My wife is having difficulty reducing weight. She eats lasagna, cookies, ice cream sandwiches, sushi, Costco pizza, and Pepsi. Some days, she eats only chicken and fruit. In addition, she receives two protein smoothies daily. She believes that the protein shakes are the reason she can’t lose weight. I’m trying to explain to her that it’s from all of the other calories she’s consuming, and that protein shakes won’t help her gain weight.
Switch from protein shakes to whole fruit/veggie smoothies; they are high in fibre and provide a real sense of fullness.
When it comes to weight loss, proper protein intake is critical. That is, unless you want to reduce fat and muscle. In which case, go for it.
The comments here kind of surprised me lol. Like, why is she cutting the protein shakes before the soda, ice cream, or cookies? I’m not even saying cut them all out, just reduce the number.
I still eat ice cream and drink pop, but not nearly as much as I did before losing 30 pounds. But I definitely have my protein shakes! And it simply puzzles me that her mind says cut that out before anything else, lol.
Okay, some protein shakes can be so heavy in calories and taste that they aren’t even protein smoothies. They have around 10g and claim to be high; not all protein shakes are like this. Premier and Fairlife are two of the better ones I’ve tried. They contain 30 grams and have fewer than 200 calories. Excellent macros, dubious components.
She must calculate her TDEE and avoid eating back what she burns while exercising. I believe that folks who use step monitors see that they are burning an extra 200 calories, thus they should eat more. No, not always true. It also depends on your goals, but this is especially true regarding weight loss.
I recommend Justina Ercole. She’s no BS. and is very knowledgeable. Her content is my favorite and straightforward.
What other ingredients are in the protein shake? And what are you using for protein? Isolate or concentrate, and does it contain artificial sweeteners or sugar?
If your shake is lean (Whey isolate with non-caloric sweetener + skim milk or water), reducing protein shakes is likely to do more harm than good because it reduces satiety and may lead to overeating of other foods. I doubt that someone who consumes so many high-calorie, low-satiety items would drink such a skinny shake. If she adds non-skim milk, sugar, bananas, berries, or other fruits, she is more likely to add a significant amount of sugar and fat. Cutting these might help.
To those who say let her cut protein. I disagree. Protein makes you feel fuller. Without it, she’ll eat even more junk food than she does now. My wife was like yours. One day, I simply gave up trying to help. Months later, she suggested using noom, which I disliked but supported. She tracked her calories and discovered she was consuming significantly more than she realised. She gradually eliminated some junk from her diet and lost weight. She still wants to lose more because she hasn’t reached her goal, but don’t tell her what to do. Encourage her when she tries, but hold your mouth when she starts blaming random things. Choose your battles wisely.
If she has been “overweight” for more than a year, it could be due to insulin resistance. I saw a weight loss specialist during the first six months of my journey, and she informed me that once you’ve been at your greatest weight for more than a year, your body becomes content and “resists” weight loss. Aka metabolism slows down significantly. This could potentially be linked to pre-diabetes.
It’s fairly common and may be reversed with a high protein calorie deficit diet and intermittent fasting to improve metabolism. If you don’t give your body at least 12 hours to thoroughly digest meals, metabolism slows down. Aim for 12-14 hours of fasting per night (feed only between 12a and 8p).
Multiple studies have revealed that your body nearly never burns protein for fuel. Eating more protein, on the contrary, causes you to burn more calories.
Protein is nitrogen-based. Carbohydrates and lipids both contain carbon. It’s quite difficult for us to use nitrogen for energy, so your body won’t bother. It would piss it out instead.
The only time you burn protein is when you fast and your fat levels plummet to the point where you will die soon.
When muscle mass declines, your body PARES it down. Nothing is truly burned for calories.
YOU make it sound like she eats largely carbs and very little protein, but she does eat a lot of it occasionally.
I’m not sure whether this is true, but unless she is consistently getting enough protein from food (~1g x lb of goal weight), eliminating the smoothies is the incorrect decision.
Yes, it is the high-processed carbs/food that are causing her weight loss issues, not the protein shakes. Protein smoothies are fantastic, but they should not be used as a replacement for entire foods.
Your wife is eating lasagna, junk food, and questioning why she isn’t losing weight. Also, are the protein shakes the horrible herbal life ones? If she’s eating junk and protein shakes, that’s even worse. In addition, protein smoothies are not particularly nutritious. This entire question makes no sense.
I get where you are coming from. If I were in your position, I would explain it diplomatically once and then leave it alone. Sometimes it’s impossible to force people to make decisions. I know it’s terrible since it’s your lover.
Why not prepare a protein shake instead? There are some incredible TikTok creators who make high protein, low calorie desserts.