How much protein is too much?
jcaa2011
Posts: 34 Member
I recently started using whey protein powder, and on some days (today for example) my protein intake is adding up to about 120 for the day. I was wondering if that was too much or if that amount is still ok, anybody know the answer?
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Replies
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i was wondering the same thing...some days i make two smoothies ..0
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i have been told time and time again by different people that you should eat 1 gram for every pound you weigh.0
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i have been told time and time again by different people that you should eat 1 gram for every pound you weigh.
This is what I go by. I tend to hit about 130 140 every day. Do you do a lot of weight lifting? I do it 3-4 times a week and take static trapeze classes, so I need the extra protein.0 -
I do high protein...80-110 grams per day. So 120 is high but if you are exercising alot you might need it.
Only those in the body building areas will go to higher amounts of protein.
I would recommend a Doctors apt just to be sure, they can check your urine, if you are eating too much it will show up there.
Best of Luck!0 -
I've been doing a low carb (60g or so ) and high protein. I usually get at least 120g a day...sometimes 150. I weigh 130. I've been losing doing this, so I figure since it is working, I'll keep doing it.
Although I have heard 1g per pound of body weight is what you should be consuming...0 -
I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!0
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Yes one gram er pound is great.0
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It depends on how much you workout, if you strength train, body composition, etc. I'm supposed to get 142 g protein before exercise. I have my macros set for 30% of my calories to come from protein. I use a high-protein, reduced-carb eating plan.
Protein is typically recommended at approx 1 gram per pound of LEAN body mass.
To determine your lean body mass, calculate your body fat as best you can. Your LEAN body mass is your weight - (your weight * body fat % as a decimal).
Hope this helps!
(PS -- You can calculate your approx body fat percentage here: http://www.scientificpsychic.com/fitness/diet.html)0 -
I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.0 -
I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.
Define need. Need for what? Wouldn't protein requirements depend on a person's goals, training regimen, sensitivity to carbs, body structure, etc?
I personally think excess refined carb is a much bigger problem for Americans.
BTW, love your avatar.0 -
It depends somewhat on your activitiy level. I have a hard time not going over on protein, I can't imagine trying to add in supplements. It's not even close to dinner time and I've already maxed out for the day! Ugh!0
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I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.
Define need. Need for what? Wouldn't protein requirements depend on a person's goals, training regimen, sensitivity to carbs, body structure, etc?
I personally think excess refined carb is a much bigger problem for Americans.
BTW, love your avatar.
Just because there is a bigger problem doesn't negate the smaller problem. I don't know how big a problem there is with Americans eating too much protein, but based solely on posts on this site there quite a few people eating more than medical evidence suggests is needed.0 -
I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.
Where do get this bull from?
Most Americans get too many carbs if anything. RDA is around 70g which is around 7-8oz of meat, I don't know a lot of people who are not lifters or fitness types that get significanly more than that.
Protein is not hard on the body, the bod REQUIRES protein to build muscle and maintain tissue. It's pretty hard to get too much protein without trying.
If you are 150 pounds, you'd probably have to eat 300g of protein before it gets to be overkill.0 -
I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.
Define need. Need for what? Wouldn't protein requirements depend on a person's goals, training regimen, sensitivity to carbs, body structure, etc?
I personally think excess refined carb is a much bigger problem for Americans.
BTW, love your avatar.
Just because there is a bigger problem doesn't negate the smaller problem. I don't know how big a problem there is with Americans eating too much protein, but based solely on posts on this site there quite a few people eating more than medical evidence suggests is needed.
And what medical evidence would you be referring to? And my original question stands..... what do you mean by "need"?0 -
I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.
Define need. Need for what? Wouldn't protein requirements depend on a person's goals, training regimen, sensitivity to carbs, body structure, etc?
I personally think excess refined carb is a much bigger problem for Americans.
BTW, love your avatar.
Just because there is a bigger problem doesn't negate the smaller problem. I don't know how big a problem there is with Americans eating too much protein, but based solely on posts on this site there quite a few people eating more than medical evidence suggests is needed.
And what medical evidence would you be referring to? And my original question stands..... what do you mean by "need"?
Reccommended suggestions from Medical or Scientific organizations that calculate the recommendations based on current evidence based medicine (AMA, NIH, CDC, medical universities, research hospitals, etc.). I would define need as how much your body will use before storing it as fat or overworks your kidneys to process it.0 -
I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.
Define need. Need for what? Wouldn't protein requirements depend on a person's goals, training regimen, sensitivity to carbs, body structure, etc?
I personally think excess refined carb is a much bigger problem for Americans.
BTW, love your avatar.
Just because there is a bigger problem doesn't negate the smaller problem. I don't know how big a problem there is with Americans eating too much protein, but based solely on posts on this site there quite a few people eating more than medical evidence suggests is needed.
And what medical evidence would you be referring to? And my original question stands..... what do you mean by "need"?
