You’ll find it easier than ever hitting your protein goals with the best protein hack I’ve picked up over the years.
Learn how to calculate your protein intake. You’ll also acquire a greater knowledge of protein’s critical importance to overall health in addition to knowledge on foods high in protein. You’ll never fail to hit your protein intake again.
Struggling Hitting Protein Goals?
If you’re struggling to hit your protein intake, you’re not alone.
My Hitting Protein Goals Struggles
I’d previously struggle to hit my daily protein target on countless occasions, until I found the ultimate protein hack and weaponised it when required. More on this below.
I’d generally be consistent when I planned my meals and used my fitness pal religiously. Hitting my calorie goal was never an issue, falling short of easily hitting protein goals was the major crux. The following scenarios threw me:
- Days out with my family – irrelevant whether summer or winter. There’s a serious correlation with carbs consumed and family days out.
- Evening meals out. I knew overeating was inevitable, so I’d fast all day, attempt to eat protein with my evening meal and would always fall short. It doesn’t help matters that my wife loves carb laden pizza.
- Stressful work days in the office and I’ve forgot to pack a protein fuelled lunch and snack. McDonald’s or the vending machine isn’t particularly protein rich……
I needed to find a solution for days and evenings of this nature and would struggle to hit my protein intake.
Protein Burns More Fat
By ensuring you prioritise protein, you will literally burn more fat. What on earth do I mean? Your body uses calories to digest food. This is known as the thermic effect of food (TEF). To remind you (check out my other articles), carbohydrate contains 4 calories per gram, fat 9 calories per gram and protein 4 calories per gram.
Protein is metabolically expensive and has a high thermic effect. Factoring in a higher TEF, research seems to indicate that proteins real calorie per gram number is more like 3. This could mean that you’re not only staying fuller for longer, but literally burning slightly more calories by hitting your daily protein goal. Protein burns more fat and going higher in protein when in a deficit will likely result in more fat loss.
The importance of Hitting Protein Goals
Before I reveal the best protein hack, we need to understand the importance of protein. Regardless of age or gender, more protein should be on everyone’s to do list. The importance of protein cannot be understated. In addition to the increased TEF benefits above, other reasons to ensure adequate protein benefits (I bet you didn’t know some of these):
1. Protein is the most satiating macronutrient Not only does protein burn more fat, it keeps you fuller for longer and will be a major contributor mitigating any excess calorie intake.
2. Protein is required for muscle mass, strength and preserving muscle during a fat loss phase.
3. Protein is good for your bones, particularly as you age. People who eat more protein tend to maintain better bone mass and have a much lower risk of developing osteoporosis and fractures. Mature ladies, this is of particular importance to you, as following the menopause, protein can mitigate your raised osteoporosis risk.
4. Protein lowers your blood pressure
5. Protein helps to keep weight off. Studies have proven this. One study found that overweight women who ate 30% of their calories from protein lost 11lbs (5kg) in 12 weeks, without intentionally restricting their calories.
Another study put 120 people on a calorie restricted diet for 12 months at different macronutrient ratios. The higher protein group lost 53% more fat than the normal protein group, eating the same number of calories. how cool is that?
6. A higher protein diet can speed up injury repair. this makes perfect sense as it forms the main building blocks of your tissues and organs.
There is clearly every reason in desiring to easily hit your protein intake. A higher protein intake is paramount for us.
Calculating Daily Protein Need
Calculating your daily protein need is simple and based upon your current goals.
If you’re maintaining your weight or looking to gain muscle, you need a minimum of 0.8 grams per lb (if you measure in kilos like me, a lb is a kilo x 2.2) of bodyweight. As a working example, at 75kg I’d be looking to maintain, so 165lbs x 0.8 is 132 grams per day of protein.
If you’re looking to lose fat, you’ll want to keep your protein slightly higher. This is to ensure you’ve the best fighting chance of losing fat vs muscle (protein is muscle sparing).
The recommendation is to eat a gram of protein per goal bodyweight in lbs. Unless you’ve got more than 20lbs to lose, I’d err on the side of caution and eat 1 gram per lb of current bodyweight. That additional thermic effect can’t hurt eh?
