Losing muscle :(

indiblue · 05-24-2011, 10:49 AM

Yes, I definitely eat eggs. Eggs, cheese, milk, beans/lentils, and fish (I do eat seafood, when I get can get my hands on it) are my major sources of protein. I'm on 1200 cals a day so those only get me so far- to about 60-70 g. I think I really need a supplement to get up to 90-100. I snuck back some Clif Builder bars from the US which are helping me eat more protein, but at almost 300 calories, I can get more protein-for-my-caloric-buck from milk and eggs than from those.

indiblue · 05-26-2011, 04:19 AM

CRIKEY.

So Optimum Nutrition is super expensive here (I live in India), so I just got home from purchasing British Nutritions Whey Platinum Standard (about $30 for 2.2 lbs). It turns out it's an Indian brand and reviews on its efficacy are scattered and not helpful.

Is it possible a protein powder can be bad, or ineffective? One scoop is 117 calories, 1 g fat, no sugar, 8 carbs, and 20 g protein. I chose it mainly because the ingredients- it claims to only be why protein concentrate and whey protein isolates, fructose, cocoa powder, vitamins and minerals, and sucralose.

However, having lived in India for over a year, I am extremely distrustful of Indian products, and somewhat distrustful of nutrition facts on Indian foods, just because so many things here are so poorly regulated.

Is it possible for a whey protein to be "bad" and ineffective? Should I try to take this back or will it do just as god a job as the other stuff?

sacha · 05-26-2011, 06:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by indiblue

CRIKEY.

So Optimum Nutrition is super expensive here (I live in India), so I just got home from purchasing British Nutritions Whey Platinum Standard (about $30 for 2.2 lbs). It turns out it's an Indian brand and reviews on its efficacy are scattered and not helpful.

Is it possible a protein powder can be bad, or ineffective? One scoop is 117 calories, 1 g fat, no sugar, 8 carbs, and 20 g protein. I chose it mainly because the ingredients- it claims to only be why protein concentrate and whey protein isolates, fructose, cocoa powder, vitamins and minerals, and sucralose.

However, having lived in India for over a year, I am extremely distrustful of Indian products, and somewhat distrustful of nutrition facts on Indian foods, just because so many things here are so poorly regulated.

Is it possible for a whey protein to be "bad" and ineffective? Should I try to take this back or will it do just as god a job as the other stuff?

I would take it back. You already have a higher carb diet, there are plenty of proteins without 8g carbs (as for the India thing, I understand, I probably wouldn't trust it). Can you have ON or another brand shipped to you online?

indiblue · 05-26-2011, 08:02 AM

Is 150 g higher carb? I thought it was, then someone in another forum said it was relatively low carb. Should I work on lowering it?

Sigh, I was worried I'd get that reaction about the protein powder. I can order ON on Amazon, but it won't be here for another month. I don't want to spend the next month continuing to lose muscle. Is it really that bad to take this one with 8 g of carbs?

Today was another daily battle with the protein. I ate a tbs of peanut butter pre-workout (4 g), a Clif Builders Bar after (20 g), a cup of pinto beans (15 g) and 1/4 c of hummus (3 g), and a cup of pea soup (15 g) for lunch. I'm at 1000 calories (which includes 1 tsp of canola oil the beans were cooked in and 1 c of mango) and only 58 g of protein. That's 83% of my calories for today and only 60% of my protein. And I'm ultra-limited as to what I can now eat for dinner (which right now pretty much looks like yet another plate of eggs, nothing else will get me 30 more g of protein in just 200 calories)

I can't just eat beans, eggs, and milk every day, which is what I'm doing now, with the exception of an occasional serving of fish when I can. Is there any other way to do this besides a supplement?

sacha · 05-26-2011, 08:05 AM

Hi, no, 150g is not 'high carb' but your diet was carb based so I assumed it was higher. 1000 calories and 58g carb is a recipe for muscle loss, even at your height/weight. I would say just go with the powder you have

indiblue · 05-27-2011, 01:07 AM

sacha thank you for the one-on-one therapy/nutrition counseling services. I'm sitting here sipping my protein shake, indulging in 50 g of smooth, chocolate protein after my lifting this morning.

