Getting enough protein
Options
Replies
-
Well, lower than which average? TDEE minus exercise is NEAT. 1390+500=1890, so none of us can be far off.MailOrderBride wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »
A target of 1250 might be a little low, unnecessary, and counterproductive. Your loss (thanks, I forgot to ask) seems to indicate that you've had a daily 250 calorie deficit (but we need data over a longer period to see the trend clearly); your TDEE at your current weight should be around 2000, which means that your real average calorie intake in this period would have been around 1750. Try to "hear" this without any judgemental tone - what I'm trying to say is that if you up your calorie goal a bit, you'll be better able to stick to a calorie deficit, and not have to worry about hunger or not getting enough of any nutrient.MailOrderBride wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »
Maybe, maybe not. What's your height and weight, and your calorie target, and do you hit it cosistently?MailOrderBride wrote: »
I do feel hungry at night, and I think if I had more protein that would not necessarily be the case.kommodevaran wrote: »20% protein is probably fine. Do you feel fine?
Why? And when do you go to bed?(I try to not eat after 7)
I used to do/think that too. But I have found being motivated by my lifestyle much more sustainable.But I feel good, work out and motivated by the weight loss.
I feel best when I’ve had a certain time for fasting. If I’m hungry, I eat. For example I had a hearty breakfast this morning at 8am (I used to hate breakfast)
I’m 5”3 and 144 (down from 149 since 2.5 weeks ago). My ideal is 131, calories are 1250.
Thanks so much for the insight! I actually took a breathing test at a nutritionist that showed that I have slightly lower than average metabolism. So my TDEE is right under 1800, before exercise. She recommended 1390 for losing 1 pound a week, I went down to 1250 to try to get two, knowing that I’m new to logging and it may not always be accurate. I just need to get back to my normal weight and then I’m on to the 1400/day plan.
I wonder what you're seeing a nutritionist for, when you're not going to follow her advice. She didn't recommend 1390 even though you could do better, but thinks you don't have the guts, or because she didn't trust you to log correctly. 1390 is a good goal at this point because your body can only break down so much fatty tissue per time unit without starting to eat off your muscles. When this happens, is not a point per se - you'll be losing a bit of lean mass no matter what - but the ratio accelerates as you decrease calorie intake beyond some level.
Food logging is pretty straightforward, just check each entry against the food label, and weigh the amount that goes into your mouth.
If you try to underat, you'll not only struggle to reach goal weight. If you do hit it, you've set yourself up for rebound overeating. 1250 doesn't even equal a theoretical 2 pounds loss; 1890-1250=640.
Your TDEE at goal weight will be a little lower than it is now, but certainly not 1400. You'll be eating at TDEE to maintain your weight.
Edited for clarity, I hope.5 -
MailOrderBride wrote: »How do you guys do it? My macros are 50% carbs, 25 fat and 25 protein. I can barely maje it it to 20% protein. I eat yogurt, lentils, tuna, chicken and meat, but cannot eat meat at every meal. I’m losing weight, but would like to get to where I need to be with macro goal set up by a nutritionist.
What is your goal..... endurance, muscle general fitness, cover model???
All of the above. Too much?
2 -
MailOrderBride wrote: »How do you guys do it? My macros are 50% carbs, 25 fat and 25 protein. I can barely maje it it to 20% protein. I eat yogurt, lentils, tuna, chicken and meat, but cannot eat meat at every meal. I’m losing weight, but would like to get to where I need to be with macro goal set up by a nutritionist.
In the US ANYONE can call themselves a nutritionist, no training, education, experience, NOTHING required. If you want dietary advice from a professional see someone that is a Registered Dietitian.
1 -
Packerjohn wrote: »MailOrderBride wrote: »How do you guys do it? My macros are 50% carbs, 25 fat and 25 protein. I can barely maje it it to 20% protein. I eat yogurt, lentils, tuna, chicken and meat, but cannot eat meat at every meal. I’m losing weight, but would like to get to where I need to be with macro goal set up by a nutritionist.
In the US ANYONE can call themselves a nutritionist, no training, education, experience, NOTHING required. If you want dietary advice from a professional see someone that is a Registered Dietitian.
That's not true, it varies on a state by state basis (although in no states is the requirement anywhere near as high as a rd program).2 -
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggest a range of 10-35% of calories from protein. I'm older, lift weight and my main goal is maintain/build muscle. I eat around 175-200g of protein (bodyweight of 205) so I'm between 25-30% of my average 2800-3000 daily calories from protein.
If I decide to to something like some long running/biking/hiking, etc, I'll drop the protein to around 20-25% of calories for a while and bump up carbs.0 -
fuzzylop72 wrote: »Packerjohn wrote: »MailOrderBride wrote: »How do you guys do it? My macros are 50% carbs, 25 fat and 25 protein. I can barely maje it it to 20% protein. I eat yogurt, lentils, tuna, chicken and meat, but cannot eat meat at every meal. I’m losing weight, but would like to get to where I need to be with macro goal set up by a nutritionist.
In the US ANYONE can call themselves a nutritionist, no training, education, experience, NOTHING required. If you want dietary advice from a professional see someone that is a Registered Dietitian.
