Too much protein

[kimmykimmy 10]

Has anyone had this problem? I am eating too much Protein. I know to stop eating it...but I think I have replaced carbs with protein...hello

[BigViffer 3,544]

How much is too much? How do you know you are getting too much? Are you tracking? Are your blood panels coming back skewed? Is there Protein in your urine?

Details are kind of important.

[kimmykimmy 10]

I am tracking I am supposed to get 80 to 100 a day and I am getting 100 to 150 a day. I was told to much Protein turns to fat

[BigViffer 3,544]

That's not too much Protein. Too many calories turns to fat; whether it comes from carbs, fat, or protein. If you are getting 150 grams of protein, you are doing well. Unless you are eating 3000 calories to hit that much protein, then that would be bad. 2000 calories and 150 grams of protein is my average day.

[RickM 1,753]

Too much Protein, fat, carbohydrate, or any combination thereof, will turn to fat. Over the long term, it comes down to your caloric deficit - how much more are you burning than you are consuming - that ultimately comes out of your stored fat. You need a certain minimum amount of protein on average for you body to function properly, and if you don't get enough it will take it out of your muscle mass - there is no other place for the body to get the amino acids that it needs other than the protein that we consume. Fats and carbohydrates are fairly interchangeable and the body will convert either to get the sugars and lipids that it needs, though it can also go for protein if one or the other is too short in supply (that's right - too little carbohydrate can cause the body to divert your protein for those needs, contrary to what some popular diet books may preach; your body doesn't read those books and does what it darned well pleases.)

The typically quoted protein levels that most docs use (usually 60-80 for women and 80-100 for men) is adequate for the body's needs with enough overkill to minimize loss of muscle mass as we lose weight; those who are particularly muscular for their size may need a little more. Generally, a little bit of excess protein is better than too little, and that is usually accounted for in these dietary recommendations. As BigVif indicates, some bloodwork will give your doc a clue as to which way things are going.

Many people overconsume protein in an effort to keep carbs low, as that's what some currently popular diets preach, so you are in good (though not necessarily the healthiest) company. An alternate strategy that you might consider is to substitute more vegetables (and maybe a bit of fruit as well) for some of that excess protein as that can help fill in some of that excess capacity that we develop over time, as such low calorie/high nutrition food can be very handy in maintaining long term weight control once we get to our goal weight - start good habits early.

[RickM 1,753]

24 minutes ago, BigViffer said:

That's not too much Protein. Too many calories turns to fat; whether it comes from carbs, fat, or Protein. If you are getting 150 grams of protein, you are doing well. Unless you are eating 3000 calories to hit that much protein, then that would be bad. 2000 calories and 150 grams of protein is my average day.

You're also hanging on to more muscle mass than most, and working it too. But, yeah, 150 isn't overly excessive if the calories are in line with one's weight loss needs (that's 600 calories so well within most weight loss needs), though some with kidney problems may complain (particulary their doctors!) but those limitations should be from MD instructions as appropriate.

I target 105-110g to maintain my 150ish lb of lean mass; 140-150 if I was inclined to be building muscle mass, or for heavy duty surgical recoverly (like from plastics.)