Struggling to get enough protein

nbuuifx wrote: »

I'm new to this and not really paid enough attention to diet before. I'm active with a BMI of 25. Got a few lbs of fat that I want to shift. However I'm struggling to get protein anywhere near the target.

I drink protein shakes with milk after intense exercise but even that isn't really getting me close and adds calories and fat.

MFP says my target is 140g. Is it realistic to get 140g of protein in each day without protein shakes and if so how?

I'm currently at 69g for today which came from a purposeful effort to get protein (omelette - so cheese and egg).

I feel like I can do it as a one off but to constantly get 140g without adding extra through protein shakes is nearly impossible 🤣

Any tips would be appreciated!

While cheese does have protein, it generally actually has more fat than protein, so is very caloric. I add fat free cottage cheese to eggs these days. You could try some cottage cheese for that dairy mouth feel plus some regular cheese for the taste.

(I don't like low fat hard cheese, but am fine with fat free cottage cheese. For yogurt, while I think full fat tastes better, I am fine with low fat or fat free as long as I also have fruit with it.)

I've also reduced the amount of high calorie salad dressing or olive oil I use and add in fat free cottage cheese.

For some foods, I can replace mayo with cottage cheese. (But not tuna macaroni salad - that will forever be FULL mayo!)

Fat is 9 calories per gram and protein and carbs are 4, so whenever I take out fat I have room for more than twice as much protein.

I was the one who suggested you open your diary, and I appreciate that you were responsive, but truly I don't have a lot to add to what quicker responders above have mentioned. There's a lot of calories in bread-like things, compared to your goals. You are already choosing bread with some protein, which is good.

I understand that many people like bread things, some find them filling. If that's you, then definitely keep eating some. But maybe reduce the amount, or choose alternate types? Sometimes, for example, wraps are more calorie-efficient than breads (read labels), if you find them equally tasty/satisfying.

Another thing I'm noticing is that you have butter somewhat often. It's only 10g portions, but that's 75 calories per use. How important is that to you for tastiness/satiation, or is it mostly a habit? Would some alternative work as a spread that has some protein, like neufchatel cheese (if you're not familiar, it's similar to cream cheese, just a little lower in calories). For around 70 calories, you could put a couple of tablespoons of that on your bagel (or half bagel, whatever), get at least a couple of grams of protein. Or chevre, if you like that, at around 80 calories for 28g, around 80 calories, 5g protein. Or lowfat cottage cheese, at maybe 12g protein for 80 calories. (The latter might need some spice/herb mix on top for tastiness, depending on your tastes.)

The above is the kind of thought process I was talking about, when I suggested reviewing your diary routinely, asking yourself which things have relatively many calories, but that aren't contributing well to your nutritional goals. If you need them for satiation or happiness (or whatever), that's a factor in the decision, too. It's subjective. But I think the thought process can work.

One aside: I noticed rice once. Here, one can get "chickpea rice", which is really a small orzo pasta. It's similar to rice in looks/feel (not identical) and neutral-flavored, but would have about 15g protein for 1/2C dry (more like 1.5C cooked), at 270 calories, vs. 6g protein for 268 calories of the rice. One brand here just needs to be mixed in boiling water and set aside for 10 minutes, basically, so easy.

Best wishes!

nbuuifx wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

I was the one who suggested you open your diary, and I appreciate that you were responsive, but truly I don't have a lot to add to what quicker responders above have mentioned. There's a lot of calories in bread-like things, compared to your goals. You are already choosing bread with some protein, which is good.

I understand that many people like bread things, some find them filling. If that's you, then definitely keep eating some. But maybe reduce the amount, or choose alternate types? Sometimes, for example, wraps are more calorie-efficient than breads (read labels), if you find them equally tasty/satisfying.

