Why do we need it?
Protein is often referred to as the body’s
’building block’ as its main function is to
build and repair muscle. It also serves
other vital functions such as the creation
of enzymes and hormones.
Protein is made up of essential amino
acids, some of which the body is able to
produce and some of which we need to
obtain from our diet.
Some proteins such as animal proteins
contain all the amino acids whereas as
some proteins from plant based sources
such as lentils and legumes don’t so if
you are a vegetarian, you’ll need to eat a
wider variety of food to make sure you are
getting all of the essential amino acids.
Protein is an essential macronutrient we
need to live, so don’t think it’s just for
building muscle.
If you participate in regular exercise,
particularly resistance training, and lead
an active lifestyle it’s even more important
to have a sufficient protein intake, as your
body is breaking down muscle ti ssue on a
regular basis.
It increases your energy
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Eating protein can both boost your
metabolic rate and reduce your appetite,
a double whammy for fat loss. It has
also been shown to increase your
calorie expenditure (calories out) by 80
to 100 calories per day. This is down to
the metabolic ’cost‘ of breaking down
protein into amino acids, also known as
thermogenesis.
To put it into simple terms, if you were
to eat 100 calories worth of protein, your
body would effectively use some calories
breaking it down (roughly 20-30%) which
would result in a lower net calorie intake.
It stops you getting hungry
Do you ever get “hangry”?
If you don’t know what hangry is, it’s when
you get so hungry you become angry and
irritable. No doubt if you’ve ever tried to
diet before, you’ve had this at some point.
In which case, increasing your protein
may be the answer, as it has been shown
in research to be the most satiating of all
the macronutrients, meaning it makes you
feel fuller for longer.
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You may have even noticed foods on
supermarket shelves claiming increased
and longer lasting fullness, that’s due to
higher protein content.
As you won’t be hungry (or hangry) it
can also help to reduce cravings and eat
fewer calories per day without you even
realising, simply because you won’t feel
like you need the extra calories.
It preserves muscle mass during
weight
loss
You don’t just want to lose weight. You
might want to look lean, strong and
’toned‘ if you’re a girl or ’ripped‘ if you’re a
guy and you can’t do that without muscle.
You want to lose fat, not just weight.
It’s very difficult to build muscle with a
reduced energy intake, in which case
the next best thing you can do is to keep
hold of the muscle you already have,
which means doing two things; resistance
training and eating enough protein.
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If you start to lose muscle mass, you’ll
only end up looking like a skinnier version
of your previous self. This might suit
some but not most. For that toned, lean
physique, ideally all your weight loss will
be fat.
One study showed a protein intake of
roughly 2.3g/kg compared to 1g/kg made
a significant difference to the preservation
of muscle whilst dieting.
If you are a 70kg female that means 160g
of protein per day is better for preserving
lean muscle whilst dieting than 70g of
protein which is the governments RDA.
Another study showed that a reduced
carbohydrate to protein ratio lead to
greater improvements in body composition
and better ratio of fat/muscle loss.
It builds lean muscle mass
and
strength
When you perform resistance training,
you break down muscle, if you want to
build and repair that muscle you’ll need
to get enough protein to facilitate muscle
growth.
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what is an ’optimal‘ amount as there is
conflicting data. Some studies suggest
1.7g/kg to be the upper end to maximise
muscle protein synthesis, whereas others
claim a little over 2.2g/kg is more optimal.
Unless you are a professional athlete or
dieting to very low levels of body fat, we
typically recommend somewhere in the
middle at 2g/kg.
That means if you weigh75kg, you should
aim for 150g of protein per day, 100kg you
should aim for 200g per day and so on.
What are good sources of Protein?
Animal proteins are considered some of
the best sources of protein which isn’t
surprising considering animal tissue
is very similar to our own. However,
providing you are getting an adequate
protein intake from a wide variety of
sources, it’s likely you’ll see no discernible
difference from having solely animal
based proteins.
If you’re a vegetarian, it makes it slightly
more difficult but not impossible to get
enough quality protein. As vegetarian
protein sources have different types of
amino acids and not ALL of the essential
amino acids, you’ll need to get plenty of
variety to make sure you are getting a
good ratio.
Popular Protein Sources
• Beef
• Chicken
• Turkey
• Fish
• Greek Yogurt
• Cottage Cheese
• Whey Protein Powder
Insufficient protein, also known as
negative nitrogen balance, means your
body is breaking down muscle quicker
than it can repair and build it which is not
ideal.
Sufficient protein, also known as a
positive nitrogen balance means your
body not only has enough protein to
repair broken down muscle but also a
surplus to begin building new muscle as
well as strength.
So how much protein do you actually
need?
Protein should ideally be calculated based
on your current body weight or lean body
weight. As protein needs are determined
by muscle mass, it makes sense to base
your intake on your lean muscle mass
as opposed to total mass. Particularly if
you’re carrying a bit too much weight
Research is still trying to determine
Do you need to supplement with
protein powder?
Protein supplementation really depends
on how much protein you are getting in
your diet already. It’s not compulsory but
if you find yourself regularly missing your
protein targets then supplementing with a
protein powder can help.
Bottom line - If you’re getting enough
protein from whole foods, you don’t need
to take any protein supplements.
By Harry Ranson
Performanceproject.co.uk
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