Reccommended suggestions from Medical or Scientific organizations that calculate the recommendations based on current evidence based medicine (AMA, NIH, CDC, medical universities, research hospitals, etc.). I would define need as how much your body will use before storing it as fat or overworks your kidneys to process it.
Recommended daily by the CDC and AMA is just what is needed to stay healthy. AFAIK, they have not suggested a level at which you'd be causing bodily harm. Sure, there is probably a level at which you'd store it as fat but then you'd be over maintenance levels for calories as well. I have pretty good background in clinical chemistry and I can tell you that you are just as likely to do damage to your kindneys by drinking too much water as you are eating too much protein. Could it happen? Yes, but without doing it on purpose it's almost impossible, it would take massive amounts.0 -
some body builders actually eat as much as 300 grams of protein per day but realize that they are getting it mostly in their foods and only 1-2 protein shakes... so no 120 is not too much at all0
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I don't know the answer, but I would think you'd have to have a whole lot before having TOO much!!
No, excess protein is a common problem because Americans generally eat about 2-3 times the amount they need. It is hard on the body and organs.
Define need. Need for what? Wouldn't protein requirements depend on a person's goals, training regimen, sensitivity to carbs, body structure, etc?
I personally think excess refined carb is a much bigger problem for Americans.
BTW, love your avatar.
Just because there is a bigger problem doesn't negate the smaller problem. I don't know how big a problem there is with Americans eating too much protein, but based solely on posts on this site there quite a few people eating more than medical evidence suggests is needed.
And what medical evidence would you be referring to? And my original question stands..... what do you mean by "need"?
Reccommended suggestions from Medical or Scientific organizations that calculate the recommendations based on current evidence based medicine (AMA, NIH, CDC, medical universities, research hospitals, etc.). I would define need as how much your body will use before storing it as fat or overworks your kidneys to process it.
Well the debate between people within the US RDA camp vs. people who are more active and swear by the benefits of an increase protein intake has been going on for about 3 decades now, so talking about it now really isn't going to settle anything.
However, I must point out some seriously flawed logic to your post. If the amount of protein we need is what the mainstream medical community says...and you define need as how much our body will use before storing it as fat...then I should be seriously fat. I've been consuming approximately 140 grams of protein per day. But according to you, I only need 70 grams. Do you see what I'm getting at? But my body-fat has been slowly going down over the weeks.
Also, people have been eating high protein diets for decades with no noticeable increase in reported kidney problems. Yes, people who ALREADY HAVE bad kidneys should keep their protein consumption (as well as an assortment of other foods) to a minimum, but for the rest of us, it would take an incredible amount of protein to overwork our kidneys. Protein hurting your kidneys is an outdated line of thinking that has been disproved by scientific research.
To the OP, my suggestion would be to enjoy your protein shakes. If anything, replacing your other macros with protein will accelerate fat loss.0 -
I'm not sure if there's such a thing as too much protein for a traditional diet. Probably is, but I haven't done the research so I can't speak to it.
But for low carb diets, more than 40% can be detrimental for some people as their body may process the excess like carbs and knock us out of ketosis.0 -
some body builders actually eat as much as 300 grams of protein per day but realize that they are getting it mostly in their foods and only 1-2 protein shakes... so no 120 is not too much at all
Yes, they actually will more than 300g in a day sometimes because they have a huge amount of lean mass and are on intense training programs.
Sure, 200g of protein is probably more than someone who is inactive but if you are an average sized guy that lifts weights 4 days per week that's not too much.0 -
According to the Mayo Clinic -
Recommendation: Get 10 to 35 percent of your total daily calories from protein. Protein has 4 calories a gram. Based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet, this amounts to about 200 to 700 calories a day, or about 50 to 175 grams a day. Emphasize plant sources of protein, such as beans, lentils, soy products and unsalted nuts. Include seafood twice a week. Meat, poultry and dairy products should be lean or low fat.0 -
There's some interesting information in this thread but to get back to the OP's question....
From what I've read (and I'm certainly not as up on this as some others!) our kidneys can efficiently process up to around 200-300 grams of protein a day, based on your height and weight. 120 grams per day is not too much in that respect. Whether or not you "need" that much is another story.0 -
I have the opposite problem. My husband has PKU, so our typical daily diet consists of roughly 11g of protein, unless its a meat day (which we do 3X a week). I try to substitute by snacking on nuts and eating meat on my lunch at work, and I always incorporate meat into my son's diet. But I have trouble straying from what I cook for my hubby. I was thinking of trying a shake for this reason. Any recommendations?0
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I use the six star professional strength from Wal-Mart...I get the chocolate but they have other flavors too. It tastes really good and has around 25g protein per scoop
There are others that are good as well though. 0 -
There's some interesting information in this thread but to get back to the OP's question....
From what I've read (and I'm certainly not as up on this as some others!) our kidneys can efficiently process up to around 200-300 grams of protein a day, based on your height and weight. 120 grams per day is not too much in that respect. Whether or not you "need" that much is another story.
