How Protein Helps Weight Loss By. Byron J. Richards, Board Certified Clinical Nutritionist. The amount of quality protein in your diet is the single most important calorie that influences your metabolic rate, favorably influencing weight loss.
Quality protein also helps you sustain muscle during weight loss, improve muscle fitness, immunity, and antioxidant function, build HDL cholesterol, and enhance insulin and leptin function – all of which contribute toward optimal weight management efforts over time. How Much Protein Do I Need for Weight Loss? A significant body of scientific evidence indicates that protein levels far higher than our government’s suggested levels of intake are optimal for weight loss. A minimal target amount is three- fourths of your ideal body weight in grams of protein per day, ranging up to three- fourths of your actual weight in grams of protein per day. For example, if you should weigh 1. Since each gram of protein is four calories, this means 4. This is around 3. The FDA bases its guidelines on only one aspect of protein need, nitrogen balance. That’s nice, but nitrogen balance as the only criteria for protein intake ignores the role of protein as a signaling molecule. It ignores the amount of protein needed to preserve muscle during weight loss and facilitate fat burning. Of this fat, the FDA wants to make sure you eat very little satisfying and energy producing saturated fat (2. Protein does your body good. Here, the high protein diet you should be eating if you want to lose weight fast. Live Science's investigation into the best diets for weight loss highlights the best studies and sets out to answer the question of how to eat to lose weight. The 30 Best Proteins for Weight Loss—and The Best Cuts of Meat. You are supposed to round out this diet with 3. Do not snack and do not eat after dinner at night. Eat either two or three meals a day. The heavier your ideal weight and the more active you are, the more calories you can consume. Many Americans are eating 3,0. On top of that, a lot of the calories consumed are poor quality junk, adding insult to injury. If you are quite active then leave protein at 3. If you are not highly active, yet are at an ideal weight, then eat 2. On any diet, eat half your fat grams in saturated fat or you will not feel satisfied and you will have trouble sustaining energy between meals, which will cause you to be tired and eat more carbohydrates. Get two to six grams of omega- 3 essential fatty acids per day (higher amounts for weight loss and cardio health), and try to consume most of the rest of your fat as omega- 9 monounsaturated fat (like olive oil). The following information explains why this works. High Quality Protein for Weight Loss. Protein is made up of various amino acids. In terms of weight loss, scientists are finding that the most important amino acids are the branch chain amino acids, especially leucine. If you get your protein intake high enough, especially in proteins that are rich in leucine, a number of very interesting things happen that can activate a sluggish metabolism and result in weight loss. One easy way to get a lot of leucine, without any fat, is to use high quality whey protein. Casein, a common dairy protein allergen, is not part of whey protein. In this process saturated fat, cholesterol, and lactose are removed, yielding a very useful leucine rich food for metabolic enhancement. The highest sources of leucine containing foods are animal and dairy. If you avoid red meat and dairy products, it is harder to get leucine containing foods in higher amounts, though not impossible. Using whey protein makes it easy. Leucine has a direct signaling effect on muscle that prevents muscle loss during weight loss. This means that on a high protein diet, the weight that is lost is mostly fat, not muscle. Whereas on a high carbohydrate weight loss diet, much more muscle is lost. Leucine directly communicates to insulin, instructing it to work efficiently in muscle. This not only helps preserve muscle mass, but also helps muscles use glucose as fuel, in turn supporting healthy insulin function. This high protein, leucine rich diet invariably lowers blood levels of triglycerides, which helps leptin. A higher protein diet supports HDL formation while lowering triglycerides, a two- pronged benefit that not only helps weight management but also supports a healthier lipid profile for cardiovascular well- being. Layman points out that having a high protein breakfast. Leptin Diet: Eat a breakfast containing protein. This is because carbohydrates are easy- to- use fuels. You prevent your body from converting muscle protein to fuel (blood sugar) by eating higher protein, thus preserving muscle mass. Another great reason to eat a high protein breakfast is that it wakes up your liver and gives it something to do. A high protein breakfast can increase your metabolic rate by 3. Fats and carbohydrates are easy for your liver to use, increasing liver metabolism by only four percent, whereas protein must be taken apart and reassembled for use elsewhere in your body. This dynamic effect of protein has recently been shown to be the key in supporting your natural ability to burn fat at a faster rate. All your body structures, many hormones, a lot of enzymes, and neurotransmitters all require special proteins that your liver must help make. Protein showing up at your liver is like 2- by- 4- inch lumber and plywood showing up at a home construction job site. Individuals with extra weight are often sluggish, and hold extra water. This not only makes their blood pressure go up, as their heart tries to push harder to move the stagnation, but the extra water in connective tissues also gets directly in the way of fat burning. When you eat a higher protein diet then an important blood protein called albumin will increase. As albumin increases, through osmotic force, it draws water back out of your connective tissues, thus helping you get rid of fluid retention. If you have too much inflammation. A major problem of lower protein diets is just the opposite – the more carbohydrates overweight people eat, the more fluids they retain. Researchers compared a lower calorie diet fortified with 6. After a two month program the whey protein group lost on average six more pounds of fat, while dropping total cholesterol by 3. Another study of 9. While this amount of whey protein is significantly below what I would recommend to assist weight loss, the