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PROTEIN, AND HOW TO EAT MORE OF IT

By Chelsea Futterman

When clients come to me asking for nutrition advice, one of the first things I tell them to do is to drink more water. But, the second thing I tell them to do, is to increase their protein intake. Most people think they are eating enough protein but in reality they are not. Regardless of your goals, you should be coming roughly .8g to 1g of protein per pound of lean muscle (give or take depending on your goals). I challenge my clients to track their protein intake for a week via MyFitness Pal (or some other food diary) to see where they are in regards to these numbers. The majority of the time, they come back to me with a much lower level of daily protein intake than they thought. 

We all know or have heard how important protein is for your health & fitness goal (and if you are unsure why, and want more info on that, click here). However, protein can be the most challenging macronutrient to consume or get adequate amounts of when compared to carbohydrates & fats. It is not hard to eat carbs (think vegetables, fruit, rice, sweet potatoes, ice cream, cookies….ok, maybe not the last two). Nor is it hard to eat fat (cooking oils, nuts, peanut butter, avocado, cheese, etc). But protein, protein can be challenging especially if the sight of ground beef makes you want to puke or you hate the smell of fish or maybe you are a vegan or vegetarian (and if that is the case, this post is not for you!) 

So, here I give you my top 5 tips on ways to get more protein into your diet on a daily basis: 

  1. Plain non-fat greek yogurt. Add in a teaspoon of honey or a few berries for a touch of sweetness. Sometimes, I will even mix in a chocolate protein powder & make a delicious chocolate protein pudding out of it. 
  2. Cottage Cheese. I love to eat it plain with a little pepper, but it is also great with fruit. 
  3. HEB In-House Roasted Deli Meat. I eat it plain or roll it up with some avocado or crunchy vegetables like bell peppers & cucumbers. 
  4. Beef Jerky. 
  5. Egg whites. I eat 2 whole eggs everyday, but I add in at least ½ cup of egg whites into my scramble for more volume & protein. 

Protein comes in all forms, but just know that often times these protein sources have other macronutrients as well.