Hey Everybody! This is my first time posting here. I have a question about protein and gaining. I want to lose weight and gain more muscle so I’ve been lifting weights and watching my diet carefully. I’ve read that you need around .8 grams to 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. I weight 138 so I figure at minimum I need at least 110 grams a protein per day! Right now, I eat around 1200-1400 calories a day and I usually eat around 50 grams of protein per day. So my questions, is this enough to gain muscle and will my weight lifting even make a difference if I don’t eat enough protein in the first place? I was just wondering because I don’t know how I can fit another extra 60 grams of protein to my diet without eating a lot more calories. I eat a lot of high protein foods like nuts, soy milk, whole grains, dairy, beans, and occasionally meat. So anyways do you have any suggestions?
Thanks,
Erin
Protein is the most essential macro-nutrient for anyone who is trying to build muscle and lose fat. Muscle is protein. It is important to be in that mind set when you establish your diet plan. Protein requirements will vary depending on which "expert" you ask. However, one things is clear through research: high protein diets are safe, and they are the most effective diets to build muscle and reduce body fat. 50g a day is not ideal for your goals. Honestly even 1g per pound isn't ideal. I weigh around 190 pounds and my daily protein goal is 350g. I know that probably scares you, but for bodybuilding purposes protein intake is imperative.
The way you get more protein in your diet is to supplement. Find a high-quality whey protein supplement, and a meal replacement as well. Add these supplements into you diet (especially in the 3 hour window that surrounds your workout) and your protein intake will increase drastically.
I'm just going to add that the amount of protein you're taking in and want to take in is not healthy, and I'll leave it at that.
There are many people that would agree with you, but the medical literature is clear on the saftey and effectiveness of high protein diets. I have been following this approach for over two years and my health and gains are at an all time high, and I am not alone in this practice. If you have any relevent recent research suggesting this is unhealthy, I would definitely be interested in seeing it.
Here is a a reference Website for protein with charts and all that spiff. It's actually a cache of the original page. Don't think the site is up anymore, but I'm assuming it was saved [url]http://www.velvetacidchrist.com/pp.htm[/url]
I don't take any pills or anything that seem unnatural for the human diet. I eat mostly fruits and veggies, and I know I'm getting enough protein from them.
Last edited by Administrator; 04-18-2006 at 12:34 PM.
Reason: inappropriate
Like I I suspected that info is coming from over two decades ago. Scientific studies are like cars. They are good for a while, but they are out dated in a matter of years. The manner in which studies are being done and data is being collected is constantly improving based on mistakes made along the way. Years ago that line of thinking was common among protein metabolism experts, but they have since discovered better methods, and different findings. I don't argue that normal people don't need to consume large amounts of protein. However, serious athletes and bodybuilders can, and do definitley benefit from it. If you are interested in the some recent studies, I can outline them for you, or post the journal references where they are found.
If you eat protein, you should drink water to help flush excesses out. Typically, a moderately active person should get 1 - 1.5g protein per kg, and drink 2-3L water. If you have kidney disease or diabetes, you should talk to your doctor before doing any extreme diets. I suspect I take in about 150g protein (mostly fish and vegetable) a day on a 115-lb frame, but I also work out pretty hard 3x/week. My routine consists of relatively challenging resistance/weight training combined with 30-60 minutes of cardio. My lab work is excellent and I lost all my pregnancy weight within 10-weeks.
However, serious athletes and bodybuilders can, and do definitley benefit from it. If you are interested in the some recent studies, I can outline them for you, or post the journal references where they are found.
Second that !! I got alot of respect for Naxis and her Vegan diet but I gotta have Whey, Skim milk, Chicken and Salmon. My Journal References are Muscle and Fitness, Flex, Iron Man etc.. Yeah i think i'll down a QT of Skim .... later !
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To surpass the 120 yr Life Span !!!!
Second that !! I got alot of respect for Naxis and her Vegan diet but I gotta have Whey, Skim milk, Chicken and Salmon. My Journal References are Muscle and Fitness, Flex, Iron Man etc.. Yeah i think i'll down a QT of Skim .... later !
