Nutrition Tip of the Week: Protein at Each Meal

Ok. Hopefully I have you eating breakfast and taking something in every 2-4 hours. Now, I'll get into what you should be including with each breakfast or each meal. Remember, they are not meals. They are feedings. Times for fuel.

Every time you eat you should be having some source of protein. It amazes me when I look over a client's food log and see the minuscule amounts of protein they are getting in over the course of the day. The suggested intake of protein for an active individual is one gram of protein per pound of body weight. I know few people who are getting anywhere near this suggested amount. I usually do not see intakes of over 100 grams a day and I don't know any clients who weight less than 100 pounds.

So to get your protein intake up, again, you should be having some source of protein at every feeding opportunity. Besides getting your overall protein intake up, having protein at each feeding is going to do a couple other things:

1. Provide a bit of a boost to your metabolism. The thermic effect of protein is higher than that of fat or carbohydrates. In simple terms, it takes more energy to digest protein than fat or carbs.
2. Improve lean muscle mass and help with recovery from workouts. The rate of protein turnover will be sped up especially if a post-workout shake is consumed.
3. Reduce body fat. Isn't this really what every one is after? Consuming protein at every meal is usually going to displace those fat storing carbs.

The next thing is finding your sources of protein. Here are some ideas:

• Lean meats such as ground beef or turkey, chicken, bison, red meats (sirloin, round, tenderloin)
• Fish such as salmon or tuna
• Eggs
• Low-fat dairy (cottage cheese, Greek Yogurt)
• Whey or casein protein supplement

Next week, some more ideas at what to include with your protein.