Protein amounts...HELP!

[sadie147]

I'm really struggling to keep my protein amounts in check. According to what I've read it should be .6 to .8 per lb of bodyweight depending on how active you are. Even if it's 1g per lb i'm still too high. Here's my menu for today so far (just finished lunch)

B'fast: 1 egg +2 egg whites scrambled with 1 tbsn of soy milk and 1/2 a turkey sausage (not a b'fast sized one...a large one)
1 cup coffee, 1 cup of roibos tea: 1 splenda, 2 stevia packs. 1 oz of soy creamer
Snack: Whey shake smoothie

Lunch: 1 cup turnip mashed, 2 roasted chicken thigh leftovers form last night (5 ozs w/o bone) 1 cup lettuce, 1 tbsn ranch dressing.

.5 tbsn butter for cooking
64 ozs water.

According to fitday this is:

858 cals 53fat 48% 16carbs 4% 79 protein 48%.

I'm already at 79 g of protein! If i have a medium sized chicken breast for dinner my total will go up to 129 g's! And that's not any snacks this afternoon or sidedishes included. I'd most likely have wheatbran/flax cereal this afternoon as a snack (i run/lift weights and like to have a few carbs before i go) and maybe some celery with s/f p'nut butter, or a boiled egg. I'd have more veggies with dinner. I did have a protein shake today but even if i take that 16g out of my total i'm still high..so that's not it.

So what is it i'm doing wrong? Am I eating too much meat? I've seen others' menus and I don't think I am eating more than others? If i make my menu consist mostly of veggies that will be my downfall...I won't be full enough. I've also completely cut cheese out of my diet this week to try to get it down.

What is everyone else eating that I'm missing that's keeping their %'s down?

Help! :yikes

[KimberBoh]

Did you check the serving size? I went to fitday and for 2 large thighs I only got 36 grams of protein. Hope this helps. Just something to check.

[sadie147]

that protein amount is my total for the day..not just for the chicken (that's what i got as well.) dont' forget there's protein in the eggs, etc. . the amounts i show are for b'fast and lunch.

If i have a medium chicken breast for dinner (which iw as planning too) that add's another 50 g onto the 79.

[not2late]

If you're still following the percentages, protein will stay the same throughout the phases. The carbs will increase slightly as you are adding more carbs into your diet. The fats will decrease slightly, so by the time you are in pre-maintenance/maintenance it's around 40-55%.

As for the "proper" amount of protein one should have....the jury is still out on that one. The USDA recommends you to get at the most 40-50 grams of protein daily. Though some nutrition scientists disagree with that number.

[sadie147]

If you're still following the percentages, protein will stay the same throughout the phases. The carbs will increase slightly as you are adding more carbs into your diet. The fats will decrease slightly, so by the time you are in pre-maintenance/maintenance it's around 40-55%.

As for the "proper" amount of protein one should have....the jury is still out on that one. The USDA recommends you to get at the most 40-50 grams of protein daily. Though some nutrition scientists disagree with that number.

Actually for percentages i've been fine. I'm actually at goal and have gone thru all the rungs. so right now i'm maintaining though i consider my self in premaintanance till i can figure this protein thing out LOL.

so if the USDA only recommens 40-50 then i'm WAY out of whack! That's my concern! I eat over 100 g on a regular basis..That's what's confusing me..i'm not sure what i should be adding/removing to lower it?

Edited to add: so i'm just thinking about it. Maybe it's may carbs that are too low? know that fat should be 50%..which is where it usually is..I've found my level to maintain to be around 70 g a day..i don't always hit that but not because i'm trying..just because i'm happy with what i'm eating. Maybe i will have to only have a protein once a day and stick with fruits/veggies mostly to get it up w/o affecting the fats (i can add cheese back too)? :sadblinky

[not2late]

If you're in Maintenance, I think you should just "listen" to your body in terms of what you are eating. You already know your CCML and the foods you can eat.

You might want to post this on the Maintenance board and see what the Goalies there have to share with you about their own maintenance diets.



PS. The current protein levels the USDA uses are dubious....the number is based on an experiment done in the early 1900s on young, healthy Army recruits (men at that time). The current non-USDA thinking is that protein requirement differs with your age and sex.

