Heather Hansen Posted December 30, 2012 Share Posted December 30, 2012 Suggestions for how to calculate not going over the 20% protein guideline? Any kind of counting makes me straight-up bananas and leads to obsessive, negative thoughts. Here's what I ate today (all measurements are approximates) 2 eggs, 1/4 yam, 1/3 c guacamole 3 Aidells breakfast links, 1.5 c fresh berries, 1/2 c roasted carrots, handful of cashews 3-4 oz steak, ~2 c roasted vegetables 1-2 oz fatty pork shoulder I'm cutting out all nut butters because they're a trigger food for me. Suggestions on where to improve? I know this isn't a time to be all perfectionist, but I'm a little worried about the 20% rule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirsteen Posted December 30, 2012 Share Posted December 30, 2012 I'm really not sure what you mean by the 20% rule. W30 just has meal templates of protein 1-2 palm sizes, good fats 1-2 thumbs at least and fill the plate with veggies. So, as I said I'm not sure why you want to work out percentages? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan W Posted December 30, 2012 Share Posted December 30, 2012 I have never heard of a 20% rule either and that to me would be going against what the W30 is about. No counting or calculating necessary. Just stick within the guidelines of the meal template that Kirsteen described. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Hansen Posted December 30, 2012 Author Share Posted December 30, 2012 It says that in the chapter on It Starts With Food, page 245, "Pregnant women should limit protein consumption to no more than 20 percent of total calories." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan W Posted December 30, 2012 Share Posted December 30, 2012 It says that in the chapter on It Starts With Food, page 245, "Pregnant women should limit protein consumption to no more than 20 percent of total calories." Oh that does sound familiar now that you say that. I think there is a pregnant or breastfeeding area in Women Only section. You may find the info you are looking for there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Hansen Posted December 30, 2012 Author Share Posted December 30, 2012 There's also a post over on the Perfect Health Diet about this. http://perfecthealthdiet.com/2010/07/the-danger-of-protein-during-pregnancy/ I'm so confused. I had gestational diabetes the last pregnancy, so I've been careful to moderate carbs during this pregnancy, which has helped immensely in having an easier pregnancy (woo!), gaining less weight and most importantly, not having gestational diabetes return! Should I just up the fat and veggies and ease off the slabs of meat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan W Posted December 30, 2012 Share Posted December 30, 2012 Oops..you are posting in that area already..sorry. Hopefully someone who has the answer will post soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirsteen Posted December 30, 2012 Share Posted December 30, 2012 It says that in the chapter on It Starts With Food, page 245, "Pregnant women should limit protein consumption to no more than 20 percent of total calories." Aah, now it makes sense. Yeah, I just checked the book and see it now. I'm no expert, especially in this area but are you sure you're eating enough. It doesn't look like a lot of food for someone who's pregnant? I would definitely up the fats and since they contain over twice as many calories as protein that should also help with the percentages. Hopefully someone with more knowledge or more recent experience of being pregnant (my *kids* are 24 & 27, so my memories a bit hazy) will be able to give you more info. good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa Urban Posted December 30, 2012 Share Posted December 30, 2012 Heather, I feel like 20% of total calories requires a bit of effort, actually. Say you're eating 2000 calories a day (just an estimate - I have no idea how much I'm eating, but I eat to satiety). 20% of total calories is 400, divided by 4 grams per calorie = 100 grams of protein. That's quite a bit - three eggs is 18 grams. Six ounces of New York Strip (steak) has 44 grams. Four ounces of chicken breast is 36 grams. That's three full meals, and barely 98 grams of protein. Fill the rest of your calories in with healthy fats and carbohdrate from veggies (even the dense stuff like sweet potato) and some fruit and you're good to go. I really don't worry too much about over-eating protein. For one, it's hard to over-eat, if it comes from real food - your natural satiety mechanism kicks in, and many pregnant women aren't super interested in tons of protein anyway. Two, you'd have to really concentrate your efforts on eating too much, with large portion sizes, to go over what's probably safe. We make that point in the book because many athletes mistakenly try to shove unnaturally large amounts of protein into them, in an effort to gain/maintain muscle mass. Overriding your natural satiety mechanism (or relying on liquid protein like shakes to get it all in) could be dangerous during pregnancy. But for those of us eating the way we do, paying attention to the signals our bodies send us (and eating Good Food), it's really nothing to be overly concerned about. Best, Melissa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather Hansen Posted December 30, 2012 Author Share Posted December 30, 2012 Thanks Melissa! That helps a lot. I'll keep on keepin on over here. Hope you're feeling good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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