Another thing I'm noticing is that you have butter somewhat often. It's only 10g portions, but that's 75 calories per use. How important is that to you for tastiness/satiation, or is it mostly a habit? Would some alternative work as a spread that has some protein, like neufchatel cheese (if you're not familiar, it's similar to cream cheese, just a little lower in calories). For around 70 calories, you could put a couple of tablespoons of that on your bagel (or half bagel, whatever), get at least a couple of grams of protein. Or chevre, if you like that, at around 80 calories for 28g, around 80 calories, 5g protein. Or lowfat cottage cheese, at maybe 12g protein for 80 calories. (The latter might need some spice/herb mix on top for tastiness, depending on your tastes.)

The above is the kind of thought process I was talking about, when I suggested reviewing your diary routinely, asking yourself which things have relatively many calories, but that aren't contributing well to your nutritional goals. If you need them for satiation or happiness (or whatever), that's a factor in the decision, too. It's subjective. But I think the thought process can work.

One aside: I noticed rice once. Here, one can get "chickpea rice", which is really a small orzo pasta. It's similar to rice in looks/feel (not identical) and neutral-flavored, but would have about 15g protein for 1/2C dry (more like 1.5C cooked), at 270 calories, vs. 6g protein for 268 calories of the rice. One brand here just needs to be mixed in boiling water and set aside for 10 minutes, basically, so easy.

Best wishes!

Thank you, I'm not a big butter eater and might be overestimating slightly as I haven't weighed the butter that I use. I only eat butter on toast, bagels, jacket potato, and crackers. I don't have it on sandwiches or on toast if it has something else on.

It's entirely possible that I'm biased about butter. I rarely eat any. I don't love it that much (it's OK, but not vital to me), it has relatively many calories, I don't find it filling, it has very little nutritional value IMO. If you feel differently, I'm not going to suggest you should drop it. These tradeoffs are *very* personal and subjective.

I do like bread and bread based things but currently my nutrition page on MFP shows that my carb intake is below target. Is it just that replacing it with something else is better? I thought I was going ok on that side 🤣

As far as carb intake: There's nothing wrong with carbs. I eat (looking backward at my MFP data) just under 50% of my calories in carbs most of the time.

Here's the thing, though, that affects my personal thought process about the macro goals: Protein and fats are "essential macronutrients", IMU, as a technical term. We need to eat some, because our bodies can't manufacture them out of other macronutrients. (It can, in essence, manufacture carbs out of protein or fats.)

So, I'm not saying you get too many carbs. Personally I don't believe there is such a thing as "too many carbs" in the abstract (others will disagree). However, if having difficulty getting a reasonable minimum of protein or fats, within calorie goal, personally I'd absolutely reduce carbs to make room for more protein or fats (whichever I was short on), because carbs aren't an "essential macronutrient". If over my goal on fats consistently, but under on protein, I'd sacrifice fat calories to get more protein . . . or vice versa.

If I hit my protein and fat goals, still have calorie room for more food, I don't really care which macro I eat, nutritionally. Absent some health condition that indicates otherwise, it's fine to be over on any macro(s) within calories, but not so good to routinely under on any one essential nutrient. (Close on average is reasonable for the essential ones, doesn't have to be at/over minimum every single day.)

For clarity, it's calories that are the direct influence on body weight. Nutrition is IMO important for health and body composition, among other things, but only affects weight indirectly (though potentially meaningfully, through indirect routes like energy level or appetite).

I'll have a look for chickpea rice.

I've got to say that one factor I have to keep in mind is what everyone else in the house is eating. It's ok if I can convince everyone else to eat things like chickpea rice but if they don't like it, it makes it harder as I'm not always the one who cooks (in normal times I get back from work 2.5 hours after my wife so she has normally sorted dinner for the kids and me).

Yes, practicality is another reasonable subjective criterion, and that will differ between people, too.

In my mind, long term success at calorie counting is finding a personalized approach that balances calories, nutrition, practicality, tastiness, satiation, social connection, and maybe more. Key word: Personalized.

I've tried to leave things fairly normal at the moment to see if I can spot problem areas from what I eat.

I think I've been under my calorie target each day and have lost a few pounds in the first few days, which is more than planned but I'm not complaining.

Leaving things normal to start makes sense. If you're not starting with a diagnosed nutritional deficiency, you can take some time to gradually adjust nutrition, without causing problems.

