How much Protein do you eat?

When I track food, I usually just track my calories and try not to eat too many carbs. Never paid much attention to protein.

I'm at a healthy weight but want to kick my workouts/ diet up a notch for a vacation in 5 weeks. I definitely feel like I've hit a plateau (after losing 20 lbs of pregnancy weight).

I saw a tip from Tamra (Real Housewives of Orange County) on Twitter where she said the best fitness tip she can give is to up protein to 60% of your daily intake and "watch the weight fall off".

I run & kickbox 4-5 times a week and always thought that too much protein bulks you up.

Thoughts? Ignore the fact that this "tip" is from a washed up reality tv star

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

I don't track my foods per se but I try to have a protein with every meal/ snack.

Breakfast would be something like cottage cheese & fruit or package of oatmeal & hard boiled egg.

Snack would be apple & cheese stick

Lunch would be salad & chicken

Snack would be a handful of nuts

Dinner would be fish or chicken with veggies & rice

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

I eat over a gram of protein per body weight. Do you know how much you would need to eat to "bulk up?" Women that TRY to do this have a difficult time because of our hormonal make up. You would hvae to be eating a TON of not jsut protein but EVERYTHING and lifting SUPER heavy to actually bulk up." I always suggest a gram of protein per body weight at least. (That is the guideline my nutritionist/coach uses.) Don't be afraid of protein! You won't look bulky I promise!

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

Lauren told me about the guideline she follows a little while ago and since then I have been trying to follow it as well. Some days I do better than others but on average I eat about 100g of protein a day. I definitely see a difference after a few days of high protein!

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

I definately eat 1g per body weight if not more. The only time I knew my protein intake was too high and carbs were too low was my sweat would give off an ammonia scent after I ran. That is not good. Once I balanced out my ratio better I haven't had the problem since.

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

lean protein won't bulk you up. My weakness is carbs, now on WW I am trying to make good choices but more protein less carbs is def the way to go.

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

It's really not that much! I eat egg whites, protein powder, chicken, extra lean ground turke, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese etc!

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

I just recently started tracking because I haven't been feeling well and wanted to see what is lacking in my diet since I started eating healthier.

Lauren recommended 1g per lb of body weight which would be 112 for me. Livestrong My Plate (where i've been tracking) recommends only 42 grams for me. I am eating around 90 grams without "trying" to increase protein so I am sticking with 90-100g now. I am always above 200% on My plate but less than Lauren recommends, and I trust her more. It seems to be working for me since I am looking to maintain or slightly build quads... not looking to bulk up anywhere else.

ETA: I eat a lot of eggs, lean meats, edamame as a snack, nuts... its really not hard to reach 90g for me.

Message edited 3/1/2012 9:42:14 PM.

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

Lean protein will not bulk you up. I say this all the time on this board but I think it is really important to track all of your macronutrients. It is impossible to determine what macronutrient you need to change when you do not know what you are really eating. Try keeping track of you food intake for several days to see what you are actually eating and then determine what changes may help you over come you plateau.

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

Re: How much Protein do you eat?

Someone recommended to me also the 1g per lb...this person is very fit and healthy and reads up on the subjects quite a bit.

Check out Sparkpeople.com for tracking. Its super easy and does calories, fat, proteins and gives you ranges based on your current size and goals for all the categories.