I did the calculate application and it says I need 285 grams of protein, so if I were to consume that much. How do I make sure I'm not eating to many calories and fat, as my target calories is 850 - 1400 as I don't want to put on any weight just muscle.

I do cardio 7 days a week and 3 days of weights and 1 day off.

That can't be right. What calculation did you use to arrive at that number?

No one's target calories should be as low as 850 a day! What do you weigh???

I weigh 13.6 stone which is 189lb in the US, it varies from day to day. Some days I could be 13.1 and others 13.4 and so on never going as high as 13.9 stone.


My BMI is 26.1, I'm going to cut sugar from my diet if that helps.

I'm 5'11.

You talking about the protein levels or the calorie target?

I always check my weight everyday so when it starts to go down, I'll start taking in less protein.

I think both - in order for you to want 285g of protein a day, that implies your goal weight is 285 lbs. Normally a calorie goal for someone over that, would still be well over 2500 calories. Looking at a goal of 850 to 1400 would make me think you weighed closer to 125 lbs, so that leads to confusion, I think

The recommendation I've heard is 1g of protein for 1 lb of lean body mass, or possibly for goal weight. You probably should have a target closer to 150 or maybe as much as 175g of protein.

Also, the rule of thumb for target calories is weight in lbs times 10 to 12. So at 189lb, I'd be more expecting your target calories to come in at 1900 to 2280.

Those numbers should make it a little easier to reach your goals.

Lean chicken breasts are good sources of protein, so is getting whey powder and making a shake. I like cottage cheese, although it's not quite as much protein for your calorie as the lean meats are. If you eat lean meats and get most of your carbs from veggies and fruits, and focus on healthy fats I don't think getting 150g of protein in under 1900 calories should be bad. Going too low on your calories can actually leave you malnourished which won't help with your physical fitness.

Hope that helped!

The latest protein recommendations in scientific literarure are 1.5g PRO/kg bodyweight. 189 lbs = 86kg

86 X 1.5 = 129 g protein/day.

285g of protein would already put you 1140 calories for the day.

Also, don't be afraid of eating fat. Fat is vital for good health!

by "latest" you're referring to the lemon study of 1980. it's very outdated, and is widely debunked as not being the whole story. It measured nitrogen balance as the target protein goal. Current methodology measures protein uptake as a whole. so while you're getting basically 100% protein uptake at nitrogen balance, you suffer diminishing returns the higher you go, and not a complete wastage.. So going higher is perfectly recommended. Especially for thos who are competitive athletes or trying to build muscle. Consider the official government rda values as the bare minimum.

I was referring to the protein number, but your target calorie count is also way too low, given your size and activity level. I also can't help noticing that your current weight is in a pretty healthy range for your height. Maybe you have a few pounds of extra fat to lose, but not very much. If you starve yourself you will start losing muscle mass, which is not what you want.

Why not just work on adding a few extra servings of protein to your diet along with cutting out junk food, continue the workout program, and see what happens?

Your calorie intake is way too low for your current weight...I am maintaining a current weight of 115 and I eat more than that every day. At 189, depending on your activity level, you should be taking in 1890-2268 calories a day to lose weight at a healthy rate and to avoid starvation mode.

I was referring to a body of evidence, including papers by Westman et al and Layman of dates 2007 and 2009, respectively.

Since the original poster spoke of calorie goals of 850-1400, the original posted protein intake of 285g would equal 100% of intake at the first half of the range of calorie intake listed.

Even assuming a higher calorie intake, 285g is about 3.3g PRO/kg BW, which while I agree may not be harmful, seems unnecessary.

Official RDA values are currently .8g PRO/kg BW/d. The Food and Nutrition Board's Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Range recommends as high as 2.5g/kg/d. Yes, the RDA values are a bare minimum and my recommendation was almost double that. Yes, protein intake can be higher than what I've recommended, but without knowing specifically the original poster's health status, goals, actual intake, etc. a recommendation of 1.5g/kg is well-supported.

I'm sure your post helped, though

First off, you don't ever want to go below 1200 calories a day, no matter how much weight you want to lose. That will just put your body into starvation mode. Plus, it's just unhealthy. I would shoot for at least 1400 if I were you, possibly more.

As for protein intake, you can eat lean meats, chicken, turkey, fish, milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese, nuts, peanut butter, veggies. You can also buy a whey protein powder. I don't get enough protein in my diet from regular foods, because I just can't eat that much. I buy protein powder online at bulkfoodsdirect.com, which helps me meet my protein goals. Which, by the way, 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight should be fine.

Heather18,

I'd have to disagree. Many weight loss trials in the scientific literature employ 800 calorie/day diets with no apparent adverse effects.

This may not be appropriate for the original poster, but 1200 is not a universal lower limit.

Links please? To the scientific literature?

800 cals a day is considered a VLCD (very low calorie diet) and shouldn't be attempted or encouraged unless the dieter is under the care of a doctor or following a VERY specific program that makes sure they're getting all the nutrients they need.

It is practically impossible for people to get enough nutrients on VLCDs unless properly supervised. And it's inadvisable for any long term plan to be based on a VLCD.