Prioritizing Protein

Prioritizing PROTEIN

If your goals are fat loss, muscle gain, energy or longevity ya best bookmark this post and listen up!

You can save yourself a TON of time and wasted effort by prioritizing your protein intake before messing with any other tactic.

WHAT IS IT REALLY?

Proteins are made of amino acids, many of which the body can make itself. However, there are 9 amino acids that are strictly required for normal body function that your body can’t biosynthesize. These are called ESSENTIAL amino acids, and the full 9 can be found from all meat sources.

It’s the core component of muscles, organs, bones, hair, enzymes, and pretty much all other types of tissue in your body (aka super importanttt).

Vegetarians/Vegans: It’s rare to find the full 9 in legumes and grains, so you need to make sure you eat a large variety to get all of them. It's NOT impossible, just harder and you gotta have systems for tracking/assessing intake to avoid common nutrient deficiencies.

5 DOPE THINGS PROTEIN DOES FOR US

Thermic Effect of Food
- We actually BURN calories digesting it
Fat Storage & Fat Release
- Animal based sources of protein are very amino-acid dense (versus beans for example), and cause a greater secretion of glucagon, the "release" hormone
Repairs Skeletal Muscles and Tissue
- Exercise causes damage to muscles and tendons, and protein helps repair it
Addition of Lean Body Mass
- When we tear down our muscles via resistance training, we need to rebuild them - dietary protein is ESSENTIAL to rebuilding and lean body mass is key to body composition & longevity
Satiety aka Hunger Control
- Satiety is basically how 'satisfied' your brain is after eating. Eating is hormonally driven (fat, carbs, & protein all affect hormonal secretion differently) and protein wins when it comes to satiety

WHERE CAN WE GET IT?

Animal-Based

Bison
Ground Beef
Lamb
Chicken Breast
Chicken Thigh
Turkey
Pork Tenderloin
Wild-Caught Salmon
Shrimp
Scallops
Tuna
White Fish (NOT farm-raised)
Eggs
Egg Whites
Greek Yogurt
Cottage Cheese

The higher quality the better. Grass-fed beef is almost COMPLETELY nutritionally different from your conventional sources. Head to your local farmer's markets or google for sources in your area (Burgundy's Local if you're in Dallas).

Plant-Based

Protein + Carb