Is it okay to get most of your calories from protein shakes?

 Let me start by saying that I'm in the military and in a deployed location, and most of the food in the DFAC (eating facility) is very unhealthy.

I start out with a decent breakfast of 6x hardboiled egg whites and non-sweetened/non-salted oatmeal w/ fruit mixed in (usually bananas). However, I find it really difficult to fill the gaps in my calories pretty much after breakfast to the end of the night.

Usually for lunch I am able to get a salad and a boiled chicken breast, but it really just depends on my workload on whether or not I can make it over there. When I first started my diet out here I was eating pretty much everything that was healthy at the DFAC and once I started counting calories I realized I was basically starving myself (1100-1300 a day max). I am trying to lose weight while also starting to lift so protein shakes make sense, but I'm wondering if I'm doing more harm then good to my body by not getting in solid foods for the majority of the day.

 

To clarify, I have a three scoops of True-Mass for a meal replacement for dinner (which is usually right after my workout), and I usually have a scoop of Syntha-6 between breakfast and lunch and between lunch and my workout. I was also thinking of having a scoop right before bed.

I don't know how you can maintain that lifestyle, though. Drinking your calories... does it give you the satisfaction at the end of the day? It reminds me of what some of my overweight friends do when they're on the Slimfast diet - they would eventually give up and gain all the weight back.

I feel that it's better to eat proper food and supplement your meals with protein shakes.

well im not sure ur stats age weight height. but i do assume u are active and therefore u need to be eating morethan 1300 obviously.

why only eggwhites? it is healthy for u and it will not make u gain weight to eat the entire egg, plus instead of 6 15 cal eggwhites u could eat say 3 entire hardboiled eggs giving about 210 cals instead.

the salad and chicken is good make sure u r having some fat with it though oil, salad dressing whatever.

i dont see the problem with filluing in the gaps with the protein powder as long as u r eating sufficient calories.

i suggest u find out how many calories u need to be eating first.

just to add....im not sure what they serve for dinner but i would imagine, sometimes they would serve a piece of steak or chicken at dinnertime which u could eat, maybe even some cooked veggies or baked potato?

The satisfaction part doesn't really bother me. I'm the type of person that could eat chicken for a year and I wouldn't tire out. I do enjoy good food, but I'm just really committed to getting down to a (good) military weight.

 

Jf, I'm 24, 6'2", and about 197~200. I do work a desk job here so I'm not really that active during the day, but I've definitely been doing a lot of running/lifting/sports since I've been here. This site and a guide I read said I should be eating around 2800 to maintain so I've been shooting for around 2200-2500 depending on how much I work out in the evening.

For some reason with eggs I've always heard that the yolks are extremely bad for you in some way or another. If that's just a myth that I would much rather eat the yolks, usually my favorite part of the egg. As for chicken or steak for dinner, they do offer chicken in the evening but it's just the same chicken that they cook for lunch. So dry I couldn't even stomach it. No baked potatoes (so far) but I do try and get whatever cooked veggies they have when they offer them.

EAT THE WHOLE EGG

Wtf is with this no-fat whatsoever BS? You NEED fat, and it will help you get your calories in and make you feel satisfied. 

Besides the fruit, what you are eating right now is giving you virtually no nutrition besides macros.. you need micros as well!!

and NO it is NOT OKAY to get most of your calories from unnatural, processed, nutrient-void, protein powder

I believe the more fruits and veggie solids you chew the better the fiber levels and the better your digestion works. Shakes may augment your protein intake, but for me, balance is sustainable.  If your can tote the shakes... why not some fruits or veggie snack bags?  Good luck and stay the course. 

@carmenxox

I don't have any aversion to fat. Like I said, I didn't know why people said the yolk was bad, I just knew that's what they said. I had six whites and two full eggs today and I notice my Cholesterol count is apparently almost double what it should be. Is that the reason?

Also, you mentioned something about micros... Can you elaborate on what those are? I am trying to eat healthy while also stacking protein/fat so any tips would be greatly appreciated. I have very slim pickings for what I can eat out here in the middle east.

@jb1953

I actually get alot of fruit in, but veggies are pretty hard to come by. We have a very basic salad bar (spring greens, cucumber, carrots). Celery is the first thing I looked for since I was trying to quit smoking when I started too.

Dietary cholesterol doesn't cause high blood cholesterol.  The yolk has 1/2 of the egg's protein and all of the egg's vitamins and minerals 

MACROnutrients = fat, protein, carbs

MICROnutrients = vitamins and minerals 

**hint: egg whites and oatmeal contain VERY FEW micronutrients (all grains are nutritionally weak-- yes even 'whole grains')

All the vitamins and minerals are contained in the egg YOLK. Dietary cholesterol DOES NOT raise serum cholesterol in most individuals (there are some exceptions). High cholesterol levels are linked more to too much sugar/carbs in the diet, than they are to fat and dietary cholesterol. 

I have seen many cases with low fat raw vegans having WORSE cholesterol levels than people who eat a high fat low carb diet. 

Be sure to get yourself educated on how to read cholesterol tests too, not all cholesterol is bad. You NEED some cholesterol, it's important to know the differences between the good (HDL) and the bad (LDL) types, and what ratios are ideal. 

Got it~ Was mainly just going off of what this site said. (i.e. your cholesterol is levels are high). I'm fat for the military but I've never actually been in horrible shape, they kind of don't let us get that far. I dropped down from eating like six-eight hard boiled egg whites a day to two full eggs and two egg whites. Probably just going to start eating four full eggs tomorrow. I figured out my high cholesterol from the other day was actually from the Monster's I had (the one vice I haven't been able to break yet.)

I take a multivitamin, Green Tea Extract, and Fish Oil to try and balance out the stuff I might not get out here. I know I get enough calcium and most of my vitamins, but I think I'm pretty low in fiber. Any recommendations for what I can eat/take to increase my fiber without adding a ton more carbs, and are there any really important vitamins/minerals I might be forgetting? I was thinking nuts like Almonds would be perfect here but the only thing I can really get are pistachios.

Veggies and nuts are your best low carb fiber options.  Fruit is also a good fiber option (some are lower carb than others).