Should I be taking protein powder?

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fatboy

New member
Should I be taking protein powder?

My goal is fat loss and to gain some muscle. I'm 32, male, 282 lbs, fat! I workout 4-5 days a week. 30-50 minutes of half treadmill, half elliptical, followed by some weight lifting. I do chest,tri,bi on one day, back, shoulder second day and usually repeat that. Occasionally I will do legs on my last day if I know I'm not going to work out for the next couple of days.


Thanks.
Nick
 
It's food. People need to stop thinking of protein powder as something special. It isn't. If you are trying to lose fat then those calories count just as much as a doughnut (not the same quality but we are talking calories).


Would you ask the same thing about eating a chicken breast?
 
1. Stick to real food not powder- you are not a baby you are a grown adult. Unless you find it impossible to cook or have no way to buy real food.

2. Losing weight you need a calorie deficit, when you have a calorie deficit, your body starts to break down both your muscle and your fat in order to obtain the calories it needs for energy. The ratio is partly genetic partly age partly exercise type but basicly your body will be breaking down some muscle (as well as far) in order to get energy, it will not be building things, it will be tearing them down.

3. To gain muscle you need a calorie surplus. You need to be taking in more calories then your body requires for day to day living. It will gain muscle but it will also gain some fat.

See the problem? You cannot lose weight and gain muscle at the same time, they are two opposite things.
 
summer123 said:
1. Stick to real food not powder- you are not a baby you are a grown adult. Unless you find it impossible to cook or have no way to buy real food.

3. To gain muscle you need a calorie surplus. You need to be taking in more calories then your body requires for day to day living. It will gain muscle but it will also gain some fat.

See the problem? You cannot lose weight and gain muscle at the same time, they are two opposite things.
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I am going to disagree with points 1 & 3 (respectfully)

at 282, your body is going to need a good amount of protein. That amount is not going to be easy to get without protein powder / bars / suppliments by daily cooking. Especially with a work schedule.

I drink 2 skim milk protein shakes each day and between the milk and powder im getting around 120-130 grams from those. I try to get another 30-70 grams from my prepared foods. You will find many people that suggest 1 gram of protein / day to match your target weight. (if you are active)

Pt 3 is generally right except when dealing with people (like myself) who are or were obese. With hi BMI's our bodies have so much fat to burn that our body is less likely to use (consume) our muscle mass when faced with a cal deficit. You can read a lot about it on the web or talk to your local fitness "expert". Regardless, i have been able to increase muscle mass, and increase the amount of weight i am able to lift while losing a large amount of weight.

I believe this will slow down as my BMI shrinks closer to the "non-obese" range.

Just my opinions! I'm no expert!
 
fatboy said:
Should I be taking protein powder?

My goal is fat loss and to gain some muscle. I'm 32, male, 282 lbs, fat! I workout 4-5 days a week. 30-50 minutes of half treadmill, half elliptical, followed by some weight lifting. I do chest,tri,bi on one day, back, shoulder second day and usually repeat that. Occasionally I will do legs on my last day if I know I'm not going to work out for the next couple of days.


Thanks.
Nick
Click to expand...
Probably so.

summer123 said:
1. Stick to real food not powder- you are not a baby you are a grown adult. Unless you find it impossible to cook or have no way to buy real food.

Real food is good and preferable. However you cant claim that whey protein powders do not have advantageous properties when used post work out. Also at his size he probably needs to be getting between 150-200g of protein a day. That is very expensive when obtained using only whole foods

2. Losing weight you need a calorie deficit, when you have a calorie deficit, your body starts to break down both your muscle and your fat in order to obtain the calories it needs for energy. The ratio is partly genetic partly age partly exercise type but basicly your body will be breaking down some muscle (as well as far) in order to get energy, it will not be building things, it will be tearing them down.
You forget about macros and the fact that adequate intakes of protein can aide in muscle loss while in a caloric deficit

See the problem? You cannot lose weight and gain muscle at the same time, they are two opposite things.
No but you can retain as much as possible
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Dont get me wrong protein powder aint magic. I would buy some tho. It really seems to help me recover after workouts and I also find myself in situations where at the end of the day I am low on calories and/or protein. I can just slam a shake and call it a day. I also use it in some snacks/desserts and put it in oatmeal.

