No , this isn’t a sales pitch for the hottest “fad” diet plan telling you to only eat eggs and cottage cheese to lose weight ! It is, however, going to reveal how protein and weight loss go together and the best choices you should be making to enhance your weight loss efforts.
Without getting to technical , let me talk a little about protein. It’s made up of amino acids, known as “the building blocks of protein.” Your body can make some of the amino acids, but the rest must come from your diet . Protein plays an important role in your diet, just like carbs and fats do. Without protein you body simply couldn’t function . With more than 10,000 proteins in the human body, it’s vital that you restore your supply every day . Necessary for bulding and repairing muscles, getting the right amount of protein while you’re toning and sculpting those muscles is absolutely necessary .
Protein and Weight Loss: How It Works
What makes protein effective for losing weight ? Your body digests protein slower which gives you a natural boost in your metabolism. Scientists have found that one of the amino acids, in particular leucine, can help speed up your metabolism resulting in weight loss.
Typically when you’re on a weight loss diet you tend to lose muscle mass. Leucine helps prevent this which means that you’ll be more likely to lose fat, not muscle.
It has also been shown that protein secretes a hormone that signals your brain you are full, helping you eat less . And, you’ll feel full longer. In addition , your blood sugar won’t spike like it does from eating carbs because of the slower rate of digestion .
Eating more protein also helps lose water weight, since it acts as a natural diuretic .
It is believed that it is easier to maintain ongoing weight loss while on a higher protein diet than a high carb diet. High carb dieters are more likely to get “stuck” and be unable to continue losing weight than those getting more high quality protein.
Beginning your day with a high protein breakfast also gets your liver going , which, in turn, boosts your metabolism and even keeps the fire stoked for as long as 12 hours.
Eating protein every 3-4 hours will keep your energy up and beat your cravings down . It’s also best to have smaller protein portions throughout the day rather than eating too much at dinner, since too much protein at one time can still end up being stored as fat .
A protein quick tip : eat a small protein snack before going out to dinner or a party and you’ll be much less likely to pig out on all the “bad” choices calling to you .
What Are Good Protein Choices ?
You should opt for “complete” proteins at each meal. These are the proteins that come from animal sources — eggs, milk and meats. You want to be selective when choosing meats — many contain too much fat. Instead you should pick lean red meat, chicken breast, turkey breast, pork tenderloin etc.
Other excellent choices are eggs. If you prefer to reduce the calories and fat you can substitute egg whites, as these are nearly pure protein. You can find a lot of fantastic recipes for egg white omelettes!
Fish is also a complete protein source like tuna, salmon and shellfish. Non-fat and low fat dairy (cottage cheese is a high leucine food) as well as whey protein powders are also good choices for complete proteins .
Even though protein and weight loss sounds like a weight loss quick fix , don’t forsake all other food choices ! The best weight loss methods combine a sensible combination of protein, carbs and fats for a well balanced diet .