Do I Really Need All That Protein?

You've seen the protein ads - massive muscled bodies, shining with paint on tan, in skimpy bathing costumes...all claiming that you too can look like this with a protein shake and a workout. There's a whole lot of hard work that goes into competitive bodybuilding, and that's not just on the weight bench. Muscle building nutrition is a science in itself - nutrients for optimal growth, nutrients for intense workout recovery, and nutrients to prevent and repair injury.

The foundation nutrient is of course, protein. All the other add-ons are to help the protein be assimilated and strengthen the signals to the muscle to grow. But for those of you like me that just want to maintain a strong, attractive physique, the body building regime is not what we are after. So just what type of protein should we be consuming, when and how much? This article helps answer that question.

What Is Protein?

Protein is the foundation structure of all of your organs, nerves, hormones, muscles, antibodies, and enzymes. Its assimilation into the body is aided by a number of vitamins and minerals.

Protein is made up building blocks called amino acids. There are 22 different amino acids, that combine in numerous ways, to form the thousands of different proteins found in your body. Of these 22 amino acids, eight cannot be made by your body from other nutrients. These eight are referred to as 'Essential Amino Acids' and must be obtained from food.

Animal Foods - such as eggs, fish, chicken, red meat, and dairy contain all eight essential amino acids.

Plant Foods - no single plant food contains all eight essential amino acids; you must eat a variety of plant foods such as vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds, grains, and
even fruit.

How To Add Protein To Your Diet

To obtain the right balance of proteins, there are many food options. Each option has its benefits and drawbacks, but the following is a useful guide:

Animal Protein

The best source of animal protein is from organic animal foods. These are best eaten raw, lightly cooked, or braised in broth or water. High cooking temperatures can change the molecular structure of the protein and fat, making it harmful to your body.

Animal foods are best eaten with a large serving of vegetables. Cooked animal foods contain higher levels of free radicals than plant foods. Vegetables contain a high level of natural antioxidants, which help protect your body against some of the free radicals. Also, the fibre in the vegetables helps prevent constipation and endogenous toxaemia. Avoid luncheon meats and bacon. These are generally preserved with nitrites or nitrates, which have been closely linked to many different types of cancer, particularly in the digestive tract, bladder, and lungs.

Also avoid charcoal grilled meats; these contain chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons which are known to induce cancer in animals.

Plant Based Proteins

Beans, nuts, seeds, and grains should be soaked in water for at least a few hours, preferably overnight, before eating or preparing to eat. This helps deactivate compounds in these foods that are known to cause mineral deficiencies and digestive disturbances.

Always chew these food groups until liquid to make it easier for stomach acids to break the protein down into amino acids, making them them available to your blood stream via your small intestine. Chewing well also decreases the potential for food-allergic reactions.

Processed Protein Supplements

Avoid isolated protein products, usually made from soy, egg whites, whey, and casein. These isolated protein products are typically made with high-temperature processes that can make the protein unusable by the body, and can even be harmful. Protein isolates are found in many health food bars, energy bars, muscle-building supplements, and dietary shakes.

Instead, look for protein supplements that have been manufactured using

How Much Protein Is Required?

In general terms, a good guide is to take you body weight in pounds, half it to get the number of grams of protein required per day. As an example - a woman weighing 126 pounds would require 63 grams of protein per day.

If you exercise, you need more protein to help build muscle and replenish and maintain your cells, but keep to the maximums above.

There is a test you can use to monitor how well your body is responding to the amount of protein you are eating. This is called a blood urea nitrogen (BUN) test. When you eat protein, your body breaks it down into amino acids that contain nitrogen. Nitrogen separates from amino acids and combines with other molecules to form urea. This is filtered from your blood by the kidneys and excreted from your body in urine. The test measures the amount of urea in your your urine.