Prospre: Meal Planner
Meal plans based on macros
Prospre: Meal Planner
Meal plans based on macros
Prospre: Meal Planner
Meal plans based on macros, macro tracking, and more
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November 23, 2023
Whether trying to build muscle or simply eating a healthier diet, having a protein-rich diet can offer many benefits. Protein is essential for having the right amount of oxygen in your blood, as well as giving you energy and helping build muscle. In fact, there are over 10,000 proteins that make up your body. However, these 10,000 proteins are all just chains of the same building blocks, amino acids. There are 20 amino acids, which your body uses to create proteins.
Many people trying to build muscle quickly increase their protein content significantly. Not all proteins are created equal, however. For best results, you want high-quality proteins.
In order to be considered a high-quality protein, a food must contain the proper ratios of amino acids to be regarded as a nutritious protein-based meal. Also taken into account is how easily the body can digest it and use it as fuel.
Of the 20 amino acids, there are 9 amino acids which your body cannot create itself, but must instead get them from food. These 9 amino acids are known as the essential amino acids. For a food to be a high quality protein, it must have these 9 proteins in ratios similar to what your body needs.
While most people do not need to worry about the protein quality of the foods in their diet (a varied diet will balance out the amino acids), eating higher quality protein may help to build extra muscle for resistance athletes like bodybuilders or powerlifters. They can also be beneficial to ensure proper protein intake if you are not eating a varied diet with many different protein sources. Here are a few examples of complete protein sources.
One of the best sources of protein you will find is meat. Animal meats contain high amounts of protein, which your body can digest and use appropriately for nutrition. Since humans are also animals, the protein composition of meats are quite similar to what the human body needs. Meat offers other benefits as well, including:
Incorporating several sources of meat into your diet every day offers you multiple benefits in addition to giving you a significant protein boost.
Similar to meat, dairy products are another animal source that is an excellent source of protein. Milk, cheese, yogurt, all of these can give you a good amount of protein. Dairy also offers other health benefits, such as:
Whether it's milk in your bowl of cereal or a bowl of yogurt for a mid-afternoon snack, adding dairy to your diet benefits your health all around.
Fish contains high amounts of protein and is considered one of the healthiest foods on the planet. Some reasons for this include:
As you can see, incorporating fish into your diet can offer you many different health benefits.
Popular and highly versatile, eggs are another high-quality protein source. Some bodybuilders would eat dozens of eggs daily thanks to their high protein quality. In addition, they can be eaten in a variety of different ways. You can scramble them or make an omelet for an excellent breakfast, hard boil some as a snack before or after a workout or add some egg to your dinnertime salad. Make sure to cook them though - besides reducing risk of food poisoning, cooking eggs makes their protein much more digestible.
Eggs have been a part of our diets since the beginning of time and are considered Earth's original superfood. Some other benefits of eggs include:
Eggs are hard to compete with when it comes to natural protein sources. They are high in protein, in addition to offering a variety of other nutrients that are crucial for health.
For those who do not eat meat or dairy products, soy can be an alternative option. Even though it’s a plant, soybeans have a very similar amino acid profile to animal meats. That’s one of the reasons it’s used in vegan meat substitutes like tofu. Foods containing soy can help with the following:
Another animal-free protein source, quinoa, packs quite the punch regarding protein quality. It's also easy to prepare, and you can incorporate it into a variety of savory and sweet dishes. It also has other health benefits, including:
These are all some of the best protein sources. Find a way to incorporate these into your diet to significantly increase your protein levels and take advantage of all the other health benefits these foods offer. Check out our app to find out more.
