Alright folks I am super stoked to write this blog post about PROTEIN! Easily my favorite macronutrient. I would like to mention – this is the first time I am citing sources in a very, very long time. This is something I will continuously improve upon considering I will be returning to school next week (this summer flew by!) but please forgive my poor citing abilities as I am likely a bit rusty. Just wanted to make sure that I was giving the credit where it is due, it just may not be perfect. Maybe one day when I am a super baller evidence-based fitness nutritionist I will be much more fluent :P.

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Well first, let’s take a moment to define “Macronutrient” or “Macro(s)” for short.
A macronutrient is a nutrient that the body requires in large amounts (Berardi & Andrews, et al., 2018, p. 42). Or in other words, proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Almost everything that we consume is made up of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.

Our food is also composed of other nutrient compounds as well, including micronutrients, phytochemicals, and zoochemicals. These are all broken down into small compounds via our digestive processes. But we can talk about these at another time.

Ultimately, our body breaks down macronutrients within our body as potential energy sources; our cells use these compounds as energy by breaking down the chemical bonds between macros (Berardi & Andrews, et al., 2018, p. 42).

Why are they so important? Well if you didn’t consume macronutrients, you wouldn’t be consuming the appropriate nutrients that your body needs to not only keep the lights on, but for important processes like building muscle and organ tissues, the production of hormones, immune system function and support, dictation of body composition, and overall cellular and metabolic function!

So protein – most of us are fairly familiar with what protein is. But in my experience with coaching, I receive specific feedback that it is sometimes quite difficult to hit daily protein goals! My goal with this blog post is to provide a basic understanding of why protein is important, how much protein someone should consume daily based on research, and what sources you can utilize so that you can hit those numbers daily!

WHY IS PROTEIN IMPORTANT?
It is necessary to build/rebuild muscle tissues, blood, organ tissues like intestinal cells, skeletal & connective tissues like bones, ligaments & cartilage, neurotransmitters, hormones, enzymes, immune system chemicals, and cellular transport proteins (Berardi & Andrews, et al., 2018, p. 212).  Very generally, during digestive processes, our consumed protein sources are then broken down into smaller units called peptides and amino acids! These are then absorbed via our intestinal cells and used and distributed by the liver throughout the body as they are needed.

There are 3 different categories for amino acids: 12 non-essential aminos that we make within our bodies, 8 essential aminos that cannot be made within the body and that we MUST retrieve from our foods, and conditionally essential aminos that are only possibly necessary in supplemented doses during times of sickness or stress. For example, I supplemented with additional glutamine to help aid the repair of my gut and intestinal tissues. Glutamine is a non-essential amino acid, so it is synthesized within our bodies. However, supplementing it can provide additional support to your body, like when you are trying to heal your tum 🙂

The good news is, many foods that are available to us contain some sort of protein! So it shouldn’t be so hard to hit our protein goals right? We would hope so but unfortunately many people don’t know how much protein they should be consuming with each meal or on a daily basis.

Here are a few general recommendations from various sources:

It would be good to understand that the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of 0.8g per kilogram of body weight is for generally healthy, and mainly sedentary adults. However this might not be optimal for those who are active via resistance and endurance training or involved with labor intensive work of some sort, due to the nature of muscle tissue breakdown and rebuilding during these types of activities.

Dr. Layne Norton and Peter Baker recommend that for individuals in a non-deficit caloric intake between the ages 0-30 years should be consuming approximately 1.8-2.0g of protein per kilogram of lean body mass (not including fat mass). Subsequently, those in the same age group that are in a caloric deficit should increase their protein intake to 2.2g-2.4g per kilogram of lean body mass (Norton and Baker, 2018. p. 49). Unfortunately as we age, we face the effects of sarcopenia, which is the loss of muscle tissue naturally as we age.  Dr. Layne Norton interprets current data that to combat the effects of sarcopenia as we age, that we should increase our protein intake by 1.5% for each year after the age of 30 (Norton and Baker, 2018. p. 49 & Katsanos & Kobayashi, et al,. 2006).

You may also be familiar with #GymBroScience, where 1-2g of protein per body weight pound is gospel. Generally I use this rule for myself and those I work with for ease (not everyone is going to know exactly how much lean body mass vs. fat mass they have), however I have seen that setting protein goals via this rule can be difficult for some people to attain. If we follow this rule, it could be difficult to increase protein intake as we age by the recommended percentage noted above, or for those who are morbidly obese. If a person is 300lbs and already struggles with their eating habits, 300g of protein per day will not be sustainable long term, or at all for that matter. Interestingly enough,  I also find that this is feedback can also be true for middle-aged men and women. Typically when I consult an individual who is age 40 or older, it is almost always consistent that there is a lack of consistent appetite, less than optimal caloric intake, and that their intake is composed of mostly carbohydrates. I don’t know yet if there are studies on this, this is just purely from my own observation.