One thing: I'd encourage you to think of your calorie goal as a goal to hit (or come close to), not a number to beat by going materially under . . . especially since you seem to have body composition goals.

Losing slower than desired can be frustrating, but losing faster than appropriate can increase health risks, including risking more than minimum lean mass loss alongside fat loss.

That said, it's normal to lose scale weight a little faster at first, because of changes in water retention and average digestive contents in transit. Loss may slow as you go along, after that initial couple of weeks or so, may even seem to stall temporarily for a couple of weeks later . . . just hang in there, give it time, would be my advice. Bodies are weird. Fat loss plays peek-a-boo on the scale with water retention and digestive contents; but most of us care about the fat (and lean mass) weight, not the water/waste weight.

I do want to balance out the things that are reported as being low by my smart scales but do have to keep in mind how accurate they are or aren't!

Sure. I don't know what that protein number on your smart scale is supposed to be - that's a new one on me. I don't see how it can possibly be a gauge of your eating, unless your scale is internet enabled and communicating directly or indirectly with your food diary.

Cautionary note: You're just getting my opinions here about nutrition. I'm not a registered dietitian, just an interested amateur. I hope others will chime in if they disagree, so that you get the benefit of multiple (and maybe better) opinions.

nbuuifx wrote: »

Thank you for the comprehensive reply.

The scales are Anker Eufy P1 smart scales. They are relatively simple in themselves but they communicate via Bluetooth to an app on your mobile phone. That app is internet enabled but doesn't link to MFP. The scales/app do not know what I have eaten. It seems to be able to take a lot of measurements by sending a signal through your body. I'm not sure how much I trust them but then it said protein was low and it was the main thing I noticed I was having to concentrate on making sure was at the right level. I was surprised that my water level was low though. Nearly all I drink is water, and it isn't often that I don't drink 2.5L per day. I don't drink tea or coffee, rarely drink fruit juices etc and only have the of alcoholic drink now and again, sometimes months between. The only other thing I drink is protein shake with milk after a run.

I have a BIA scale, too. I doesn't provide all those metrics, and I don't know what some of them (from your scale) are. I don't trust the absolute body fat percent number from mine (error rate of 3-5% for these estimates, generically, IMU). I figure I can get some useful insights from the body fat percent numbers' trend over time, since it's easy to see cases where a reading is an outlier in a series.

I see absolutely no way that sending a current through your lower body is going to be able to give you feedback on the nutritional quality of your food intake.

Water weight reflects many more factors than just how much water one drinks.

With the goals in MFP, is the ideal to get 100% of everything? Or are some things more like a maximum?

The percent goals in MFP are an approximation in the first place, but not crazy for most people. (But, for example, if someone tries to lose weight crazy-fast for their current size, the absolute amounts of some macronutrients can be insufficient for their best health odds, even if they hit the right percent of calories. Personally, I think estimating one's own protein and fats goals in grams, adjusting MFP defaults accordingly, is a good plan.

For more about that, consider this:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/819055/setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets/p1

Personal opinion (and behavior): I figured out how many grams (minimum) of protein and fats I wanted to get every day, then set my MFP percents to come close to the desired gram values at pre-exercise calories. I eat to the numeric minimums, which I rounded to easy number to remember (in my case, at 5'5", 125 pounds, quite active, vegetarian, my protein minimum is 100g, fat minimum is 50g; and I strive to consider MUFA/PUFA levels vs. sat fats and Omega-3/Omega-6 balance, though I don't have firm targets for those). I strive for a minimum of 5 x 80g servings of varied, colorful veggies & fruits daily, and prefer to get 10+ servings when possible. Generally, I figure that takes care of my micronutrient and fiber needs, though I do track fiber in one of my diary columns (instead of sugar). Once in a while, I spot-check micronutrients that are more common to be deficiencies, such as potassium, by checking sources outside MFP that are more accurate than MFP's food database for micronutrient values.

I'm rarely under my protein/fat minimums. I usually exceed protein, sometimes significantly (I find protein filling, as well as valuing it as a nutrient).

