My appetite is suppressed enough that hitting a protein target is now the hardest part of the day, and everything I read assumes I can simply eat more.
The arithmetic that makes it tractable: reference weight in kg times 1.6 gives the target; divide by four for a per-sitting figure; then find four foods that hit that figure in a volume you can actually finish. Most people need two of the four to be liquid or semi-liquid early on.
What I am trying to establish is whether the RDA is the wrong reference entirely during rapid weight loss, and what the actual target should be.
Numbers rather than impressions, if you have them.
Short answer first, then the reasoning. Distribution matters less than total but it is not nothing. Roughly 25 to 40g per sitting with enough leucine to trigger synthesis, three or four times a day, is more effective than the same total in one enormous evening meal — and on a suppressed appetite the enormous evening meal is the one you will not finish anyway.
Correct me if the detail matters more than I have assumed.
sarah.morrison said:Distribution matters less than total but it is not nothing.
Agreed on the target, with the caveat that reference weight and current weight are different numbers. Using current weight at the start of a large loss produces a target that is both unachievable and unnecessary.
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Shop Reference Standardsrick_sfbay said:My appetite is suppressed enough that hitting a protein target is now the hardest part of the day, and everything I read assumes I can simply eat…
This matches mine closely enough to be worth saying so. On a suppressed appetite the winning strategy is protein density per unit of volume, not per calorie. Isolate powders, Greek yoghurt and cottage cheese, egg whites, lean fish, and tinned tuna all deliver a lot of protein in a small physical volume. Front-load it: appetite is usually least suppressed in the first hours after waking and worst on the day or two after dosing, so get the majority in early in the day and early in the week.
From the other side of the consultation, briefly.
DEXA scan update relevant to protein intake:
Scanned at months 0, 6, and 12. Here are the body comp numbers:
| Baseline | Month 6 | Month 12 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total mass | 281 lbs | 236 lbs | 218 lbs |
| Fat mass | 121 lbs | 81 lbs | 53 lbs |
| Lean mass | 159 lbs | 152 lbs | 155 lbs |
| Body fat % | 42% | 32% | 22% |
Lean mass preserved — actually GAINED 1-2 lbs thanks to progressive overload + 1.6g/kg protein. The protein intake discussion needs to include body comp data, not just scale weight.