Not to slam your references dude, but muscle magazines are typically very poor references. Do you know that mostly all muscle mags are owned by supplement companies? Basically, they have one goal as you can imagine, suck you in with a good cover and "awsome workout plans" and the biggest roidhead bodybuilders they can find, and then advertise their supplements. They throw the "research" word around like it is hot potato and most often then not there is no real research being used. Only look at info/studies that are coming straight from the medical literature. The science is out there, you just got to make sure you find the science and not the marketing gimmicks.
Not to slam your references dude, but muscle magazines are typically very poor references. Do you know that mostly all muscle mags are owned by supplement companies? Basically, they have one goal as you can imagine, suck you in with a good cover and "awsome workout plans" and the biggest roidhead bodybuilders they can find, and then advertise their supplements. They throw the "research" word around like it is hot potato and most often then not there is no real research being used. Only look at info/studies that are coming straight from the medical literature. The science is out there, you just got to make sure you find the science and not the marketing gimmicks.
Well yes and no. Of coarse they are heavly influenced by ''Marketers'' but they still have great articles about Diet and Fitness etc..and who else does that for the bodybuilding scene. Look iv'e been reading these since 1985 when i first started body building , i even remember the cover back then with Dolph Lundgren with Sly Stallone on it and the great article on how they trained togeather when making Rocky 4. Now after 20 yrs of Gyms and weights they (mags) nor anyone else is fooling me on marketing gimmicks but after all these yrs i still get inspired when those issues come in the mail. Again those mags back then taught me Diet , Nutrition, Supplements and yes articles about ''Roids'' and all. So again starting in 1985 when i was a 145 skinny weakling they were my ''journal refrences''.... later !!!
__________________
To surpass the 120 yr Life Span !!!!
Well yes and no. Of coarse they are heavly influenced by ''Marketers'' but they still have great articles about Diet and Fitness etc..and who else does that for the bodybuilding scene. Look iv'e been reading these since 1985 when i first started body building , i even remember the cover back then with Dolph Lundgren with Sly Stallone on it and the great article on how they trained togeather when making Rocky 4. Now after 20 yrs of Gyms and weights they (mags) nor anyone else is fooling me on marketing gimmicks but after all these yrs i still get inspired when those issues come in the mail. Again those mags back then taught me Diet , Nutrition, Supplements and yes articles about ''Roids'' and all. So again starting in 1985 when i was a 145 skinny weakling they were my ''journal refrences''.... later !!!
I feel you, I grew up reading those mags, they are definitley great for motivation. And for sure, back in 85, they were the journals of info because there were nearly no independent studies being done on exercise science or biochemistry in its relation to bodybuilding. Some of the articles in those mags are alright for general knowledge, but not the best for scientific facts. I remember when I was 145 pounds! Glad I not now!
Protein is the most essential macro-nutrient for anyone who is trying to build muscle and lose fat. Muscle is protein. It is important to be in that mind set when you establish your diet plan. Protein requirements will vary depending on which "expert" you ask. However, one things is clear through research: high protein diets are safe, and they are the most effective diets to build muscle and reduce body fat. 50g a day is not ideal for your goals. Honestly even 1g per pound isn't ideal. I weigh around 190 pounds and my daily protein goal is 350g. I know that probably scares you, but for bodybuilding purposes protein intake is imperative.
The way you get more protein in your diet is to supplement. Find a high-quality whey protein supplement, and a meal replacement as well. Add these supplements into you diet (especially in the 3 hour window that surrounds your workout) and your protein intake will increase drastically.
MaxOT26 is exactly right. This last month I've tried to keep my lean tissue while also losing fat, which I still have a lot of. I was eating less than a 100 grams of protein a day and I was losing fat, but I was also losing a lot of lean tissue (muscle). I've upped my protein intake to where I have a minimum of a 170 grams a day, because I still want to lose weight/fat. The last 4 weeks I've lost 2.5% body fat, but I also lost lean tissue, about 3 lbs lean tissue. What I've found since I've increased my protein intake, is that it's hard to keep losing weight and keep all my lean tissue. I could increase my protein even more, but I'm scared of not losing as much weight. I still need to get my total weight down.
I think my biggest problem is how much cardio I do. Cardio is catabolic, which means it needs aminos to fuel your energy. If I don't have enough aminos in my system, then for fuel it will take to my muscles and thus I lose lean tissue. I hope I explained this right. Max might have more information on what catabolic means. This is why having protein around your workouts are so important to build muscle.
