Protein: More Than Plain Chicken and Egg Whites
As many of you are aware, I recently passed my nutrition certification exam, which means I am officially a NASM Certified Nutrition Coach! At the moment, I don’t have plans to offer nutrition coaching as its own program. However, I feel confident that I have the education and knowledge to have more involved discussions about nutrition with those who have general questions! Contact me or sign up for a consultation if you’d like to chat!
About Protein
Protein is one of three macronutrients, along with carbohydrates and fats. I’ve already written about both fats and carbohydrates in the past, mostly to settle common misconceptions and myths. Protein, however, doesn’t receive the same amount of flack as the other macros and is often left alone when people analyze diets and look for changes they should make.
Protein, like carbohydrates, fats, and other organic molecules, is made from carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. However, protein also contains nitrogen as well. Together, these four elements create amino acids. All protein is made from amino acids.
This macro can come from plant or animal sources. We’ll discuss both complete proteins and nutritious sources later in this post!
After protein is eaten, it is broken down into amino acids through digestion, then transported to necessary parts of the body. Often when transported, amino acids are recombined to form new proteins like myosin, hemoglobin, and collagen. They can also come together to form things like lean tissues and muscle.
The Role of Protein
Though protein is often overlooked when we scrutinize our diets, the role it plays in our bodies is too important to ignore!
We can look at carbs and fats as sources of energy, but protein plays a different role in focusing on functional and structural purposes. Unlike carbs and fats, which are stored in parts of the body, proteins are what make the structure of muscles and bones. To use amino acids as energy, the body would have to break down tissue.
Most enzymes are made from proteins as well and are essential for chemical reactions including digestion and metabolism.
Fluid and pH balance relies on regulation with the help of protein. It allows fluid to move between the cells and blood and binds to hydrogen ions and hydroxyl groups to maintain a neutral PH.
Many hormones come from amino acids, including human growth hormone, insulin, and gastrin.
White blood cells, essential for a functioning immune system, rely on protein to fight infections.
This macro serves a number of other functions in the body, but these are just a few to highlight what an important part of the diet protein is!
About Amino Acids
There are 20 amino acids that the human body needs to survive. Of these 20, nine can’t be synthesized. Because these nine amino acids are essential for bodily functions, they are called essential amino acids (EAAs) and must be consumed in the diet. These are histidine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, isoleucine, leucine, and valine. (Don’t worry, there won’t be a quiz on this!).
Most animal sources of protein are complete proteins, meaning they contain all 9 essential amino acids. Soy is a complete protein as well, but many other plant-based sources are considered incomplete because they are missing at least 1 EAA. However, vegans and vegetarians shouldn’t fear! As long as you are consuming a nutritious diet, including a variety of plant-based proteins, it’s likely that you’re getting all the EAAs your body needs.
Sources of Protein:
The USDA doesn’t have a specific recommendation for protein requirement in terms of grams per kilogram of body weight or a percent of calories. Instead, the recommendation is made in terms of servings of protein-rich foods based on daily calorie consumption.
According to the MyPlate visual, it would appear that 20-25% of total daily calories should come from high-protein sources. For a slightly more specific idea of what that might look like, we can chat!
For a more detailed and personalized idea of your specific needs, set up a session with a registered dietitian!
In more general terms, here are some protein-rich foods and their protein content per serving according to Johns Hopkins Medicine:
Lean ground beef: 7 grams per 1 oz.
Chicken: 7 grams per 1 oz.
Salmon: 7 grams per 1 oz
Eggs: 6 grams per egg
Tofu: 3 grams per oz
Lentils: 9 grams per ½ cup
Nonfat greek yogurt: 12-18 grams per 5 ounces
Black beans: 8 grams per ½ cup
There are many other options left out of this table, but these are just a few examples of minimally processed, high-protein foods.
Protein is also pretty filling, so if you find yourself feeling hungry quickly after eating, adding a little bit more protein could increase your satiety!
The Takeaway
Don’t skimp on the protein! Protein is literally what makes our bones and muscles, helps our immune system fight disease and infection, and does so much more!
Rather than focusing on cutting carbohydrates and fats from your diet, include more protein and vegetables. These will increase fullness and satiety while increasing the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients you get from your food!
Remember to eat a variety of protein-rich foods, especially if you are a vegetarian or vegan, to ensure you get all nine essential amino acids.
If you have any general questions, or comments, or want to talk more in-depth on this topic, let me know!
If you’re interested in setting up a specific nutrition or dietary plan, I recommend researching local registered dietitians and finding one who fits your needs!