Struggling to intake enough protein in a high protein diet

[botheredbythis]

Aiming for 100g a day of protein but that's proving harder than I thought - was shocked to see that what I thought was my high protein diet, really wasn't.

So, for those of you on high protein - do you always have to have a protein powder shake/addition?

Jesus Christ. I though you were a different poster. Ive already explained that. I read the post as someone who didnt have fish or dairy. I dont remember names easily on this site, I dont take in the posters name so I had no clue it was you that had already set out all your information.

Fair enough. I had no signal for a whole so didn’t see your post before posting mine. And then it didn’t post so I posted again and doubled up.

But hopefully it’s now clear that it’s entirely possible to average 10g protein per 100 cals without eating meat or fake proteins

I’m on 1600 calories per day at the moment (trying to lose a bit of fat) and am aiming for 120g protein per day, 100g minimum.

I think some people are getting confused with the g of protein vs. g of what they’re eating e.g. 20g of chicken vs. 20g of protein from chicken.

It does take some work to prioritise protein, I aim for 20-30g per meal, 3 meals per day + 1 snack.

I generally rely on protein from animal sources - Greek yogurt, eggs, lean meat and fish, cheese and top up with whey powder (usually mixed in my porridge) or a protein pudding/yogurt.

It might be a bit of a struggle on such low calories, 0% Greek yogurt and tuna I find good value on protein per calories.

Extra things - the Deli Flatbreads have 10g protein each and I love them and the Emmy Skinny Latte you get in a Tesco Meal Deal has about 11g.

Whey powder is just milk really (if you get the unflavoured), most foods we eat are “processed” to some extent.

I'm going to make soup later to have for lunches for the rest of the week and will add a couple of scoops of unflavoured whey protein to get the macros up. It also adds a nice creaminess.

There is a LOT of misunderstanding when it comes to protein. A lot of Youtubers, Podcasters, influencers, in other words, social media personalities with or without health training push High Protein diets citing frailty and sarcopenia.

There is a massive difference between inadequate protein intake, normal protein intake and excessive protein intake.
High protein intake is associate with higher muscle loss more than inadequate protein intake :
exceeding recommended protein intake may possibly be more detrimental to muscle health than insufficient protein intake. Even more so, animal protein is detrimental : A recent longitudinal study also reported a negative effect of high protein intake, with higher protein intake from animal sources associated with a deterioration in health-related quality of life scores over 12 years [17]. In terms of muscle strength in particular, data from the Hertfordshire Cohort Study found that higher grip strength was associated with ‘lower’ meat consumption in men, while those with diets characterised by high consumption of fruit, vegetables, and fatty fish had higher grip strength in both men and women [18]. Similarly, in the Newcastle 85+ Study, dietary patterns high in characteristic British foods, including red meat, and with protein intake >1 g/kg/day were associated with an increased risk of sarcopenia [19].
academic.oup.com/ageing/article/52/2/afad018/7036280?login=false

@botheredbythis Don't start adding whey shakes , considering protein intakes from plants, such as tofu, tempeh, pulses, quinoa and unless you are above 65 years of age, stick to the recommended amount of 0.8 gr/kg of body weight limiting meat and dairy sources.

👏👏👏
Thank you. Thought I was crazy
The safe upper limit for protein is in the region of 1.5g/kg/day don't know what this current excess protein trend is about

Thanks both. I'm aware of the evidence about high protein, just like I'm aware of the evidence around impacts of the keto diet. I'm not intending for this to be longterm, just a short term exercise. And I'm not currently exceeding my body weight vis a vis protein. So, thanks but not sure I do misunderstand the issues around protein?

I always look at those huge servings of constant protein & reckon they'd give me stomach aches.

The safe upper limit for protein is in the region of 1.5g/kg/day don't know what this current excess protein trend is about

Yes, quite. And the James Smith calculator has me at the absolute upper limit, when in fact the 80g I usually have is much more sensible. Loads of people recommended that to me but it seems as much bunkum as loads of other stuff written about nutrition on the internet.

I'm not intending for this to be long term, just a short term exercise. I wouldn't bother with anything short term and unsustainable when it comes to diet, @botheredbythis just make long term sustainable changes.

I’m around that level on average through the week.

@LetThemEatTurnips thanks for that visual article.

I really appreciate everyone's input, it's interesting and helpful, but I don't need to be told what to be mindful of, and about long-term sustainable change. I'm very healthy and mindful of exercise and health. I just want to do a short term high protein blitz. Thanks so much for your understanding.

I wouldn’t advise about using nuts to up your protein. I was happily scoffing cashews every day thinking they were healthy and wondering why I wasnt losing weight. And then I looked at the calories on the packet-something like 600 for 100g!

OP, do you now have a better idea of what you might eat each day to reach your protein target?

Is anyone aware or concerned about the link between high protein diets and kidney stones?

Define high.

Well I just looked it up because Im concerned about this (if you've ever had one you would want to prevent them at all costs believe me)

I looked up what is considered the definition of 'high'. Its more than 20% of your calories coming from proteins.

From MFP Im way over that every day.

Your misunderstanding is thinking that high protein will increase muscles .
Harvard says no: Extra protein does not build more muscle
www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/extra-protein-does-not-build-more-muscle
On the other hand, high protein will increase your risk of diabetes. a high dietary protein intake is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.
says the medical journal Nature.
Then of course, the impact of High Protein/Low Carb (HP/LC) diet on brain mass The most unexpected result of our study was the loss of overall brain mass associated with a HP/LC diet. in other high protein diets shrink the brain.
molecularneurodegeneration.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1750-1326-4-40

Overall, what is to gain from a high protein diet? Was what the article about and .... who wrote it?

Link to diabetes article www.nature.com/articles/ejcn2014123

You can if you eat meat

Porridge with semi skimmed milk, and low fat Greek yogurt and some ground seeds

chicken salad with lentils for lunch

Couple of baby bell as a snack

Meat at dinner time

125 is a lot more challenging without protein shakes etc, but 100 is ok

You absolutely don’t have to eat meat.

Water intake seems to be a significant factor. I get through 3 litres a day.

Yes. There seems to be a new obsession with eating as much protein as possible and it's really not good for the kidneys.

You are of course free to do whatever you want to your body @botheredbythis, but I doubt there are any benefits to a short term protein blitz.

Exactly - I have been told by a doctor to eat less protein because of the impact on the kidneys. I wasn't eating a high protein diet anyway (vegetarian if it makes any difference).