I'll buy ON online but hopefully this will tide me over for the next month or so before it gets here. Will report out on results in the next few weeks. Thanks again to you and others on the advice!

bronzeager · 05-27-2011, 07:54 AM

Do you eat fish? You don't need to rely only on fresh fish; canned is an excellent source of protein and just as good for you -- some canned fish like salmon and sardines are even more sustainable and toxin-free than some fresh fish. I am in the UAE and the large supermarkets here mport John West which seems to be a British brand, but there are also lots of south and east Asian producers on the shelves, so check if you have those available. I tend to avoid the very cheapest brands because the cans tend to look a little ... weatherbeaten. But tastewise in my experience a sardine is a sardine, plain or packed in tomato or curry sauce. I usually eat them right out of the can on a Rykrisp cracker but have also put them on top of salad. They go well with bitter greens if you eat fresh greens, or you can put them on top of some spinach/palak sauteed with garlic, which is a time-honored rural Italian recipe. Anchovies are especially good that way -- Yum! -- but I can see where that might be an acquired taste.

indiblue · 05-27-2011, 11:35 AM

bronzeager yes I do eat fish, mainly for utilitarian reasons, but I still eat it

. I do try to get a can of tuna a week, but your reminder about canned anchovies or sardines is a good one. I love both but I don't think I've looked for them her. I LOVE Southeast Asian food and yes, anchovies especially are easy to find in Southeast Asian grocery stores, but we regrettably have very little SE Asian products in the city where I live. That said, I will definitely check out anchovy and sardine options. Thanks for the reminder

indiblue · 06-04-2011, 01:24 AM

Quick update. I just talked to a friend here who is a trainer and his perspective is that Indian protein powders are "fake." Fabulous! I mean, it's not really something that can be proven one way or another- there are no regulations for anything here and very little oversight.

Sigh. I'm going to try to finish out this container and then order my ON on Amazon this afternoon. Hopefully this powder will do something between now and then...

runningfromfat · 06-04-2011, 08:19 AM

Just wanted to send a

your way. I totally get the whole frustrated because you can't find XYZ locally.

We have a plethora of protein powder here but it's ridiculously expensive but I'm thinking of sucking it up and buying some because I'm also struggling to get enough protein in (and in my case that starts to cause wicked cravings).

One suggestion... can you compare your common sources of protein (eggs, beans, milk, and nuts) and see which has the lowest calorie to protein ratio and then try and focus on eating that more in the meantime?

sacha · 06-04-2011, 08:29 AM

If you eat fish then I wouldn't worry about needing a protein powder! Sorry, I assumed you didn't eat fish. Focusing on incorporating enough of those into your diet and you don't need to worry about powder. White fishes are very low in fat, mostly protein, and then a couple of oily fishes a few times a week are great for essential fats.

indiblue · 06-04-2011, 08:37 AM

Thank you running! Appreciate the expat love.

I have looked at the protein per calorie ratio for those items and egg whites and milk seem to be the best bang-for-the-caloric buck. Before the protein powder though I couldn't get all the way up to 90 g of protein focusing mainly on those two. Beans and nuts are great, but 1 cup of kidney beans is 225 calories and 15 g of protein. 1f I ate two cups I'd only be at a third of my daily protein and close to half of my daily calories. Nuts are worse- 4 grams for about 100 calories. I do eat fish sometimes, when I have access to it, and that would be a huge boost to my protein.

The problem is even when I ate almost exclusively protein products (2 eggs for breakfast, glass of milk, 1 serving of fish, cup of beans), I would still only get to 60 g of protein, 70 max because my calories are so low right now. 40 g from protein powder was really the only way to bump it up to where it needs to be- 90+.

For me I'm just going to bite the bullet and import Optimum Nutrition. My health is just too important. I hope you're able to find what you need as well!