No need to go overkill with protein and by following the above advice, you’ll get all that’s required. This will assist with diet adherence, as you can split fat and carbs as you see fit. Again, check out my other articles for more in depth explanations (I will paste links here when published).
Foods High In Protein
Regardless of being a meat eater, vegetarian of vegan, there’s plenty of foods out there to assist you in ensuring you hit your daily protein goal. I will reiterate my previous article comments, use my fitness pal – what gets measured gets done. The below list isn’t exhaustive, but has most good sources of protein covered off and will ensure you prioritise protein.
Complete protein Foods High in Protein
- Eggs
- Milk
- Seafood and fish
- Any meats – lean cuts for low calorie, fattier cuts to hit your fat goals
- Soya
- Cheese – any, cottage cheese is particularly high in protein
- Nuts and seeds
- Beans and pulses
- Tofu and tempeh
- Whey, egg or any plant based protein powder – I’m not a huge supplement fan, but it can get you out of a sticky situation now and again.
Incomplete Protein Foods to Combine
- Bread – particularly Ezekiel bread (4g per slice)
- Rice
- Quinoa
- Spirulina
- Chia seeds
- Hemp seeds
- Seitan
- Edamame
Stick with the above foods and you’ll find it fairly easy to hit your protein goals.
Daily Protein Intake Example
As I’ve explained on numerous occasions, meal frequency is irrelevant when it comes to fat loss. The same is true for protein intake. Years ago there was a myth in existence that the body could only absorb 30 grams of protein at one sitting. This is totally false and providing your following a higher protein diet throughout the day regardless of frequency, it’s enough.
Ensuring you’re hitting your protein goal requires some planning. Putting things into context 130 grams of protein per day is the equivalent of the two daily protein examples below.
- 2 chicken breasts
- 2 slices of wholegrain breast
- One protein shake
- 3 eggs
- A cup of greek yogurt
Or
- 2 eggs
- 2 sticks of string cheese
- 1 chicken breast
- baked potato
- Cottage cheese
- A handful of almonds
- turkey taco’s
The above examples aren’t your total food for the day, but high protein examples to fit into meals. My most basic fat loss advice always points towards calculating calories and prioritising protein. If you struggle to eat large meals, you’ll want to ensure you’re eating protein at every meal in moderate split amounts. I’m a greedy beggar and like large meals, so I eat twice a day.
I find it easier to eat high protein and fat for lunch and my dinner allows me to eat higher carbs/more moderate protein. You must find a rhythm that works for you. When you’re thrown on the odd off day, there’s always…….
The Best Protein Hack: The Protein Chug
As I’ve stipulated, being in a position to easily hit your protein intake does require planning. Whether you’re in a calorie deficit, maintenance or a surplus, you’re following a goal for a reason.
Goals require planning to succeed. Every plan becomes derailed now and again, like my personal examples above. If you plan for derailment you simply won’t fail. Here’s how simple the best protein hack works:
• Keep a high quality protein powder in your home. Whey isolate, concentrate, plant based protein, it doesn’t matter. Don’t skimp on a cheap powder you’ve never heard of. Equally, you don’t need to break the bank with a snazzy sounding bells and whistles protein shake.
• On the days when you’re aware of a potential struggle in hitting your protein, it’s time to bring out the ultimate protein hack….. consume 2 scoops of protein powder with water for breakfast and two scoops for lunch. At around 20-25 grams of protein per scoop, this will net you 80-100 grams of protein effortlessly. it’s only 400-500 calories consumed in total.
You’re free to enjoy that meal out guilt free and what little protein your evening meal contains, you’ve effortless followed a higher protein diet.
• This best protein hack can work if you’ve over done it on bagels (or in my case doughnuts) and carbs early in the day and need a plan to top up your protein.
That’s all there is to the protein chug. I’d like to claim credit, but it’s one of the many diet tips I’ve learned over the years and it serves me well in a pickle. I wouldn’t recommend it on a daily basis, but on those days when all doesn’t go to plan, the ultimate protein hack can get you out of a pinch and ensure your daily protein target is smashed. I’ve been a protein chug convert for many years.
Closing Thoughts
That’s all for now folks. Thanks for reading Hitting Protein Goals: the Best Protein Hack
Prioritising protein and following a high protein diet will contribute hugely not only towards your fat loss goals, but overall health.
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Speak soon,
Matt.