I talk a lot about protein. Bars, powders, meat, yogurt, cottage cheese, all sources. And I talk about how it's sometimes hard to get enough. But what is enough and why is it so important?
I stumbled on an excellent article by Dr. John Berardi that you should read if you are curious. You can click here if you are interested in the full article. But I will point out some of his key points I found interesting. And if you consider yourself an athlete, you probably will too.
Here are the questions:
How much protein does an athlete need? How much protein should an athlete consume to improve body composition and athletic performance?
He doesn't actually tell you specifically, because everyone is different. But generally, I find that most places will say either 1 gram per body weight daily or 1 gram per pound of lean body mass. Of course you have to actually use your math skills to figure that out but it's a simple equation. Providing you know a few important numbers, body fat percentage being one of them.
But he does go into quite some depth on the reasons you should be eating MORE protein. He says that most people eat too little protein and then overeat carbs and fat. I believe this is true because in my experience, trying to get more protein in my diet was hard at first, until I got used to it. It's so much easier to grab a carb when you are hungry or rushed for time than a protein. Plain and simple. Upping your protein requires a lot more planning and prepping. Especially when you want your protein to come from a food source instead of a powder. But here's something to think about:
"Since a high protein diet can lead to a better health profile, an increased metabolism, improved body composition and improved training response, why would anyone ever try to limit their protein intake to the bare minimum necessary to stave off malnutrition?" - Dr. John Berardi
It makes sense. Now, my husband for instance, doesn't think he needs to add more protein into his diet. And arguing with him about it is a lost cause. But then again, he doesn't move a whole lot. The extent to his physical activity is mowing the lawn a few times each summer. He's very sedentary. But for someone like me who is extremely active and training hard, and looking to improve my body composition, NOT eating enough protein to support that lifestyle would be just dumb.
So, are you eating enough protein? Do you find you eat mostly carbs? Do you workout? Why do you workout? After having answered those questions, you should read this article.
Because when you do, you'll find out that protein requires 25-30% of the energy it provides just for digestion and absorption (compared to 6-8% for carbs and 2-3% for fats). Also, that when you increase protein and decrease carbs, you'll lower your LDL & triglicerides while increasing HDL. And if you are looking to spare your muscle mass or build new muscle (and I don't know anyone who is ok with losing muscle), adding protein is key.
On a completely different subject, I stumbled across yet another great article I thought was worth sharing. I get frustrated easily when the workout I'm into this second isn't giving me what I expected from it. Therefore, when I'm doing tons and tons of cardio to try to "lean" out and it doesn't work for me, tend to slam cardio as being pretty much the biggest waste of time ever. Aside from being very good for your heart, of course. I also tend to be more gravitated towards weight lifting because it produces results I can see. But truth be told, it's the combination of both that is best. Aesthetically and physically.
That being said, I wanted to give you a chance to read something surprisingly pro-cardio from my blog, just to prove I'm not as close minded and stubborn as I sound sometimes. In this article, he says the main reason we like to hate cardio is so that we can feel better about not doing it. Haha...so true!
I don't hate cardio. I actually enjoy it....in 30 minute increments. It's the hours upon hours upon hours crap I don't buy into. I've never done more than 45 minutes of cardio at a time except for the time I was training for and ran a half marathon. And I'm in pretty damn good shape. So for me, I don't see the need for more than 30-45 minutes of it. I love to break a good sweat and most of the time, unless I'm really busting ass with lots of fast compound movements and little to no rest between circuits, lifting doesn't give me that. So I likes me some good old fashioned heart pumping cardio to get my sweat fix.
Anyway, enjoy the articles!
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