I will amend this by saying that , yes, they can process 200-300 per day without problems, but some of what you eat gets burned as fuel for energy and some is used for other purposes before reaching the kindeys. The more active you are and the more you lift the more will be burned for fuel and the more will be used for tissue maintenance and repair (From lifting..ect). So the actual amount that is safe to eat is actually higher than 200-300.
Given that most bodybuilders who have much more muscle mass than the average guy can eat 300+ everyday without issues it would be pretty hard for the average person to OD. It's hard to say how much of your protein gets used before being processed through the kindeys but I would estimate 10-15% is a decent estimate.
My opinion is that most people will not see health effects from too much protein until they reach the 400g range and maintain that for the long term.
Just to put it in perspective, you'd have to drink something in the order of 15-20 protein shakes a day or 60-70 ounces of chicken breast.
So while it could happen, it's pretty hard to do it unles you are trying to kill yourself.0 -
However, I must point out some seriously flawed logic to your post. If the amount of protein we need is what the mainstream medical community says...and you define need as how much our body will use before storing it as fat...then I should be seriously fat. I've been consuming approximately 140 grams of protein per day. But according to you, I only need 70 grams. Do you see what I'm getting at? But my body-fat has been slowly going down over the weeks.
Also, people have been eating high protein diets for decades with no noticeable increase in reported kidney problems. Yes, people who ALREADY HAVE bad kidneys should keep their protein consumption (as well as an assortment of other foods) to a minimum, but for the rest of us, it would take an incredible amount of protein to overwork our kidneys. Protein hurting your kidneys is an outdated line of thinking that has been disproved by scientific research.
To the OP, my suggestion would be to enjoy your protein shakes. If anything, replacing your other macros with protein will accelerate fat loss.
First of all, I don't care how much protein you eat. I don't care if you choose to follow something other than evidenced based recommentations. But please don't ask me for MY OPINION (i.e. MY definition of need) and then group it into some rant to call my logic "flawed". If you want to know how any particular recommending organization defines "need" then please do that research yourself. And if you want to use personal anecdotal examples as "evidence" then please go ahead. I'll stick with medical evidence, which is a completely logical thing to do. Good luck and good health to you!0 -
First of all, I don't care how much protein you eat. I don't care if you choose to follow something other than evidenced based recommentations. But please don't ask me for MY OPINION (i.e. MY definition of need) and then group it into some rant to call my logic "flawed". If you want to know how any particular recommending organization defines "need" then please do that research yourself. And if you want to use personal anecdotal examples as "evidence" then please go ahead. I'll stick with medical evidence, which is a completely logical thing to do. Good luck and good health to you!
The problem I have with this is your logic that eating more than the RDA is bad. Or so it seems from your posts. It's pretty common knowledge that RDAs are minimum levels to be healthy, not ranges or limtis on how much to eat.
If RDA is 70, they are just saying that for the average person 70g is enough to be healthy. It does not say that more than that is bad for you. In fact, I ask you to provide any evidance of the government saying any particular level of protein intake is unheathy.
Good luck witht hat.0 -
There's a difference between the recommended daily intake and the tolerable upper limit. Please link some recent studies that reaffirm your stance on protein. Also, main reason Americans get too much protein is because most Americans get too many calories in general. Over 30% adult obesity rate proves that.0
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First of all, I don't care how much protein you eat. I don't care if you choose to follow something other than evidenced based recommentations. But please don't ask me for MY OPINION (i.e. MY definition of need) and then group it into some rant to call my logic "flawed". If you want to know how any particular recommending organization defines "need" then please do that research yourself. And if you want to use personal anecdotal examples as "evidence" then please go ahead. I'll stick with medical evidence, which is a completely logical thing to do. Good luck and good health to you!
The problem I have with this is your logic that eating more than the RDA is bad. Or so it seems from your posts. It's pretty common knowledge that RDAs are minimum levels to be healthy, not ranges or limtis on how much to eat.
If RDA is 70, they are just saying that for the average person 70g is enough to be healthy. It does not say that more than that is bad for you. In fact, I ask you to provide any evidance of the government saying any particular level of protein intake is unheathy.
Good luck witht hat.
Nope, never said or purposely implied anything like that. I said I like to stay within the recommendations and there is no medical evidence that you need more. Following evidenced based recommendations seems the most logical thing a person can do IMO.0 -
There's a difference between the recommended daily intake and the tolerable upper limit. Please link some recent studies that reaffirm your stance on protein. Also, main reason Americans get too much protein is because most Americans get too many calories in general. Over 30% adult obesity rate proves that.
Not sure who you were asking for links, but "tolerable limits" is a WHOLE other can of worms. I mean, the human body is pretty flexible and can live on no protein at all. I suppose there probably is an upper tolerable limit, but I don't know if anyone has ever done a study on it, but I sure as heck woudn't want to be one of the participants!! :noway:0
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