I’m sure you’ve heard this before: “If you want to lose weight, you really need to focus on eating more protein.”
That statement isn’t 100% true, but it definitely has a lot of truth to it. Here’s the 411 on protein.
Here’s what protein does for your body:
- Makes you feel fuller longer. The ingestion of protein triggers a specific hormonal response in the body that suppresses appetite.
- Increases your metabolism. Consuming greater amounts of protein increases energy expenditure. Dietary protein increases energy expenditure because it requires more calories to digest, absorb nutrients, and store than fat or carbohydrate.
- Increases and maintains muscle mass. Eating protein is important for repairing, building, and maintaining lean muscle mass when you’re exercising and especially if you’re cutting calories.
- Improves your mood. Research shows a correlation between greater consumptions of protein and fat and lower levels of anxiety and depression and higher levels of happiness, wellness, and well-being. Why? Probably because eating protein slows carbohydrate absorption and increases the release of norepinephrine and dopamine, which are both hormones that make us feel good.
- Maintains cognitive function. Protein intact improves working memory and executive function when task demands are high.
Okay, cool, protein does good stuff within our bodies. Now, how much do you need to consume?
Overall, it’s recommended that 10-35% of your daily nutritional intake be from protein. But… That’s a big range. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics recommends that the average individual should consume 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram or 0.35 grams per pound of body weight per day for general health. That’s the minimum.
If you want to increase muscle mass through physical activity, it’s recommended that you eat a range of 1.2-1.7 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, or 0.5 to 0.8 grams per pound of body weight.
Breaking it down even further, on average, every meal should have 20-30g of protein.
Okay, so… Have you heard some people say that “you need to eat 1g of protein per 1lb. of weight to gain muscle and lose fat?”
Yeah… That’s not necessary. And sometimes it’s not helpful. Our bodies are amazing machines and they process, metabolize, store, and burn calories according to its needs. So yes, when you have more lean muscle mass, your body needs more energy to keep it running well because muscle burns more calories at rest than fat does. However, when your body is at its max for calories/macronutrients (carbs, proteins, and fats) for that meal, it will store anything excess as fat—that includes excess protein.
The best way to get your protein is to have some with every meal and snack. Aim for a little protein with each snack (like peanut butter, nuts, legumes or beans) and more with meals.
Need help figuring out what kinds and how to include more protein in your diet? I’d love to chat: kelsey@thrivewellimi.com
