NUTRITION BASICS PART 1.3: EAT PROTEIN DENSE FOODS WITH EACH MEAL

NUTRITION BASICS PART 1.3: EAT PROTEIN DENSE FOODS WITH EACH MEAL 

By: John Stull, NSCA-CPT, Pn1, FMSC

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."

-Aristotle 

Below we are going to visit a key habit to a healthy life style, eating protein with each meal. Before we get into this next habit, let us be reminded of why habits are important. 

"It’s sometimes a painful process. It’s a change that has to be motivated by a higher purpose, by the willingness to subordinate what you think you want now for what you want later. But this process produces happiness, “the object and design of our existence.” Happiness can be defined, in a part at least, as the fruit of the desire and ability to sacrifice what we want now for what we want eventually."

- Stephen Covey, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Breaking bad habits and implementing new or better habits is no easy task. But as we know, nothing worth having ever came easy. Stephen Covey said it best, "sacrifice what we want now for what we want eventually." This follows the principle of delayed gratification. If we always give in to our immediate impulses and desires, if we do not think forward, the things we want most, the things we know take time and effort, will never come to fruition. But if we can say no to the drive through when we are starving, get to the grocery store, and make it home to cook, then we make it one step closer to making our health and fitness goals a reality. Delaying our gratification once or twice a week just does not cut it though, to make lasting habits that stay with us, we have to take that same perfect step, over and over and over and over until that step no longer has to be intentional, eventually that perfect step comes natural!

Be intentional with the habit of eating protein at each meal and you will be well on your way to having to body composition you desire.
Why eat protein dense foods with each meal?

• Protein offers the building blocks necessary for tissue growth and repair. In fact Protein is the only macro nutrient that has the ability to do this.

• Protein keeps you more full for a longer period of time. So when protein is the staple of your meals, you will eat less often and you will need smaller portions to be satisfied.

• Protein promotes lean muscle mass and the more lean mass we have, the higher our metabolisms stay.

What does protein do for performance?

• Protein improves athletic performance and strength.

• Protein promotes strong tendons in order to reduce injury and faster recovery from hard workouts. The faster we recover, the sooner we can get back to our workouts and the faster we make progress towards our goals.

What does protein do for our over all health?

• Improves bone density and reduces risk of osteoporosis

• Improves brain function

• Promotes better sleep

• Lowers blood pressure

• Increases life span and quality of life.

Here are some examples of protein dense foods;

• lean meats such as beef, chicken, turkey, bison, venison

• fish such as tuna, cod, salmon, (wild caught is always the safest and best tasting)

• eggs

• beans, legumes, peas, tofu, tempe

• Protein supplements

1. milk-based: whey, casein, milk protein blends

1. plant-based: pea, hemp, rice, so

To ensure that you get enough protein in your diet, try to each at least a palm sized portion of protein 3-4 times a day. This can vary depending on your body type, gender, goals, etc. Another fun fact that motivates us to eat protein with each meal is that when starchy carbohydrates, (potatos, pasta, grains, etc) are consumed without protein, they primarily get stored as fat rather that viable energy in our muscles.
So if you want to fast track your health and fitness to achieving the best you possible, eating protein dense food with each meal is a necessary habit to implement in your every day nutrition.

For more information, recipes, supplements or health tips, please visit ***livelauralees.com***