I’ve actually been counting my protein intake recently as opposed to just “trying to get a lot”, and I’ve noticed that I’m just not getting enough. I’m only averaging 75% of my target rate, even with protein powder. Does anyone else have trouble with this, and what are you doing about it?
No not really just base all your intake on the protein first and tack on the rest
Phill
[quote]blue9steel wrote:
I’ve actually been counting my protein intake recently as opposed to just “trying to get a lot”, and I’ve noticed that I’m just not getting enough. I’m only averaging 75% of my target rate, even with protein powder. Does anyone else have trouble with this, and what are you doing about it?[/quote]
Same thing happened to me. Thats why I advocate counting your nutrients every so often. Best thing I ever did and when I made the adjustments my gains took off.
I guess the basic answer is shut up and eat more protein, not surprising I guess. Here’s perhaps a better question:
What tricks have you used to sneak more protein into your diet without resorting to “big bowl of meat and some fish oil pills” as a description of all your meals.
Here’s an example day for me:
Daily target 2644 kcal, 227g protein
2 Oat muffins + coffee (I make them from scratch using no sugar, adding protein powder and creatine) 566 kcal, 20g protein
Bowl of spicy rice (contains rice, polish sausage, onions, hot sauce, pepperjack cheese) 408 kcal, 18g protein
3 Hard boiled eggs 213 kcal, 18g protein
Protein shake 300 kcal, 60g protein
Alice springs chicken (basically chicken breast covered with mushrooms, bacon, and cheese, with a mustard dip) + broccoli 477 kcal, 66g protein
3 Homemade protein bars (made with protein powder, shredded coconut, blended oats, natural peanut butter and milk) 446 kcal, 17g protein
Bowl of fruit 210 kcal, 0g protein
Daily total 2620 kcal, 199g protein
(other supplements include multivitamin, fish oil capsules, and green tea)
I hate cottage cheese, and I always have a sweet tooth late at night hence the bowl of fruit, but that seems like the only real weak spot. Changes elsewhere tend to either push my calories too high or leave too few vegetables and fruit in my diet.
That’s actually a pretty decent protein day for me even though it’s short, 170g-180g is probably more common, especially if I have a salad for one meal. Ok, I’ve got my flame retardant suit on, fire away!
unless you really enjoy cooking, don’t overcomplicate it. if you’re falling short of your target after a full day of real meals. Put 30-40 grams of whey protein in a big cup of water and chug. Repeat as necessary till you hit your target. quick and easy.
Bro you simply need to just up the protein. You start the day off with just 20 grams double that. you start off on the right foot then Hell that meal is 566 estimated cals and only 80 is from protein.
Other then that simply take the amount you want to get say 250 grams divide that by your meals say 6. youll need a bit over 40 grams a meal. Base your meals on the protein source first then add on the carbs and fats
Try a scoop of strawberry Metabolic Drive with your fruit just a touch of water it will be like a strawberry pudding with fruit.
Phill
Minor correction, those protein bars were 24g protein not 17g.
I guess I just need to pay more attention. I don’t have too much trouble on my high calorie days (Saturday and Sunday right now) but on low cal days (weekdays right now) I often come up short. I try to stick with whole foods as much as possible, but maybe you’re right and I should just add another shake.
I wonder if protein powder blends well with yogurt? That might be a way to add it into my fruit dish.
Protein powder does mix well with yogurt; I often mix a scoop of unflavored protein powder with some plain yogurt and a little fruit juice to help up my protein intake. (I have the same problem as you getting enough). The yogurt I use is the drinkable/pourable kind, if your yogurt is thick I imagine you might need a little water to loosen it up.
Agreed with Phil about reverse engineering the problem. Have a protein source with each meal, chicken beef eggs powder whatever, and you should have no problem with 225 spread over 5-6 meals.
I’m assuming you are dropping bodyfat with your calorie numbers, try replacing some of your carbs in meals with protein and you should be ok.
I have the same problem; just started the AD and I’m so full of fat all the time getting enough protein is damn hard. When 18x my bodyweight is about 3100 kcal and 40-50% of that is supposed to be from protein, I’m getting like 200g a day, not 300. going to start upping my shakes I suppose. Will help me hit calorific target too. If you just can’t eat more food, then shakes or powders in things are your only option I feel.
do you count protein from all food not just protein dominant foods. For example, I count the protein that I get from bread and cereals and beans and so on as part of my total protein. Is this right, or should I just count the protein from protein sources ?
Protein is protein (for the most part). Here’s the problem with counting every single gram though… Not everything you eat is going to be exact. Do you measure and weigh your scoop of protein? I did this once just to see… I used the regular scoop included with Metabolic Drive. I scooped out two scoops onto a scale. Much to my surprise it weighed 72 grams. According to the bottle it should have weighed 58 grams.
So in effect my regular scooping method was netting me 20% greater quantities of protein and calories per shake. That’s just one example. It could have easily gone the other direction. All food labels list the approximate quantities of nutrients in sample portion sizes done in the lab/factory, not what is in the product you actually purchased.
The point- don’t be concerned with some magical number. Unless you are contest dieting, it’s better to come in over your mark than under. If you are concerned and might lose sleep over it, measure out your portions for a couple of days to get a baseline on what you are actually taking in. Adjust from there…
I don’t go crazy measuring everything. I don’t even count calories. But I do try to count protein per two slices. The bread I eat has about 9 grams of protein. So I make a sandwich and try to pack about 30-40 grams of protein in it. A bit from the bread, a bit from cheese and the rest from some form of meat.
how much do you weigh?
220g protein seems like a decent amount.