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Yes, Eating More Protein Can Help You Lose Fat & Build Muscle — Here's How
Too often, New Year's resolutions to lose weight are synonymous with restriction. But despite what toxic diet culture would lead you to believe, enjoying more of certain foods will encourage not only weight loss but better metabolic health overall. One such example is foods high in protein. Here's why this building-block macronutrient can help you achieve a stronger, healthier body in the year ahead.
Protein for fat loss & weight management
Compared to other macronutrients like fat and carbs, protein tends to be more satiating1 and satisfying. It also requires more energy to digest2 than the other macros; you burn more calories breaking down a piece of chicken than a plate of pasta. At the same time, protein encourages muscle growth when paired with strength training, meaning a higher-protein diet can reduce fat mass while preserving lean body mass3 (i.e., supporting a healthy body composition).
According to a 2020 review of clinical trials4 that lasted 6-12 months, a high-protein diet can support healthy weight loss and help prevent weight regain after weight loss. This is due in part to its effect on our hunger hormones. High-protein diets seem to increase anorexigenic (fullness) hormone levels while decreasing orexigenic (hunger) hormone levels.
"Protein is super, super important if you're trying to lose body fat," Stacy Sims, Ph.D., an exercise physiologist and nutrition scientist, explained on a recent episode of the mindbodygreen podcast.
And it may be even more crucial for women: Sims points to research that found5 that sedentary women who increased their protein intake from 0.6-0.8 gram to 1.8 grams per kilogram per day experienced significant fat reduction in just 12 weeks.
How much protein do I need?
How to boost your protein intake in the new year
Filling your plate with more high-quality protein is a healthy (and delicious) resolution to set for the year ahead. One easy way to do so is to build all of your meals and snacks around a protein-rich ingredient. Pair your protein with plenty of vegetables, complex carbs, whole grains, and legumes to further fuel your muscles and metabolic health.
Supplements like protein powders make meeting your daily protein goals even easier. You can add them to foods like yogurt and oatmeal to further bump up their protein content, use them to build a protein-rich morning smoothie, or simply drink them with water for a quick protein fix after a workout or on-the-go.
Whey protein, in particular, has been shown to increase levels of satiety-boosting hormones and decrease appetite6, increasing satiety and fullness7 more than other types of protein powders.*
Of course, the quality of your protein powder makes a big difference. You'll want to find one that is low in sugars and artificial additives that will spike blood sugar and derail your weight loss goals over time. Look for a clean option like mindbodygreen's new grass-fed whey protein isolate+.
Each serving contains 25 grams of whey protein and 2.5 grams of leucine—an amino acid that is essential for muscle protein synthesis (the creation of new muscle). Proteins that contain less than 2.5 grams of leucine are not as effective at triggering essential muscle pathways, potentially making them less beneficial for body composition. The whey protein isolate in our supplement contains more protein and less fat per serving than the whey protein concentrate you'll find in other supplements, making it a better option for supporting a healthy body composition. With 3 grams of added sugars in the vanilla variety and 0 grams of added sugar in the chocolate variety, it's the perfect companion for muscle health, satiety, and blood sugar control.*
The takeaway
Research suggests that high-protein diets can be effective for healthy fat loss. Aim to get at least 100 grams of protein a day this year through a combination of high-protein foods and supplements.*
7 Sources
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18469287/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15466943/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4892287/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32699189/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32513334/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6412413/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24801369/
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