Tuesday was a bit odd because I unintentionally ate a lot of protein. I ate 26 grams at breakfast, and then I ate a ton for lunch as well. And guess what? I didn't eat as much that day. Go figure.
Typically I just go from empty carb to empty carb all day long. Add some protein in for a change, and it's like my body isn't as hungry as usual.
Then I decided to look up how much protein I should be eating because one can likely infer that I normally don't get enough protein due to my love of carbs. I seem to come up with a range of 60-140 grams per day from various internet sources. Some sources cite a lower amount than others. So I thought a good compromise might be to split the difference and aim for 100 grams of protein a day.
Obviously the counting calories thing isn't working very well. I have 10-15 pounds I want to lose (depending on the day), and I've been trying to lose these same pounds for, hmmmm, forever. If I can just keep my protein intake high enough that perhaps I don't do empty calorie snacking, then that might be the long-term solution. The theory being that if I have high protein foods throughout the day, I may not get so hungry and then make unwise choices. Let's keep myself feeling full through protein instead. I wouldn't mind eating more protein, but it tends to be harder to prepare than, oh say, Skittles.
I'm not forgetting the other side of the equation. I do exercise. I've been running this month, walking normally, I do aerobics/Pilates/toning exercises. But there's really only so much I can burn in the 1-2 free hours I have a day. As I've learned with various food/exercise experiments, limiting the food intake is where the magic happens for me.
100 grams of protein a day = better go shopping for some high protein food. Oh, and I'm NOT doing supplements and protein powder and any of that. I want to go for the more natural sources and learn how to maintain a higher protein level through eating for the long-term. This will be a challenge since I'm not a meat fan.
Back when I was pregnant, I'd eat chicken for breakfast all the time. I woke up craving chicken, which was kind of weird. And since cooking chicken takes forever at 7am, I would end up just buying a huge bag of chicken nuggets (I know, not the best source of chicken) and eat a buttload of chicken nuggets for breakfast. I usually ate 15-20 chicken nuggets for breakfast. Then for lunch I'd eat 3 beef tacos. WTH? I don't eat beef usually. Hmmm... it was probably my body's way of demanding more protein at the time. Probably wouldn't hurt to up the level now as well.
No comments:
Post a Comment