“I eat eggs, toast and a protein shake for breakfast. Is that too much?”
The answer really depends upon how many eggs and what kind of toast and protein shake you’re eating for breakfast.
Let’s start with how much protein is too much. The human body can only assimilate 50 grams of protein in one sitting. If you eat any more than that, it will not be assimilated by your body and will just get flushed. That’s why it is usually recommended that one has 20-30 grams of protein per meal for 3-6 meals per day as well as 10-20 grams of protein in a couple snacks per day. By spacing out your dosage, you’re allowing your body to make the most of everything you eat.
Now let’s look at your breakfast:
The average protein shake contains 20-50 grams of protein. The ones heavier in protein are usually developed for hard-core bodybuilders. They also usually contain a whole lot of carbohydrates and that makes for a fairly high calorie count. If you are drinking a protein shake that is very high in protein and carbohydrates then you should have just that for breakfast and skip the eggs and toast.
A protein shake made with 100% whey protein with no added sugar or carbohydrates could contain 20-40 grams of protein and be fairly low in calories. It would not be unreasonable to have a protein shake containing 20-25 grams of protein along with a breakfast of eggs and toast.
A large whole egg contains 6 grams of protein. If you are eating 9 eggs every morning then that is going to be way too much! If you’re having your eggs with a protein shake like the one mentioned above with about 25 grams of protein, then you could have up to 4 eggs and still not be over that 50 gram point.
Of course, if you’re like a woman I know and having a Slim Fast shake with breakfast and lunch rather than instead of breakfast and lunch then, yeah, you’re consuming too much!