Sep 28, 2019

“All of us are self-made, but only the successful are willing to admit it.” -Earl Nightingale

As I counsel with people and their eating habits one of the most surprising things I have learned is that most people are not getting enough

protein. Especially people who are very active, gaining muscle and/or are trying to lose weight. Let me see if I can convince you to step it up.

CONVINCER #1 Protein has a higher

thermogenic effect than carbohydrates or fat. That means that more calories are required to digest protein and that can actually increase your metabolism

. While fat

has the thermogenic effect of 0-3%, carbohydrates of 5 -10% protein has 20-30%. That

means if you eat a 300 calories of protein 75 – 80 calories will be spent digesting it.

CONVINCER #2 Protein digests slower.

No matter how great your carbohydrates are they will still go to fat faster than protein.

CONVINCER #3 Protein is a muscle builder. Without adequate protein you will not maximize the benefits of your muscle building workouts. One of the major benefits of muscle is that muscle also boosts metabolism.

CONVINCER #4 Protein is more satisfying. Advertisers like to point to studies where people with a high fiber breakfast eat less at the next meal. But guess what works better than cereal. Protein! People who eat eggs for breakfast eat less all day long. Protein helps us feel satisfied better and longer.

There you have four great reasons for eat

ing protein to lose or maintain weight. Here is one more for fun.

BONUS CONVINCER The You Docs had an article in the Statesman recently touting protein and quoting evidence that eating a little more protein can help prevent wrinkles.

So how much protein should you eat? Even the experts can’t agree exactly, but I write for active people and people trying to lose weight. I find that people get the best results if they aim for the higher end of the spectrum. Here are two ways to measure it. You might be a little startled at first glance but stay with me.

METHOD #1 Eat one gram of protein for .75 of every pound you weigh. If you weigh a 160 pounds you would need 120

gram of protein. If you eat six meals a day, and I hope you do, you would need to average 20 grams per meals. That sounds like a lot but each gram of protein is only 4 calories, so our 160 pound person is only eating 480 calories of protein. If you are very active you will actually need to add a little more. For example a man who is body building would eat at least one gram of protein for every pound he weighs.

METHOD #2 Measure your calories and make sure that 40% are protein, 40% are good carbohydrates and 20% are fat.

The second method takes more work so I prefer the first. I don’t like calorie counting. It keeps us obsessed

with food but perhaps it will help for a short period of time while you are developing new habits.

A note here: In most of the population cholesterol is not increased by dietary cholesterol. Sugar is the real culprit.

The next question is what has protein and how much. Here is a simple list. But a good shortcut is that an ounce of

meat or fish has about 7 grams of protein.

Beef

Hamburger patty, 4 oz – 28 grams protein
Steak, 6 oz – 42 grams
Most cuts of beef – 7 grams of protein per ounce
Chicken

Chicken breast, 3.5 oz – 30 grams protein
Chicken thigh – 10 grams (for average size)
Drumstick – 11 grams
Wing – 6 grams
Chicken meat, cooked, 4 oz – 35 grams
Fish

Most fish fillets or steaks are about 22 grams of protein for 3 ½ oz (100 grams) of cooked fish, or 6 grams per ounce
Tuna, 6 oz can – 40 grams of protein
Pork

Pork chop, average – 22 grams protein
Pork loin or tenderloin, 4 oz – 29 grams
Ham, 3 oz serving – 19 grams
Ground pork, 1 oz raw – 5 grams; 3 oz cooked – 22 grams
Canadian-style bacon (back bacon), slice – 5 – 6 grams
Eggs and Dairy

Egg, large – 6 grams protein
Milk, 1 cup – 8 grams
Cottage cheese, ½ cup – 15 grams
Yogurt, 1 cup – usually 8-12 grams, check label
Soft cheeses (Mozzarella, Brie, Camembert) – 6 grams per oz
Medium cheeses (Cheddar, Swiss) – 7 or 8 grams per oz
Hard cheeses (Parmesan) – 10 grams per oz
Beans

Tofu, ½ cup 20 grams protein
Tofu, 1 oz, 2.3 grams
Soy milk, 1 cup – 6 -10 grams
Most beans (black, pinto, lentils, etc) about 7-10 grams protein per half cup of cooked beans
Soy beans, ½ cup cooked – 14 grams protein
Split peas, ½ cup cooked – 8 grams
Nuts and Seeds

Peanut butter, 2 Tablespoons – 8 grams protein
Almonds, ¼ cup – 8 grams
Peanuts, ¼ cup – 9 grams
Cashews, ¼ cup – 5 grams
Pecans, ¼ cup – 2.5 grams
Sunflower seeds, ¼ cup – 6 grams
Pumpkin seeds, ¼ cup – 8 grams
Flax seeds – ¼ cup – 8 grams
If you weigh more than you should chances are you spend a lot of your creative energy thinking about it. Life is too short to spend it frustrated about weight. Let’s just take care of it and move on to other things! I promise you that you can be lean and strong. Our potential is almost limitless and the journey to reach that potential is the best part.

“Success lies in the effort, not the attainment. Full effort is full victory.” -Mahatma Gandhi