Its not necessary by any means but IMO it does have a lot of advantages and if you are gonna lift heavy shit and work hard it will almost alays become an important part of your daily nutrition.
 
Hi,

I am a big fan of whey protein. It is an easy method for ingesting protein if you do not have time during your day to prepare meals. People will say "make an effort and cook", generally people who say this have some spare time on their hands and I dont.

I can only tell you what is working for me, people will give you different opinions and quote stuff they have read but this is what I am doing.

Started at 223lbs age 30 5ft 11"
Currently 198lbs
Time since I started losing weight - couple of months.

I have completely cut out all processed foods, except the whey protein powder ;)
I only eat food that I prepare myself. At the moment this is mainly frozen bananas and other fruits blended in to a smoothie with some protein powder.

At the weekends I eat and drink whatever I want.

Exercise - I walk/run 5 miles most nights. If you want to lose weight you must burn more calories than you are taking in. I am focused on mostly cardio work at the moment. When I have hit my target weight I will concentrate on building muscle. If you do too much muscle building you run the risk of creating big muscles under fat and that just makes you look even bigger. I am losing the fat and then building the muscle.

I am doing some strength training, mainly working on a pull-up bar. My chest is noticeably more defined and fat is quickly vanishing. My back and neck are getting some definition. I am certainly at a calorie deficit and am shedding fat but I am most certainly building strength and muscle. I am quite sure I am not eating at an optimal level to build muscle but I am certainly building some muscle and strength.

Protein powder has its place if you want to use it go for it, its not some magical weight loss formula but it is a good way to take on lean protein without much effort.
 
ForRealThisTime said:
Hi,

I am a big fan of whey protein. It is an easy method for ingesting protein if you do not have time during your day to prepare meals. People will say "make an effort and cook", generally people who say this have some spare time on their hands and I dont.

I can only tell you what is working for me, people will give you different opinions and quote stuff they have read but this is what I am doing.

Started at 223lbs age 30 5ft 11"
Currently 198lbs
Time since I started losing weight - couple of months.

I have completely cut out all processed foods, except the whey protein powder ;)
I only eat food that I prepare myself. At the moment this is mainly frozen bananas and other fruits blended in to a smoothie with some protein powder.

At the weekends I eat and drink whatever I want.

Exercise - I walk/run 5 miles most nights. If you want to lose weight you must burn more calories than you are taking in. I am focused on mostly cardio work at the moment. When I have hit my target weight I will concentrate on building muscle. If you do too much muscle building you run the risk of creating big muscles under fat and that just makes you look even bigger. I am losing the fat and then building the muscle.

I am doing some strength training, mainly working on a pull-up bar. My chest is noticeably more defined and fat is quickly vanishing. My back and neck are getting some definition. I am certainly at a calorie deficit and am shedding fat but I am most certainly building strength and muscle. I am quite sure I am not eating at an optimal level to build muscle but I am certainly building some muscle and strength.

Protein powder has its place if you want to use it go for it, its not some magical weight loss formula but it is a good way to take on lean protein without much effort.
Click to expand...
Negative Ghost Rider
 
I hate cooking, and since I gave up fast food and processed crap my eating habits have dropped drastically. If I didn't supplement with protein powder my muscle would be crying right now. If you're a big eater, I would go with lean meats and fish for your protein sources. If you're like me I would definitely pick up some protein powder and supplement your diet with it. It's extremely useful.

There are so many anti-protein powder people around. Protein powder is for people who are not getting enough protein through food.
 
Virtus said:
Negative Ghost Rider
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negative how? I am talking from my own experience, if you know my body better than I do then you can correct me on my comments. If you want to give an account of your own experience that differs to what I have said that is fine but dont tell me what I have experienced first hand is incorrect please.
 
ForRealThisTime said:
negative how? I am talking from my own experience, if you know my body better than I do then you can correct me on my comments. If you want to give an account of your own experience that differs to what I have said that is fine but dont tell me what I have experienced first hand is incorrect please.
Click to expand...

If you were doing weight training while in a caloric deficit and your results were to build bigger muscles under your fat, resulting in you just looking bigger, then thats great. I want call you a liar.

I will say that I have never experienced that nor have I ever heard or read about anyone else experiencing it.
 
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