Weight-Loss How on earth do you get enough protein?

Weight-Loss
Marathon Man

Marathon Man

New member
So from reading around, it seems that I should get at least 1 gram of protein per pound of my goal weight. I'm 310 now and want to get down to 180. That means I need to get 180 grams of protein each day. Pretty simple, eh?

I tracked everything I ate on FitDay.com last week and got a 100 gram a day average, and this was AFTER I ditched the nutrigrain bars for protein bars as a snack.

So if I'm on 1800-2000 calorie diet. That puts my protein at 40%! I'm currently under 25%.

Is there a way to get this number up, or are most y'all drinking protein shakes and such. 60 grams of protein per meal is a ton. I know I should cut out cereal for breakfast and sandwiches for lunch. I love carbs, but it seems like the only way to hit my protein goal while in a caloric deficit is to do an Atkins type approach, right?

I want to get enough, since I'm going to be in a deficit for the next year or two, and don't want my muscle mass to slowly wither away!
 
You don't need to be all Atkinsy :) to get enough protein. It's actually easy to get quite a bit of protein in, if you keep in mind that it's not just meat and dairy that contain protein.

I average 100 g a day, eating things like:

oats (5 g per 1/4 cup dry serving)
strained yogurt (greek style) (17-25g per serving, depending on the brand)
eggs (6g per whole egg)
canned tuna (20g per 3.5 oz serving)
chicken breasts (23g per 4 oz serving)
orzo pasta (5g per 1/2 cup dry serving)
whole grain pasta (8g per 1 cup dry serving)
2% milk (8g per 8 oz serving)
whole grain bread (4g per 1 slice)

Those are some large amounts, but keep in mind that even small amounts add up. For example, blueberries have 1g per serving. Spinach has 1g per serving. Tomatoes have about 1g per serving. Butternut squash has 1g per serving.

So along with the "big" stuff like yogurt and meat and cheese and so forth, eating a lot of veggies throughout the day will continue to add smaller amounts of protein that add up, not to mention whatever whole grains you eat throughout the day.

Now that said, I do use a protein powder on the days I weight train. I use a plain vanilla whey powder that's 110 cals a scoop and has 26g protein. Often I just mix it with a little water and chug it down, right after my workout, but sometimes I make a smoothie in the morning with yogurt and fruit and spinach (yeah, I add spinach to my smoothies).

But I can usually get to 100g of protein w/out even thinking about it, just by eating my regular meals.

Also keep in mind that 1g per 1lb is a good guideline, but it's also a guideline for those who are seriously strength training. You're not going to wither away to nothingness w/out it. At 40% you're eating a LOT more protein than most people who have no clue about what they're eating. If you don't get to 180, it's not the end of the world. Ideally I should be eating 140, but I don't often get there. Like I said, I average 100g a day w/out any supplements and that gets me to 35% protein, give or take a few points.
 
Last edited:
You should be eating around 1g of protein per lb lean mass not goal weight....

If you weigh 310lbs and have 30% bodyfat then you should be eating around 200g of protein.

If you're exercising and you weigh 310lbs eating only 1800-2000 calories is not enough for your weight.

.
 
my main protein source at the moment is skinless chicken breast. i buy them in bulk frozen, then dress them and pop them in the oven, then i portion them out to last me about 3 days or so, then repeat when i'm through with the batch. for variety i'll use extra lean beef mince and make a big pot and again portion out to last a couple of days. my other protein sources are from fish, dairy, soy or egg whites.
 
Meko said:
If you're exercising and you weigh 310lbs eating only 1800-2000 calories is not enough for your weight.
Click to expand...

I was eating around 2500 a day, but that seems like so much food when I'm eating healthy, so I've been tinkering around and did around 2000 when I tracked.

I figure as long as I have plenty of energy and I'm getting enough protein, it's plenty. Maybe not scientifically sound, but I do go over a day or two throughout the week.

Maybe I'll try the breakfast smoothie a few days a week when I weight lift. Don't know if I want to use spinach though!
 
I have the same problem. I was checking my daily intake of protein and I was barely getting half of what I need. To remedy that I started drinking a protein shake every morning when I get home from work. I drink the shake and then about 20 minutes later I do my workout. The added protein makes a difference. I definitely feel better since I have added more protein to my diet (look a little better too).
 
I guess I just always viewed protein shakes as something for the bodybuilder types. But I'm going to give it a go this week!

Getting proper protein is easy in say a 2700 calorie diet, just over 30%, but when in a deficit, I think it's the only way I can swing 150+ grams without giving up carbs and possibly going crazy and killing someone cuz I can't fit a piece of bread into my diet.
 
jpeters430 said:
I was eating around 2500 a day, but that seems like so much food when I'm eating healthy, so I've been tinkering around and did around 2000 when I tracked.

I figure as long as I have plenty of energy and I'm getting enough protein, it's plenty. Maybe not scientifically sound, but I do go over a day or two throughout the week.

Maybe I'll try the breakfast smoothie a few days a week when I weight lift. Don't know if I want to use spinach though!
Click to expand...

You definitely do not need 310 grams per day!! That's overkill. First you'll need to determine how many calories you need in a day. I would suggest somewhere around 2000-2200 as long as you don't feel too hungry and have sufficient energy. That amount is certainly enough to meet your nutritional requirements assuming that they are 'quality' calories. Try using a ratio of 40 % carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat which would equal, approx, 220 gr of carbs, 165 gr of protein and 73 grams of fat per day. that's based on the 2200 calories per day, so if you did 2000 it would be a little less of each. Try that out, it'll work, trust me I do this for a living! :)
 
Sesha said:
Try using a ratio of 40 % carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat which would equal, approx, 220 gr of carbs, 165 gr of protein and 73 grams of fat per day.
Click to expand...

That's a good system, but I was under the assumption from reading posts from other professionals that it's the amount of protein that's the most important, not the % of your diet. Since a 200 lb man could eat 3500 when trying to add muscle, or <2000 when in a deficit, essentially cutting protein in half if only going by a straight %.

If the grams of protein is the constant, it seems that while dieting and eating less food, more of that food would have to be protein rich. Eating my normal diet I think I hit around 25-30% protein, but since I'm down to 2000 or less calories, obviously that percentage would have to go up, right? That's assuming it's more important to have 1g/lean body weight than just a percentage.

So that's where I was having trouble, since that obviously means I either need to a) change my diet by eating less carbs and fats (to hit the higher protein %) or b) substitute in some protein drinks (to up my %).

Though I see that I'd be at 165 with your breakdown, which would be pretty ideal. I think I'll just focus on getting more protein in the morning and ditching the cereal for eggs or a shake.

This is all new to me, and obviously secondary to working out and eating healthy in general. I just wanted to try the 1g/pound lean body weight idea for a few weeks to see how it affected me and my energy, hunger, etc. by doing what I was "supposed" to be doing.
 
Last edited:
I add a little bit of soy protein to everything I make. You really can't taste it. Also, protein smoothies are a great breakfast or lunch treat :)
 
You can also eat

Beans. They have lots of protein.
I don't know what all the types of beans names in english, but in norwegian there's one that is calles Mung-beans. They are essential if you're a vegetarian.
 
Try hemp seeds.

High in protein, a complete protein, and high in EFA's.

I like to thrown them in with my steelcut oats (also a good protein source) in the morning.
 
whey protein shakes =40 grams of protein
Buffalo patties = 43 grams


other good sources

peanut butter
chicken
eggs
lean beef
milk
cheese
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top