Perhaps all of this might be a bit complicated and tough to follow. The RDA for protein intake per meal would be to consume 20-30g of protein per meal, assuming you are eating 3-4 meals daily. This might be much easier to actualize. 4oz of most protein sources fall right in the middle of this threshold, which just also so happens to be equivalent to the size of your open palm. Precision Nutrition recommends 2 palms of protein for most men and 1 palm of protein for most women. You can find that infographic here!

I think it would also be appropriate to consider your personal preferences as well. I remember the last time I was on contest prep, my body weight was fairly low around 120lbs and I was following the 1g of protein per body weight pound. 120g of protein for me was simply not enough. Currently, I am approximately 130lbs, and consume about 140-150g of protein daily. I like eating more than 4oz of protein at each meal, but also consume my protein sources with vegetables that provide protein content as well.

So now you have a very broad and general understanding of how much protein you should be personally consuming in your own diet. How do you get it? I think that sometimes the struggle with protein intake has to do with unfamiliarity with protein food sources and preparation of those sources!

To help illustrate this a bit more, I’ve provided my Macronutrient Exchange List that I give to all of my clients with their programs below. It is important to know that protein sources are not limited to this list & this would obviously also not be what I provide a vegetarian or vegan client either – you will find vegetarian/vegan sources of protein like beans & legumes under “Carbohydrate Sources” but I will save that for another day. Other options for veggie people would include sources like tofu, tempeh, edamame, and vegan protein supplements. Although I personally do not prefer a vegetarian focused diet, I do work with a few folks who are and we are able to achieve their protein goal via plant-based & soy-based protein sources. It is also possible to pick up stray protein from certain vegetables and tubers like broccoli and potatoes! 

For those of us who are willing and able to consume animal protein sources, this is what I provide. General consensus is that most people don’t seem to realize what a wide variety of protein sources we have available to us! Take a nice hard look at the butcher or seafood counter next time you stroll through the grocery store!

I personally enjoy consuming beef as my main source of protein, as well as a bone broth protein supplement. I will occasionally incorporate eggs and bacon as well. If you follow me on Instagram, you will find that I post my recipes on my story, which mostly consists of me throwing all of my ingredients in a pan and stir frying with salt and sriracha sauce :P.

For my gut dysbiosis/SIBO/IBS etc. folks – this macro should be relatively SAFE for you (FINALLY RIGHT lol). Unless you are a vegetarian/vegan seeking your protein from possible high FODMAP foods or vegan supplement sources (which can be quite irritating on a healing gut), most animal protein sources should be okay with your digestion. I have seen beef be a bit troublesome before, but more so the ground beef sources and not necessarily whole cuts. Either way, I do recommend supplementing HCL and a digestive enzyme during the healing process. Gut hydrochloric acid (HCL) and pepsin are secreted during digestion by the cells of the stomach. With someone who is struggling with optimal digestion and nutrient absorption, it would make sense to supplement during the healing process for a little added support, as these functions may not be as optimal as they can be. I personally use Solaray’s HCL with Pepsin as well as Garden of Life Ω-Zyme (Omega Zyme) Ultra when I need a little maintenance.

Perhaps it would be appropriate to start posting some of my recipes on this blog as well to help those who might struggle with the food prep part. So stay tuned for that – I can show you how I personally meal prep, weigh/measure, and track my food! Eating “healthy”, or really just eating real food doesn’t have to suck and it is my mission to teach people how to eat high quality food and still enjoy what is on their plate. Just be careful because you’ll get a lot pickier with where you eat out based on the quality of food served 😛 true fact.

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PHEW – popped a molly I’m sweatin’.
I think that pretty much sums it all up for today. This was by far the most difficult blog post that I have written yet!

I hope this helped some of you understand a bit more about protein and how you can get it into your daily diet! Vegetarian & vegan friends – I know that you guys are super self-sufficient, but if anyone needs and/or wants more information regarding macro and calorie information on veggie sources of protein please let me know, as you are part of this important conversation as well! I would be more than happy to provide that additional information if you would like it.

Thanks so much for reading – let me know what you guys think! (Sorry if my citations suck. I really tried :P)

Berardi J., Andrews R., St. Pierre B., Scott-Dixon K., Kollias H., Deputter C., (2018). The essentials of sport and exercise nutrition (3rd Ed.). Toronto, Ontario: Precision Nutrition, Inc.

Norton L, Baker, P. (2018). Where to start: Macros. In The complete contest prep guide. (1st Ed., pp. 49).

Katsanos CS1, Kobayashi H, Sheffield-Moore M, Aarsland A, Wolfe RR. (2006). A high proportion of leucine is required for optimal stimulation of the rate of muscle protein synthesis by essential amino acids in the elderly. American Journal of Physiology. Endocrinology and Metabolism. Aug;291(2):E381-7. doi: 10.1152/ajpendo.00488.2005