Nuts AREN’T Protein

This has been the topic of discussion this week, with a number of my clients. Many are asking about making more improvements with their body composition. I know what their workouts look like, but I don’t know what they are doing in the kitchen. When we go through their food journals we realize that they are not getting enough protein in their diets.

When I ask can we add a little more protein in your diet, they say oh do you mean nuts or beans, NO I don’t mean nuts or beans. Nuts and beans are great, but they are NOT your best sources of PROTEIN. Yes they contain protein, but they aren’t the quality protein that you will find in lean meats, eggs or fish. Also a small amount of nuts pack a ton of calories. Quick comparison —

• 1 oz. almonds 164 Calories, 6 gram Protein
• 1 oz chicken 47 Calories, 8.8 grams Protein

If you had to add protein to your diet and wanted to lose weight which would choose’

So why do I harp on protein’ Protein is one of the major building blocks of the body, in fact 50% of our bodyweight consists of protein. Here are a few other things to consider why you should make sure your taking in your fair share of protein.

1. Feel fuller longer — when you couple protein with carbs and fats, your body is busy digesting so you feel fuller longer
2. It takes more energy to digest protein than carbs and fats, so you’re keeping your metabolic torch going.
3. Protein helps repair and rebuild muscles.

It’s recommended that the average person take in .8 grams of protein for every kilogram of your body weight. Here is a nice list of protein choices.

• Fish
• Lean beef
• Eggs — whole or whites only
• Chicken — breast or thighs
• Turkey — not the kind from the deli counter, real turkey
• Greek yogurt
• Cottage cheese — have a little fact in it — no fat doesn’t contain enough niacin.

This does not include processed or highly fatty meats — bacon, sausage or deli counter meats.

If you a vegetarian, vegan or someone else who doesn’t eat meat, we can discuss your choices.