That's not true, it varies on a state by state basis (although in no states is the requirement anywhere near as hiigh as a rd program).
I unfortunately have to agree. My stats were calculated and printed by a body scan. The only advice given by this “nutritionist” was to download this app and work out and stuff. When I addressed my slower metabolism and propensity to retain water, she was confused and went back to her shtick. I’m happy I got this app, but didn’t need to pay 300 bucks to be told to do so. Next time I go to a dietician.
3 -
MailOrderBride wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »Oh, I think you want this to go in Food and Nutrition, OP, not debate. You can ask that it be moved.
We can debate!
Is protein all it’s cracked up to be? And is it better to have lower protein intake versus using supplements and powders?
I tend to add protein powder to coffee in the morning... just not really hot coffee or it will curdle. <shiver> I experience the dawn phenomenon where my blood glucose readings tend to be highest first thing in the morning often as high as 6 (or 100). a bit of extra protein in the am seems to help it come down faster, possibly from the insulin response from protein.
Even without the BG rise, I like PP because I have a hard time getting my protein where I want it. I tend to favour fattier meats so that can make it harder.0 -
MailOrderBride wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »Oh, I think you want this to go in Food and Nutrition, OP, not debate. You can ask that it be moved.
We can debate!
Is protein all it’s cracked up to be? And is it better to have lower protein intake versus using supplements and powders?
I don't feel a need to debate; it just seemed like you were wanting advice, not a debate.
Is protein all it's cracked up to be? Depends. Minimum protein is important, but it's hard not to meet that unless you have a really restrictive diet. Beyond that, some people find it helps with satiety, but not everyone. When you are losing weight, it's helpful to maintain muscle, but hardly the only thing that matters. I think a broad range of .65-.85 g per lb (goal weight works) is good for weight loss (for me that's 78 g at the low end), and that less is fine at maintenance with an understanding that if you want to recomp or build muscle getting within that range is probably a good idea.
Is it better to have lower protein vs. supplements and powder? Depends on how low and why you don't like the supplements or why you can't get it in other ways. I don't think there's anything wrong with protein powder except that you might not find it as satisfying or might not enjoy the taste. Obviously protein powders are quite varied. I'm not sure what you mean by supplement other than protein powder (maybe protein bars), but if you mean something like tofu or tempeh, I wouldn't consider that a supplement at all, it's quite common and traditional in Asian cooking.
I like to get about 20-30 g at breakfast, and when eating eggs and dairy I do that easily, but on occasion I enjoy smoothies or oats and might add protein powder to increase the amount in that meal. I do this more now that I'm eating far less animal products, but it's not necessary if you want to avoid those sources of protein; I hit my goals on days I don't have protein powder too.
I suspect the reason most consume protein bars is less for protein and more because they tend (for some) to be more satiating alternatives to candy bars. (I have this thing where I eat peanut and dark chocolate Kind bars (the best ones!) whenever I'm traveling because you can always find them at an airport, but those aren't especially high protein anyway, and I do think of them as basically candy bars.)1 -
Thanks everyone for the great ideas and advice. My issue with protein powder comes from extensive research into products that have chemical additives and have been recalled for being dangerous or even having rat droppings! I’ve ordered some pure organic hemp powder with about 19 grams per serving, so we will see how it goes. Most importantly, it has one ingredient
5 -
As far as I can see on a skim-through, no one recommended this thread, so I will, even though I'm late to the party:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also
It's not vegetarian, I am, and it still helped me a bunch.3 -
MailOrderBride wrote: »Thanks everyone for the great ideas and advice. My issue with protein powder comes from extensive research into products that have chemical additives and have been recalled for being dangerous or even having rat droppings! I’ve ordered some pure organic hemp powder with about 19 grams per serving, so we will see how it goes. Most importantly, it has one ingredient
That's fine if you want to go with pure organic hemp. However, don't fool yourself into thinking that organic products don't get rat droppings in them during the processing/packaging process.13 -
FWIW I struggled initially with protein, but I found that adding hard boiled eggs, full fat greek yogurt, and tuna as snacks helped boost my counts. I also found my moods evened out when I upped my protein and I didn't have the urgent dips in my energy/hunger cues -- everything just evened out. Like you, my sugar goes high because of the fruits, but I'm kind of at the point where my doctor isn't worried about my sugars and I'm feeling a lot better generally, so I'm not going to stress it.
I tried a protein powder in my fruit smoothies and it was really, really gross - made it very frothy and weird to the point where I couldn't injest the smoothie without gagging.2 -
MailOrderBride wrote: »I’m 5”3 and 144 (down from 149 since 2.5 weeks ago). My ideal is 131, calories are 1250.Thanks so much for the insight! I actually took a breathing test at a nutritionist that showed that I have slightly lower than average metabolism. So my TDEE is right under 1800, before exercise. She recommended 1390 for losing 1 pound a week, I went down to 1250 to try to get two, knowing that I’m new to logging and it may not always be accurate. I just need to get back to my normal weight and then I’m on to the 1400/day plan.
