How Can A High-Protein, Low-Calorie Diet Help With Weight Loss?

Protein is important for good health, and nobody would tell you otherwise — you need protein for everything from healthy blood to healthy connective tissue, hair, and enzymes. If you've heard the message that most Americans and people living in other developed nations naturally get more than enough from a regular, not really well-planned out diet, though, you're not alone. You may instead be trying to get your fruits, vegetables, and lean meats in, thinking that eating healthy foods keeps you healthy enough without really being aware of what you're eating down to the last gram. 

People who either enter the worlds of athletics of weight loss may be exposed to entirely different schools of thought, on the other hand, suddenly being told that packing in more protein would really help them achieve their respective goals. They may even get the advice to start supplementing with protein shakes! 

How much protein do you really need in a day? 

You're not going to be sure without a little work, because the recommended daily allowance depends on how much you weigh. More specifically, you're going to want to get at least 0.8 grams of protein a day for every kilo of weight you have on you. You can calculate the amount yourself, or you can go to the USDA's dietary reference intake calculator, which will also give you all sorts of other useful information. For me, at my current weight, the recommendation is 44 grams of protein a day. To make it easier for you to find out yours, the USDA calculator is the first link you'll find in the "links" box below. 

Remember that the recommended daily allowance isn't a maximum, but a minimum! Research suggests that it's desirable to get 16 to 25 percent of your total daily calories from protein, and many weight loss experts will even recommend 30 percent. 

These apps and sites are awesome guides when it comes to weight loss, but they can also do much more — and you may be surprised what you find out once you really know what you're eating every day. I, for instance, am currently nearly done losing 10 kilos. I am vegetarian. Prior to my weight loss efforts, I ate what I wanted, when I wanted it. I bought into two messages that turned out to be wrong for me. "Almost everyone gets ample protein through their natural diet", and, as vegetarians often like to say, "a vegetarian diet isn't deficient in protein, and we don't need to do anything special to get the amount we need". 

Yeah, so, I was not getting nearly the amount of protein I needed. And there I was, wondering why I was hungry all the time, as well as grumpy, tired, and ill a bit more often than I'd like. Upping my protein didn't just help me lose weight, but also did wonders for my general health. As a result, I feel so much better. Your story may be entirely different, but if you're not keeping track of exactly what you eat and drink, you're not going to get the full picture. 

Why might increasing your protein intake help you lose weight?

For two basic reasons:

• Protein will help you feel fuller for longer. This curbs the kinds of empty-carb cravings that will lead to binges that definitely interfere with your weight loss efforts!
• Eating also burns calories, because your body has to process all that stuff. Eating protein burns more calories than eating other types of food. 

Simple, but important!

Where are you going to get your protein?

You can get your protein from lean meats, chicken, turkey, and fish of all kinds. If you're vegetarian but not vegan or just like variety, eggs are another good source, and while dairy will help, it doesn't actually contain that much protein. Nuts, which contain lots and lots of calories, are an excellent but overlooked source of not just protein but healthy fats, too. Tofu, beans, and legumes are another nice choice. You want to add as much variety to your diet as you can, and that includes protein sources. 

Many people will be quick to say that whey protein powder — classed as a supplement — isn't as good as more natural sources of protein, but its effects have been pretty well-studied and choosing to add whey powder to your diet is a pretty valid choice. You're not going to want to get all your protein from it, but choosing, for instance, to have a shake made up of soy milk, some frozen fruit, some avocado, and some spinach combined with whey powder to your diet will help you get the amount of protein you need in an easy way.