get me wrong, I love peanut butter - but I just don't consider it as a good protein source.

    Me too. Now that my cutting calories are much lower than when I started I rarely make room for peanut butter or nuts in my day, though it is easier on a very active day! I just focus on meat first, dairy second for my protein. And I try not to drink many calories because they don't help hunger at all. I'd rather eat 100 calories of fish, chicken or Greek yoghurt than drink 100 calories of a protein shake. Protein shakes have their place and I do keep some "in stock" (MyProtein being my choice) but I don't reach for it often any more.
  • Gallowmere1984
    Gallowmere1984 Posts: 6,626 Member
    AnvilHead wrote: »
    AllyS7 wrote: »
    I can get my protein in pretty easily for 700 calories (100+ grams) with chicken, fish and greek yoghurt. Why is it you are struggling with eating your protein? 1 tin of tuna 126g, one chicken breast of about 180 grams and I'm pretty much there. Throw in some Greek yoghurt and an egg and I am easily over the line.

    I'm honestly not sure. I suppose I was struggling all around to make the protein a priority. Which you made me reevaluate some of my protein sources like almonds, PB...ect.
    I consider things like almonds and peanut butter great fat sources, but lousy protein sources. They're awfully high in calories for the scant amounts of protein you get out of them. Don't get me wrong, I love peanut butter - but I just don't consider it as a good protein source.

    Me too. Now that my cutting calories are much lower than when I started I rarely make room for peanut butter or nuts in my day, though it is easier on a very active day! I just focus on meat first, dairy second for my protein. And I try not to drink many calories because they don't help hunger at all. I'd rather eat 100 calories of fish, chicken or Greek yoghurt than drink 100 calories of a protein shake. Protein shakes have their place and I do keep some "in stock" (MyProtein being my choice) but I don't reach for it often any more.

    I can definitely appreciate that. On my current cut, I might hit one shake per day, if that. Given my macro and calorie allotment, I much prefer eating 200-300g of chicken breast a few times per day. Besides, since I even scrape the rendered fat off of plain chicken breast after baking it (on parchment to avoid oil use), I can stay tighter with that, than even protein shakes are capable of.
  • blackcomaro
    blackcomaro Posts: 796 Member
    I dig protein powders but not as a food substitute... real food is always best!
  • Lolalikeslolagets
    Lolalikeslolagets Posts: 142 Member
    I can get my protein in pretty easily for 700 calories (100+ grams) with chicken, fish and greek yoghurt. Why is it you are struggling with eating your protein? 1 tin of tuna 126g, one chicken breast of about 180 grams and I'm pretty much there. Throw in some Greek yoghurt and an egg and I am easily over the line.

    Same