Protein powder and recommended protein amount?

ShellyLee
ShellyLee Posts: 293 Member
edited September 20 in Food and Nutrition
So MFP recommends that I get about 49g of protein a day. I've started running and I'm having trouble meeting the calorie intake by the end of the day most of the time. I run pretty late and don't want to eat another meal that late so instead I thought I'd just add a protein shake... get protein plus some extra calories from the shake mix and the milk. My friend, who is a runner, has recommended a a good protein powder. The powder has 24g of protein per serving.. plus what the milk adds.. so I'm thinking that's going to up to 30g per shake. I don't mind going over a little of protein, but just one serving of chicken would put me up 54 easily! Then add the small amounts of protein from all the other stuff I eat.

Anyone see any issues with going over on the protein quite a bit?

Replies

  • Gogo
    Gogo Posts: 9,942 Member
    I was just researching this earlier! I was worried about the same thing...........

    Here is what I found by googling:

    Let’s be realistic here and take a normal semi-active individual who works out maybe once a week but has an energy-demanding job. The RDA for these average energy-spending individuals is about 0.8 g/kg of body weight (there’re 2.2 lbs per kg). If you divide the two numbers, you can get the common factor of 0.36…

    (0.8g/kg) / (2.2lbs/kg) = 0.364g protein/lb of body weight

    So, multiplying your body weight (in lbs) by 0.364 will give you the total amount of protein you should be getting per day, according to the RDA. So, if you’re 175 lbs…

    (175 lbs) x (0.364g protein/lb) = 63.7 g protein/day

    Research shows that athletes do actually need slightly more protein to help repair torn muscle fibers (this is a natural process of muscle-building). Remember, this doesn't necessarily mean they also need muscle building supplements!

    The generally accepted value for athletes is between 1.0 and 1.8 g/protein per kg (use the above formula to calculate how much you need).
  • CasperO
    CasperO Posts: 2,913 Member
    I'm doing a mass-building weight training routine with few repititions of heavy weight (+cardio of course). And it's working, I'm gaining muscle mass while maintaining weight. My goal is 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day.

    MFP recommends that I eat 90 grams of protein a day. I strive for 210, and most days I get pretty close to that - so I'm eating 2.2X their recommended level. I make up the diff by eating less fats and carbs (especially trying to avoid the dreaded "white carbs").

    I've been doing it for months, and building muscle and losing fat & inches while maintaining weight. It's worked well for me so far and I've had no ill effects. As a female your physiology is different and your goals may be different and you may not want to load up as I do - but it is safe to eat more protein.

    My $.o2, YMMV, Good luck, :smile:
  • melbug25
    melbug25 Posts: 50
    I actually have talked to a personal trainer about this same subject. She told me that I need over 100 grams of protein a day and that most of that should come from lean meats. She is not a big fan of protein shakes or bars because of all of the other added stuff. She is a big advocate of the "EAT CLEAN" diet. Google it and see if that sounds interesting to you.
  • breckmc
    breckmc Posts: 30
    I'm also of the mindset that more protein is better when trying to lose fat and maintain muscle mass. If you are concerned about the additives in traditional protein powders try a whey protein isolate. The isolate powder is more expensive but it is 90-98% pure protein. Typical protein powders are whey or soy concentrate and are usually 80-85% pure protein.
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