[Ayln9]

Poultry tends to have more protein ounce for ounce than red meat, so replacing some of that turkey/chicken with say, beef, should lower your protein somewhat. Lamb tends to be too lean so it has some of the same problems as poultry. The whey shake probably also contributes a significant amount of protein, so unless if you're weight training and you -need- that shake, it would be better to cut it out. Also, if you are weight training, 1g protein per pound of bodyweight is okay, though it should be your maximum intake, according to some bodybuilding websites.

Hope this helps

[Ayln9]

Re: Protein amounts...HELP!

According to fitday this is:

858 cals 53fat 48% 16carbs 4% 79 protein 48%.

Wow, that's a really low calorie count for maintenance.. is there any reason why you're skimping on the fat? 50% fat is recommended only because the other 10-20% should be replaced by carbs. If you're not eating that many carbs, fat should still consist a large percentage of your calories - the body has a hard time getting energy from protein and would much rather run on fat. This is just what I would do, you can take whatever out of this as you please:

-Eat all eggs with their yolks, or even add in extra yolks.
-Scramble and fry with olive oil/butter or even coconut oil if you can get it whenever possible.
-Search for higher fat sausages - Shelton's makes a nice, plump turkey breakfast sausage.
-Replace the poultry with beef or fattier pork/lamb cuts such as chops, ribs, or bacon.
-Add in more vegetables - it's not induction anymore, so enjoy your vegetables! Saute vegetables in oil/butter, add dressings to your salads, top mashed vegetables with butter... the possibilities are endless.
-Since you're in maintenance, adding in some nuts is a good idea too.. pecans, macadamias, brazil nuts and walnuts are some lower protein, higher fat options.
-I see you drink soymilk; is that because you're lactose intolerant? If you can tolerate some cheese, having those as a snack is a good idea as well.

I hope I didn't sound too bossy.. I don't mean to at all! You can take any of this advice as you please, but do take care of yourself :hug

[Rette27]

[/quote]


so if the USDA only recommens 40-50 then i'm WAY out of whack! That's my concern! I eat over 100 g on a regular basis..That's what's confusing me..i'm not sure what i should be adding/removing to lower it?

[/quote]

Please tell me what Atkins and the USDA have to do with each other. Nothing

[sadie147]

Wow, that's a really low calorie count for maintenance.. is there any reason why you're skimping on the fat? 50% fat is recommended only because the other 10-20% should be replaced by carbs. If you're not eating that many carbs, fat should still consist a large percentage of your calories - the body has a hard time getting energy from protein and would much rather run on fat. This is just what I would do, you can take whatever out of this as you please:

-Eat all eggs with their yolks, or even add in extra yolks.
-Scramble and fry with olive oil/butter or even coconut oil if you can get it whenever possible.
-Search for higher fat sausages - Shelton's makes a nice, plump turkey breakfast sausage.
-Replace the poultry with beef or fattier pork/lamb cuts such as chops, ribs, or bacon.
-Add in more vegetables - it's not induction anymore, so enjoy your vegetables! Saute vegetables in oil/butter, add dressings to your salads, top mashed vegetables with butter... the possibilities are endless.
-Since you're in maintenance, adding in some nuts is a good idea too.. pecans, macadamias, brazil nuts and walnuts are some lower protein, higher fat options.
-I see you drink soymilk; is that because you're lactose intolerant? If you can tolerate some cheese, having those as a snack is a good idea as well.

I hope I didn't sound too bossy.. I don't mean to at all! You can take any of this advice as you please, but do take care of yourself

LOL don't worry didn't sound bossy at all! ACtually the calorie count was low cause that was just up to lunch. My daily calories usually range between 1500 and 1800. Now in maintenace I need to watch my cals unfortunately (especially since i work from home and the fridge is so accessible to me :yikes ).

I have to stay away from nuts i have no portion control AT ALL.

I do use cream as well as soy creamers..I switch between them depending on my cals/fats for the day...I do prefer cream.

I think my problem is my carb level...I'm definately going to add some higher carb veggies and see how I do with that. I tend to eat fairly low carb ones.

Thanks for the advice everyone!