Protein Shakes making me gain weight & I want to lose weight not gain it. Help!!

[chunkysnowman]

I was told a woman who wants to lose weight needs about 1,500 to 1,800 calories a day. So the woman would need to aim for 180 to 210 grams of carbohydrate or about 12 to 13 carbohydrate servings a day.
Right now, I'm getting an average of around 210 grams of carbs a day....I would love to know the twinkie diet!! lol And BTW the Protein Shake replaces my breakfast meal & my bedtime snack.

There are lower carb protein shakes around, but tbh I doubt its the carbs in the shakes that have made you put on weight. Watch it for a few weeks as it could just be a blip. I'm no expert on female related stuff but in my experience a womans weight will fluctuate naturally far more than a mans (hormones/cycle etc).

Don't be overly hung up on the quantity of carbs; better to be looking at the 'type' of carbs. Total calories in a day are far more important.

[deerhearse]

The weight could be lean weight. Are you gaining inches in the wrong areas, or lean weight in the right places?

Sometimes the tape measure is a better indicator of progress than the scale.

I ONLY take my whey protien drinks pre, during and post workout, about an hour apart, and only when I workout or within the hour after the workout so I minimize gaining the wrong sort of weight.

My other protein is from eggs, venison, cottage cheese, chicken and the like in reasonable portions spread wisely throughout the day.

[diversegsr]

what kind of protein drink are you taking....the name of it.....there are different kinds for different needs.....sure you're not taking a weight gainer?

[alex2363]

Lies ! you suggested same to me 6 months ago. And it worked !

lol

[gwnorth]

I've done this before and unfortunately I'm doing it again (but for the last time I swear!). So far I'm down 30 lbs so I can tell you what has worked for me:

First - Diet

1) Figure out your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) - that's how many calories your body burns at rest (basically how many calories you would need to stay the same weight if you never got out of bed)
2) Figure out your NEAT (Non-Exercise Activity) - how many calories you generally burn for your regular daily activities like getting dressed, doing the groceries, climbing the stairs etc. This number by the way is one of the biggest differences between people who gain weight and people who keep it off.
3) Figure out your EAT (Excercise Activity) - how many calories you burn with the excercise you do. There are many calculators on-line that will give you a rough estimate.

Total up all your numbers. This is approximately the number of calories your body needs every day to maintain your current weight (there is also TEF - Thermogenic Effect of Food, how many calories your body burns digesting what you eat, but we won't worry about that).

Next reduce this number by 15-20% to figure out how many calories you should be eating to loose weight.

Next calculate your macro-nutrients how much protein/fat/carbohydrate you should be eating in grams. See this link here http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=121703921

That's it. Stick to your macros by eating a balanced nutritious diet incorporating lean meats, fruits and vegetables, low fat dairy, and whole grains. Personally I do use a Meal Replacement drink for breakfast ON THE DAYS I WORK OUT IN THE MORNING, because I don't want to be digesting a heavy meal before a workout. I also use a protein powder after my workouts, because a) I weight train and b) I eat at a caloric deficit and I find it tough to get all my protein in food form.

I would suggest you start eating more real food and fewer bars and shakes. While they will let you meet your macronutrient requirements, unless you plan on eating this way for the rest of your life, you aren't learning how to eat for when you reach your weight goal.

Forget about counting carbs and stick to counting calories. I recommend keeping a food journal and weighing and measuring your portions (whenever possible weigh over measure). Within those calories stick to your macros. If you want to do low carb, then increase percentage of protein and fats. Personally I eat low starch (bread, rice, pasta, potatoes), but not necessarily low carb. You are going to need those carbs especially with all the cardio you do. BTW, if I were you, I'd fire your nutrtionist.

Next - Excercise

I come from a cardio background (marathon runner/triathlete) so I can appreciate where you are coming from, but believe me when I say that you need to do less cardio, and add weight training to your routine. The last time I went through the weight loss journey I lost 40 lbs. I did a lot of cardio and weight trained moderately 2 x a week for 1 hour with a trainer. This time I'm down 30 lbs (20 lbs still to go). I do a fair amount of cardio and I weight train heavily 3 x a week for 1 hour with a trainer. I'm already fitting into clothes that I wore when I weighed 15 lbs less last time.

If you don't weight train, as you loose weight you will loose as much if not more from lean muscle as you will fat. This is BAD. The result of this is that while you weigh less, your bodyfat percentage will be higher. As your weight drops, your BMR will drop. Your body will need fewer calories to maintain your weight because you weigh less. If you loose muscle as you loose weight, your BMR will fall even more because muscle requires more calories to maintain and now you have less muscle. As a result inorder to continue to loose weight, you will have to cut your calories back even more. By weight training as you diet, you will not gain muscle (well you might a little at first but not much), but you can help to preserve the muscle you have and limit the amount of muscle you will loose by dieting. In order for this to work, you will also need to make sure you are getting sufficient protein.

