Hippocrates Swore By It

To use myself as an example, I weigh 173 lbs. and have 10 percent body fat, which means my lean body weight is just under 156 lbs. Using the above formula, my protein requirement is about 77 grams a day, although I typically don’t go over 70 grams as for most of us, it is better to actually have less than more protein. I use a nutrition calculator to enter everything I eat and carefully calculate my protein requirement to the gram. I think it’s that important.

If you eat packaged foods, the number of grams of protein per serving is listed on the package. For whole foods, 3 oz. of most meats will provide about 20 to 25 grams of protein. A 4-oz. hamburger, which is processed, has about 20 grams of protein, while typical lunch meats have about 5 grams per slice.

One egg has about 6 grams of protein and a cup of milk (not typically recommended) has about 8 grams. Seeds and nuts contain on average 4 to 8 grams of protein per quarter cup, and most vegetables contain about 1 to 2 grams of protein per ounce.

Interestingly, while fish is typically considered a good source of protein, most fish contain only HALF of the protein found in beef and chicken and can be a good alternative if you tend to eat too much protein. (Just beware of the contamination risks. Wild-caught Alaskan salmon and smaller fish like sardines and anchovies are healthy options less likely to be contaminated with mercury and other environmental toxins.)

Choosing a High-Quality Whey Protein

If you want to supplement your diet with whey protein products, be mindful of your selection. Many of the whey and protein powders on the market are pasteurized and loaded with sugar and chemicals that don’t belong in a healthy diet. To ensure you’re getting a high-quality product, be sure your whey protein supplement has the following features:

• The whey comes from organically raised, grass-fed raw cows’ milk (to ensure the whey is free of GMOs, pesticides and hormones)
• Cold processed, as heat destroys whey’s fragile molecular structure
• Whey protein concentrate, not protein isolates
• Sweetened naturally, not artificially, and low in carbohydrates
• Highly digestible — look for medium-chain fatty acids (MCTs), not long-chain fatty acids

High-quality whey protein is an excellent source of important nutrients, including protein, leucine, CLA, and glutathione — all of which can help boost muscle growth, body repair and weight loss, and much more. To learn more about how whey protein can boost your exercise performance when used as a post-workout recovery meal, please see this previous article, or check out my previous interview with fitness expert Ori Hofmekler.

Sources and References

• ¹ Nutrition Journal July 22, 2009; 8:34
• ² International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders 2004 Oct;28(10):1283-90
• ³ Authority Nutrition May 2016, Protein Shakes
• ⁴ American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2005 Jul;82(1):41-8
• ⁵ J Nutr Biochem. 2010 Mar; 21(3): 171–179.
• ⁶ Obesity Research 2001 Feb;9(2):129-34
• ⁷ Journal of Nutrition 2000 Oct;130(10):2471-7
• ⁸ Journal of Nutrition 2002 Mar;132(3):450-5.
• ⁹ Physiological Genomics 2006 Nov 27;27(3):282-94
• ¹⁰ American Journal of Clinical Nutrition June 2004: 79(6); 1118-1125
• ¹¹ Authority Nutrition May 2016, CLA

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