Embarking on a high protein diet to improve fat loss or gain more muscle? Or perhaps you’ve heard its great for longevity and overall health? Or maybe you just want a simpler approach to healthy eating?
Here are a list of things to remember, so you do it correctly.
DO: Listen to your body. Not everyone has the same food tolerances (dairy, soy, beans, nuts, meat, etc). If it doesn’t feel right, then don’t eat it.
Dairy is a typical offender because not everyone can digest it well. Pay attention to your digestion after meals to see how your body responds to dairy-containing foods.
DO: Aim for about 25g – 30g protein per meal and adjust to your personal hunger cues.
It could be higher if you are more active, and less if you are less active.
So, on those days you hit it hard with the weights, your body is going to crave more protein, compared to the days you just chill on the couch scrolling. And that is ok!
DON’T: Eat an entire day’s worth of protein in one sitting. You can’t eat 100 g at once because its too much for your body to handle (so its not only wasteful, but could mess with your kidneys).
Extra protein doesn’t get stored in your body, so if you eat more than you need, your body will just excrete out the excess.
DO: Spread out your daily protein needs during the whole day amongst all your meals (and snacks). This way your body can digest, absorb, and utilize all those yummy amino acids properly.
My advice to my clients and students is to calculate your protein number for the day and divide it by 3, as their starting point.
To calculate the amount of protein you need in one day use this equation:
1 g protein x body weight (in kg) = total grams of protein per day.
(If you are more active or actively trying to gain more muscle, then you can increase that 1 g to 1.8 g protein (or somewhere in the middle)).
DON’T: Rely heavily on processed meat (or soy) or any of those pretend “meat” products. They usually contain too much sodium, chemicals, and fillers to be healthy. Stick to the whole-based sources.
Just because its “high protein” doesn’t make it healthy. Also, just because something says “plant-based” doesn’t always equal healthy either. Always be reading the ingredients to see if they align with your health goals.
Same goes with protein powders and bars. Not all are created equal and not all are always the healthiest option.
What did I miss?? Anything that needs to be added to this list??
Please share! 