As an example of how this all works I can give you my numbers:

5'3" 145lbs 43 yo Female @ approx 31% BF

BMR - 1405
NEAT - 250
EAT - 500

Total daily caloric requirement - 2155
Calories consumed per day - 1500
Total daily deficit 655
Total weekly deficit 4585 = 1.3 lbs/week

Protein 135g/540 cals
Fat 60g/540 cals
Carbs 105g/420 cals

Total 1500 cals

It might take a bit of math, but it's certainly not rocket science.

[dungeonmistress]

OP - you aren't on a low carb diet by any stretch of the imagination. Most likely the immediate weight loss was water, and quite a large loss at that. Gaining some weight back was your body's way of trying to balance out the loss. It's therefore highly unlikely to think that these protein drinks caused the weight gain. If you wanted to gain 2 lbs you would have had to overeat by 7000 calories.

[hudgston]

About 3 weeks ago, I began to start eating right. I'm doing a low carb diet. I lost 8 pounds right off, (I went from 223 to 215) so I'm think that was alot of fluid. The second week of my diet, someone introduced me to Protein Shakes. I began to drink one in the morning (between 45-60 carbs) & a 15 carb one for my bedtime snack. I've noticed today that I've gained 2 of those pounds back. I've been walking everyday between 30 mins to 45 mins and here's my carb schedule: Breakfast 45-60, Snack 15, Lunch 45, Snack 15, Supper 60, Snack 15. Plus I'm working on increasing my water intake. Right now I'm drinking around 48 oz of water. What am I doing wrong?

Read the labels! Protein shakes should have no more than 250 calories and a very small amount of fat. You need to keep track of the other amounts of protein you are taking in throughout the day. When your body has EXCESS PROTEIN, it stores it as FAT. Typically, your body can handle 20-25g of protein in one sitting for a total of 50-60g each day. As for the shake you drink before bed, make sure it is about 2 hours before you go to sleep. If this shake has a high amount of protein, try to refrain. Your body is not going to need a lot of protein so late and your metabolism slows way down at night. Instead, try eating something very light.

[Jtbny]

Read the labels! Protein shakes should have no more than 250 calories and a very small amount of fat. You need to keep track of the other amounts of protein you are taking in throughout the day. When your body has EXCESS PROTEIN, it stores it as FAT. Typically, your body can handle 20-25g of protein in one sitting for a total of 50-60g each day. As for the shake you drink before bed, make sure it is about 2 hours before you go to sleep. If this shake has a high amount of protein, try to refrain. Your body is not going to need a lot of protein so late and your metabolism slows way down at night. Instead, try eating something very light.

At least if you are going to bump a two year old thread don't fill your response with such broscience BS....

[hudgston]

I was told to count carbs by a nutrionalist. That's why I started doing it that way.

So wrong. It's all about the calories and the bad fats. Your body need carbs to survive and it needs them for ENERGY. Most likely, you would burn off all the carbs by the end of the day anyway. Carbs are NOT the enemy...it is frustrating that they get such a bad rep.

[kk7532]

About 3 weeks ago, I began to start eating right. I'm doing a low carb diet. I lost 8 pounds right off, (I went from 223 to 215) so I'm think that was alot of fluid. The second week of my diet, someone introduced me to Protein Shakes. I began to drink one in the morning (between 45-60 carbs) & a 15 carb one for my bedtime snack. I've noticed today that I've gained 2 of those pounds back. I've been walking everyday between 30 mins to 45 mins and here's my carb schedule: Breakfast 45-60 Snack 15, Lunch 45, Snack 15, Supper 60, Snack 15. Plus I'm working on increasing my water intake. Right now I'm drinking around 48 oz of water. What am I doing wrong?

I'm not sure if you're aware of this but building muscle=gaining weight. At this point you should be measuring your waistline with an inch tape not with your weight because a smaller waist can mean a heavier weight due to shedding fat and gaining muscle.

[d2mini]

I'm not sure if you're aware of this

He's probably not aware of anything since he hasn't posted since 2000freakin11.

[ElrondHubbard]

I believe in the resurrection of the thread.

I celebrated it with a protein shake.

[OldFartTom]

What is with the carb counting, I never understood that, spend your time counting calories instead of carbs.

No it's true.. oils, fats, protein all have zero calories so you don't need to count them
just keep eating the patties out of McDonald's but just don't eat the bread and you will stay thin
Go figure...

[OldFartTom]

He's probably not aware of anything since he hasn't posted since 2000freakin11.

There's been more ancient threads than usual lately, wonder why so many are reappearing?

[ElrondHubbard]

There's been more ancient threads than usual lately, wonder why so many are reappearing?

We're all more ancient than usual here. We tend to forget.

[ironwill2008]

*facepalm.jpeg* @ some of the "advices" ITT. And unfortunately, a lot of this nonsense is still being touted today.