Thanks Jay, this will help a lot! BTW, why only canned tuna? Are tuna steaks not as good? The reason I ask is that I can't stand the smell of canned tuna, but love tuna steaks (when I can afford them).

Keep a diary of everything you eat. Specifically note the total calories you consume and the total grams of protein in each meal. If, at the end of the day, you didn’t consume enough protein, have a blended shake made from a protein supplement and a piece of fruit in the evening. Buy the cheap soy-protein powder. Let the muscle heads waste their money on designer whey peptides.

Interesting. My physician suggested that I follow a diet where I get 50% of my calories from fat (nuts, flaxseed oil etc), 30% protein and 20% carb. Not only have I lost excess poundage (not too much, I am 5'3" and weigh 108 pounds), I have put on lots of muscle and I am never ever hungry. The fat in my diet makes me feel full all the time; I often have to remind myself to eat. Typical day includes lots and lots of nuts (any kind) with lots and lots of veggies. (I am a vegan). No bread, no pasta, no rice etc. Do I occasionally "slip"? Sure I do, just last night I made chocolate chip cookies and indulged. Overall, I feel much better than when I followed a high carb, low fat diet. I guess everyone is different and you have to find what works for you.

Is this to say that we should ignore the biological value of the protein? I've seen Trader Joe's brand whey protein for what seems like a pretty good price. Is it better to focus on things like eggs and whey if it isn't too expensive, or does it really matter?

Wow, thanks Jay that helps me too. One question, maybe I read this wrong, but why eat fruit in moderation? Too many carbs? Thanks! :)

Fruit has very little protein, so if you consume a lot of fruit on this diet, you'll have trouble getting enough protein.

-Jay

...I wouldn't be too brutal on Atkins (low carb).... I've got a case study for you.

Female Climber - training in the gym twice a week and spending most weekends climbing. Bouldering v3's consistently, leading 10's on sport with ease, doing 11's clean on TR. Former college athlete. Doing cardio (atleast twice usually more) and opposing muscle group lifting twice a week. Absolutely unable to lose the weight she wanted to lose to improve her climbing and self-esteem . . . gets on Atkins and strictly follows induction for 2 weeks then continues on the "continued weightloss" program for another 4 to 6 weeks. In the first 2 weeks, while maintianing her fitness schedule discribed above, dramatically loses weight and gets incredibly toned . . . progress slows but continues for next 4 to 6 weeks. In this time the climber at issue not only redpointed her first 11, she redpointed 11d, onsighted 11a, and sent at least a dozen 11's...

Doe this mean that too much fruit would be bad? I tend to love my fruit but not big on vegtables. I can manage to increase my proteins at the same time but for me fruits are a way to keep my hands out of the cookies jar and out of the candy aisle.

I always thought less carbs was the answer since I was overweight but I realize it's more protein that I was lacking!

I am kind of confused about 'caloric deficit'. I read from a few sources about that: some say that the quality is important (e.g. low fat, high carb), some claim that quantity is all that matters (e.g. 1500 is 1500 - doesn't matter where they come from.

My question will be: if I am trying to lose fat (not just weight) - will maintaining a fixed calories intake be ok... or I need to consider fat-carb-protein ratio too?