Two pounds per week is overly aggressive for a less than 20 pound weight loss goal. One pound per week is aggressive and a half pound per week is usually what people find more sustainable. Especially given that your RMR has already been measured as being below average, such an aggressive rate of loss runs the risk of getting inadequate general nutrition and losing Lean Body Mass along with the fat, which then lowers your metabolic rate even further.
Also, if you are eating a lot of nuts, that is likely a big part of your difficulty in hitting your macros within your calorie target. As you are aware, nuts are very high in calories, mostly from fat... and while everything that is in nuts is ultimately good for you, they just don't mesh well in certain eating patterns. I love peanut butter and cashews myself, sadly I have to limit them pretty severely or I'd find myself 1000 calories over on a daily basis.
5 -
Packerjohn wrote: »MailOrderBride wrote: »Thanks everyone for the great ideas and advice. My issue with protein powder comes from extensive research into products that have chemical additives and have been recalled for being dangerous or even having rat droppings! I’ve ordered some pure organic hemp powder with about 19 grams per serving, so we will see how it goes. Most importantly, it has one ingredient
That's fine if you want to go with pure organic hemp. However, don't fool yourself into thinking that organic products don't get rat droppings in them during the processing/packaging process.
So I get my protein after all.Win win.
1 -
As far as I can see on a skim-through, no one recommended this thread, so I will, even though I'm late to the party:
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also
It's not vegetarian, I am, and it still helped me a bunch.
This is awesome! Thanks so much for sharing!2 -
OP with so little to lose, 2lbs is an accident waiting to happen, of the hitting the wall variety. You really shouldn't be aiming for more than 1 lb per week. Eating so low cal is most likely part of the reason you are struggling to get protein and feeling hungry sometimes
When I was losing, I was eating 1500 cals and getting 85 - 90g with chicken, tuna, salmon, Greek yogurt, lentils, eggs, chocolate milk, protein powder, and the smaller stuff adding up like whole grains, beans, PB, and some protein enriched convenience foods.2 -
MailOrderBride wrote: »livingleanlivingclean wrote: »How much do you want to eat? During the week, i eat fish once a day, but otherwise all my other protein is vegetarian - I aim for, and easily get 130g.
Have you tried increasing the amount of protein foods you eat per meal? More yoghurt (I add protein powder to high protein, low fat natural yoghurt for more protein, flavour and sweetness without adding carbs). Other dairy. A bigger serve of meat.
I’d love to hear more about your veggie protein sources. I eat tons of yogurt, eggs, lentils, etc. For example, I just made Borcht, so I add Greek yogurt (instead of sour cream) for an added boost of protein.
If you eat "tons" of those things, you'd have no issue getting 78g. My first meal is eggs with vegies and Parmesan - 1 jumbo egg, 2 jumbo egg whites and 20g cheese, plus the protein from my vegies (mushrooms give a decent amount!)... I think that meal is about 30g protein?
Planning helps - I typically wouldn't have a vegetable soup as a meal as its hard to get protein in.1 -
You’ve never had Borcht! Not only is it meat based but you also add sour creamlivingleanlivingclean wrote: »MailOrderBride wrote: »livingleanlivingclean wrote: »How much do you want to eat? During the week, i eat fish once a day, but otherwise all my other protein is vegetarian - I aim for, and easily get 130g.
Have you tried increasing the amount of protein foods you eat per meal? More yoghurt (I add protein powder to high protein, low fat natural yoghurt for more protein, flavour and sweetness without adding carbs). Other dairy. A bigger serve of meat.
I’d love to hear more about your veggie protein sources. I eat tons of yogurt, eggs, lentils, etc. For example, I just made Borcht, so I add Greek yogurt (instead of sour cream) for an added boost of protein.
If you eat "tons" of those things, you'd have no issue getting 78g. My first meal is eggs with vegies and Parmesan - 1 jumbo egg, 2 jumbo egg whites and 20g cheese, plus the protein from my vegies (mushrooms give a decent amount!)... I think that meal is about 30g protein?
Planning helps - I typically wouldn't have a vegetable soup as a meal as its hard to get protein in. high protein as far as soups go plus the beets and garlic are a super immune booster.
0 -
OP with so little to lose, 2lbs is an accident waiting to happen, of the hitting the wall variety. You really shouldn't be aiming for more than 1 lb per week. Eating so low cal is most likely part of the reason you are struggling to get protein and feeling hungry sometimes
When I was losing, I was eating 1500 cals and getting 85 - 90g with chicken, tuna, salmon, Greek yogurt, lentils, eggs, chocolate milk, protein powder, and the smaller stuff adding up like whole grains, beans, PB, and some protein enriched convenience foods.
It seems like Little, but I’ve struggled got three years. Perhaps I was overly ambitious. Thanks for the advice.
0 -
arsenic is a naturally occurring one ingredient mineral- and it's not particularly good for you- so I don't really think that's a good litmus test for what you should be eating.4
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.6K Introduce Yourself
- 43.5K Getting Started
- 259.7K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.6K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 394 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.7K Motivation and Support
- 7.8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.3K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 934 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.3K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions