Getting Enough Protein, so hard

Protein shakes between meals.

If you only like a small serving of protein for with a meal, I'm not sure what to recommend - the obvious fix is to increase your servings of protein and decrease other things. I do a lot of tinkering to make it fit. What is your protein goal? Is there a reason you are trying to hit a certain target? If you have body composition/weight lifting goals, you absolutely should have protein targets, but if you are just trying to lose weight, it doesn't matter as much. Eat enough to maintain basic health, but I wouldn't bust myself if that's your only goal.

Protein supplements (shakes, bars, whatever) can be a help.

Personally, I don't find those particularly tasty or filling, so I prefer to get protein from regular food. Getting enough is possible. For me - even as a vegetarian - this thread was a help:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also

You may find some ideas in the linked spreadsheet that help, but aren't your normal "protein foods" so are more pleasant to add. The non meat/fish items will be further down the list, but they're there.

You might also benefit from a strategy I use as a vegetarian: We all are probably going to need one big protein source in each meal. On top of that, consider eating sides, beverages, snacks, veggies, etc., that have a little bit of protein, in preference to things that have little or none. If you review your food diary, you can note foods that are relatively higher in calories, but have near-zero protein. If those foods aren't majorly important to you for other nutrition, satiation, tastiness or general happiness, those are candidates to reduce or even eliminate. Look at the spreadsheet from that thread above, find foods that you enjoy eating that would be good substitutes, but that have a little more protein. Those small additional amounts through the day can add up.

Chip away at that process to revise your eating patterns, and you'll gradually increase total protein intake that way.

Nothing wrong with protein supplements, though, if you find those practical, tasty and satisfying!

This really depends on how much protein you are trying to get in a day....? You may not need the amount MFP is telling you you need...

I do use a protein supplement powder -- specifically I use Integrated Supplements Whey...my grocery store has both the chocolate and vanilla. They taste fine, mix well, and have 20g of protein per serving and ~28 servings. I tend to buy it when it's on sale (regular price is ~$27) when it's like ~$20. I also don't use this everyday necessarily so it lasts me a good bit.

I also have swapped out regular pasta at times with Banza (or some other protein based) pasta....Banza has the best texture to me. Beans/lentils are a good staple as well. But there's already a link posted for you for higher protein whole foods.

I'm also wondering if your protein goal is set too high.

Here's a reputable protein calculator:

https://examine.com/nutrition/protein-intake-calculator/

I shoot for 400 - 500 calories of exercise per day, and when I achieve that, using the MFP default of 20% protein aligns with the protein recommendation from examine. If I were completely sedentary, I'd need to bump it up to 30%.

I have no problem hitting these targets. I eat meat, chicken, and fish, (mostly chicken) but also get protein from Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese, legumes, etc.

I've found it super convenient to get a rotisserie chicken each week and do a number of things with it. Sometimes it is as simple as a chicken sandwich. They are easier to debone when warm, so I do that right away. In the summer, I get it on trash days so I can throw out the scraps right away. But now that it is getting cooler, I will be saving the bones to make stock. (I find homemade stock to be immensely superior to store bought. I save bones in the freezer in a zip lock bag until it is time to make a batch, which I do in the slow cooker.)

I always make a batch of this:

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/272849/healthy-chicken-salad/

My OH wouldn't like that, so next time I'm going to try Ethan's chicken pasta salad recipe. (I really like his cooking videos on youtube, and the video for this recipe is embedded on the page.)

https://www.ethanchlebowski.com/cooking-techniques-recipes/64x2p40qpmc7vo9vl6q7wagy8wzjn3-dnsgn?rq=pasta salad

Here Ethan makes a Chipotle style chicken burrito with more protein and less fat:

https://www.ethanchlebowski.com/cooking-techniques-recipes/chipotle-burrito-cheaper-faster-healthier

(Note: Ethan's calorie needs are greater than mine, so I reduce the portion sizes to fit my needs.)

Tonight I am making a half batch of this and adding the rest of this week's rotisserie chicken:

https://www.pacificfoods.com/recipes/creamy-broccoli-pasta/

vapianogirl2553 wrote: »

I appreciate reading everyone's comments. I'm shooting for 100/110 grams of protein a day as I hover around 125ish. I am trying to build up muscle and get a more toned appearance and most importantly functional strength. The protein battle isn't easy but I did find a seed bread with 10 grams a slice that's helping. Allowing some processed foods such as lunch meet is helping to even tho I would rather eat all whole unprocessed minimally cooked foods. Aka soups, steamed veggies and a small piece of chicken, fruit for breakfast those sorts of things. I have been using colligen protein and some processed foods to fill in the gap. I really don't understand why fruits and vegetables and grains don't just have protein in them. So annoying. I do eat meat but the amount you need to meet typical goals is absurd. Considering the isopure lemonade drinks they look good. I am skeptical of protein supplements as I think whole foods are better but they do help me reach my goals with less stress. Intermittent fasting seems to be really a game changer as I wake up so hungry I am more open to larger meals and less picky. I find getting all the DVs really hard especially protein and calcium.

Some do. Or, they at least have more protein than others in the category. You'll find them down the list in the spreadsheet linked by the thread I mentioned earlier:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10247171/carbs-and-fats-are-cheap-heres-a-guide-to-getting-your-proteins-worth-fiber-also

The problem is that most aren't complete proteins (in terms of essential amino acids (EAAs)), so you need to be thoughtful about getting a wide variety of plant sources (or be intentional about explicitly complementing EAAs), for best health and body composition results. Broccoli has more than 1g of protein per 10 calories, my benchmark for a good veg source. Kamut, teff, quinoa, wild rice, buckwheat have more protein than brown rice, roughly around twice as much, typically, for similar calorie range. Guavas have about 26 calories per protein gram, which isn't super good, but heck, it's a fruit with protein (and delicious).

Big numbers? No, but they add up.

I am your size, or close (5'5", 128-point-something pounds this morning). I don't eat meat or fish at all. I don't use protein powder, protein bars, or collagen. (I don't think there's anything wrong with them, I just don't find them tasty/satisfying.) The last few days logged, I got 128, 114, 107, 108g protein, most of it from what I'd consider to be whole foods (not a term I like or use) or close to it. It can be done.

I can't speak for you, but I don't find it even remotely hard. At this point, it's pretty much automatic, honestly - having changed my eating patterns to get there, using foods I like. It wasn't hard to get there, either, using diary review and gradually changing those eating patterns. YMMV.

I have protein power three time a week and I do have steak ,fish and chicken