I didn't do all of this on day 1 with MFP. It was a gradual remodeling of my eating, like this:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10636388/free-customized-personal-weight-loss-eating-plan-not-spam-or-mlm/p1

I note that when I have a kiwi my vitamin A goes way over the target - is that ok?

Sure. There are some micronutrients (some minerals, fat-soluble vitamins) that it can be a bad idea to significantly exceed day after day, routinely (including some MFP doesn't even try to track). Most people with normal, varied diets don't need to worry about micros in food being excessive in that way, generally. (Supplements can be a different matter.)

Is it ok for carbs to not meet the target?

I literally don't care where my carbs end up; I usually just use them to balance calories, though sometimes alcohol (which isn't one of the macros, but has calories) is in the picture, too.

Some people find that if their carbs are "too high", it spikes their appetite, and causes them problems. Some other people find that if their carbs are "too low", their energy level suffers, which is a problem. I don't seem to have either of the problems within the range of carbs and type of carbs I eat, which is 200g+ of carbs most days now, in maintenance. (When I was losing, it was more like 150g carbs, and my protein sometimes came in a little below 100 or fats below 50, but not by much. To me, personally, the tradeoffs are a little different at different calorie levels and when losing vs. maintaining.)

I put "too high" and "too low" in quotes, because the levels that may cause problems will vary by person, IMO.

Caveat: I'm talking about people who are generally healthy, without special health considerations due to health conditions or medication regimens. Carb intake absolutely matters for someone who's diabetic or insulin resistant, as does protein if someone has certain kidney conditions.

But calories should meet the target each day, protein should meet or exceed the target, and fat should meet the target - is that correct? Any others to watch out for?!

Thanks again

Just my opinion: I would say calories should come close to the target (a little under or over is fine), protein or fat or both can exceed the target but should at least come close to goal as a minimum on average, carbs don't really matter to me. Exactly exact on anything is optional, with being persistently way under minimums something to work on.

As far as calories: Bear in mind that MFP (or any other online calculator or fitness tracker) gives you an estimate that's essentially the average calorie need for people like you. If you're close to average, your weight results will follow along accordingly. If you happen to be far from average - possibly for inobvious reasons - you may lose faster or slower than predicted, though being far off the averages is a reasonably rare thing.

So, usual advice around here is to come near your calorie goal consistently for 4-6 weeks, compare your average weekly weight loss over that period to your target weight loss rate, and adjust if necessary/desirable. If the first couple of weeks look wildly different than subsequent weeks, ignore those and use later weeks. (Adult women not in menopause should compare weights at the same relative point in two or more different monthly cycles, to get average weekly loss rates, because hormonal water weight is sometimes weird.)

Based on other discussions on MFP, I think I'm more structured than the average MFPer about nutritional goals. Some ignore their macros, just pay attention to calories. Some try to hit protein as a minimum, ignore the other goals. Some try to hit most things close, as I do. And so forth.

Also, repeating myself here: Calories are what directly matter for weight management. Nutrition is about health, body composition, maybe satiation. Nutrition can *indirectly* affect weight management through energy level (so movement, so calorie burn) or through appetite (so through calorie compliance).

It's tough to adjust at first because proteins are so satiating. I eat about 215g per day. I need 4 meals plus snacks.

Try a cup of egg whites everyday with an egg added in. Also, make sure that your other foods have some protein. Everything counts. Protein shakes, protein pancakes, protein ice cream are all good strategies to augment. It's an adjustment. You'll get used to it.

I am in the same boat, but I'm also a picky eater, so meat is my main source. I've only had a protein shake once but mixed it with "healthy" ice cream (I believe it was Nick's-highly recommended btw). Way too thick haha! I know if I'm running low on protein and don't have any meat handy or in a rush, I LOVE the Power Crunch Pro bars. They taste amazing and have 20g of protein (peanut butter creme is my favorite).

I love reading these suggestions. I'm currently dealing with some heavy mental health issues and going through medication changes (ugh), so my focus has been elsewhere and my diet has been s**t, so I need help getting back on the horse, so to speak. I'm going to try to do some precooking today like I used to, so hoping it helps.