The first thing that the majority of people (women especially) do when they are on a quest to lose weight or “get healthy” is to drastically reduce how much they eat. Less food in, less weight on the body, right? Not necessarily. The majority of the time when an individual is overweight it is a result of a completely unbalanced diet and a lack of physical activity. Notice I said “unbalanced diet”, no macronutrient group (or even individual food for that matter) should ever be off limits. If a diet plan suggests that you completely cut out an entire macronutrient group (fats, carbs or protein), be leery.

Of specific importance is protein; this macronutrient is VITAL to health, performance and even weight loss. The body requires it for almost every function. It contains amino acids, is an energy source, promotes satiety, helps with immune function, and the list goes on. It also has been shown to increase your metabolism   as it requires a lot of energy to digest. This is key, think about it for a second…when you eat a meal that is packed with proteins and complex carbs, your body has to WORK to digest that meal, and that creates what is called a “thermic effect”, it is a calorie burning process; eating a bag of Doritos (as amazingly delicious as that may be) or a baked potato, doesn’t require as much energy to digest as a meal that is protein laden. If you can be burning calories just by eating the right foods…why wouldn’t you?!  But how much protein should you be eating? And what kinds are best? I’m glad you asked 😉

There are a gazillion sources and studies that will tell you a gazillion different things about protein. But in my research and studying, and personal experience, I’m going to suggest that you go with 1g/lb of body weight (so if you weight 140lbs, you would aim to eat 140g of protein a day). For me, this is an easy to determine and easy to remember number to aim for. And studies have shown that higher than the RDA for protein has been shown to be beneficial for athletes. Meeting these high protein goals can be difficult, and sometimes almost impossible, without adding in some high protein food sources like protein powders, lean meats, egg whites, etc. Play around with different brands and foods to see what you like. Keep a goal in mind to take in 20-30g (for females, 40-60g for males typically) per meal, as this will help you to be taking in sufficient protein throughout the day and not winding up sitting down to the dinner table with 100+g left to eat for the day to meet your goals. Personally I like AboutTime protein powders, they are all natural, have great flavors, mix well with everything, have 0g carbs and 0g fat and 25g of protein per serving and I can pronounce all of the ingredients 😉

Protein is key to weight management and building lean muscle, and building lean muscle is what boosts your metabolism to help you burn more calories at rest, and burning more calories means losing unwanted body fat. So the moral of the story is, protein is your friend. Every time you think to eat, make sure you are thinking protein first. Make it a lean choice, and one that is substantial in the amount of protein (a 5g snack bar isn’t the same as a 20g bar is…read your labels).

Any questions, or if you would be interested in learning more about working with me on nutrition and fitness, head on over to the Contact Me page and shoot me and email 🙂

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