results of the trial were still quite good. During the first six months participants lost 2. In the next six months, on only 1. Further, many key parameters of cardiovascular health and leptin fitness were improved during the study, including decreases in total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, glucose, insulin, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure, while HDL cholesterol increased. Many people involved alternative health are under the false impression that a high protein diet is acid forming, and thus bad for bones. If you fall into this category, the way to metabolize more protein is to gradually increase your intake while you simultaneously improve your fitness. As you build strength, you will be far healthier, your p. H will be better, and you will be able to get the benefits of eating a higher protein diet; for most people, it is simply a matter of increasing protein and reducing carbohydrates. This is one of many important strategies to improve the function of leptin in your metabolism, which is the key to successful weight loss and keeping the weight off once you have lost it. Originally published 1. Best weight loss programs for women. Wondering which are the best weight loss programs for women? Which diets or weight loss solutions can generate the best, the healthiest, the safest and the faster results? There are a plethora of weight loss programs, diets, supplements and weight loss pills circulating the market and we have selected the top 5 that meet our criteria (see below) and that are best suited for women. We have many times provided weight loss tips for women to help them lose weight without engaging into any weight loss program but in this post we are going to examine in detail the weight loss programs that are worth considering. Our Criteria for choosing the best weight loss program for women. To compile our criteria for choosing the best program we have considered the following: The dietary guidelines for Americans – The US government department of health published in 2. Americans. The guide provides advice on the different aspects of weight loss including diet, recommended calorie intake and exercise. The weight loss programs selected below adhere to these standards. Healthy and safe weight loss: We have said many times that our goal is to help you lose weight in a healthy and safe way. We do not like crash diets, fad diets, suspicious products or anything that does not promote healthy and permanent weight loss. A program that works and can be followed by the majority of women: Many weight loss solutions can generate results but not for the average women. They can work for celebrities or fit women but not for women of all ages and body type. Our goal was to present you with programs that you can follow and above all programs that will generate the results YOU want. Both men and women have weight problems but in general women are more anxious to lose weight. We wanted the programs to be . The recommendations are provided by the dietary guidelines for Americans. Daily calorie intake. Women between the ages of 2. Women between the ages of 2. Women over 5. 0: 1,6. Food group distribution. Fat: 2. 0%- 3. 5%Carbohydrates: 4. Protein: 1. 0%- 3. Top weight loss programs for women. In order of importance, these are the top 5 weight loss programs for women that in our opinion are worth considering. Mediterranean diet. The Mediterranean diet is not just another commercial diet but it is a lifestyle that promotes healthy eating and healthy living. It is a natural weight loss program that was nominated by UNESCO as the world’s healthiest diet. The Mediterranean diet is a mixture of the cultures and dietary preferences of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean basin and hence this is from where it got its name. Adherence of the Mediterranean diet to the dietary guidelines for Americans. The Mediterranean diet is a balanced diet and it is in accordance with the dietary guidelines. In fact most of the guidelines suggested are based on Mediterranean diet principles and the majority of the recommended foods are taken from the Mediterranean diet food pyramid. The endorsed distribution of fat, protein and carbohydrates for a healthy diet is: Fat: 2. Protein: 1. 0- 3. Carbohydrates: 5. The Mediterranean diet adheres perfectly to these standards and the food components that make up med diet make it a heart friendly diet. Healthy and safe. The Mediterranean diet is above all a healthy and safe diet. It is a statistical fact that people who live in the Mediterranean basin (Greeks, Italians etc.) live longer and have less incidents of cancer and cardiovascular diseases than Americans. It is not a restrictive diet and can be safely followed by men and women of all ages. A program that works and can be followed by the majority of women: The vast selection of food choices available in med diet makes it a perfect choice for women. Med diet gives more emphasis to fruits and vegetables, olive oil, legumes, fish, whole grains and less emphasis to red meat, processed food and other fatty and non- natural products. Since our goal is weight loss we should take into account that to lose weight you need to consume fewer calories than what you need. The Mediterranean diet does a good job in this aspect as well since the average calories in each meal are around 1. The recommended daily intake for women between 2. So, a daily intake of around 1. Unlike the Mediterranean diet, the 1. This means that the sole purpose of the 1. It is not a lifestyle but it has a beginning and an end. Dr Moreno, the diet author, suggests that with calorie cycling you aid your metabolism and keep away boredom while dieting. In brief the different phases of the 1. Phase 1 – “The accelerate cycle”: At the first stage you are allowed to consume protein type foods in unlimited quantities and small amounts of fat provided that you daily calorie intake is around 1. This is the stage where you will experience fast weight loss. Phase 2 – “The activate cycle”: You decrease the amount of fat and increase the amount of carbs. Typical calorie intake is 1. Phase 3- “The achieve cycle”: You are allowed to eat almost any type of food but in moderation. Phase 4- “The arrive cycle”: This is the maintenance part where you are supposed to watch your weight and follow phases 1- 3 when in problem. Adherence of the 1. Americans. The 1. Phases 1 and 2 are not according to standards but phase 3 is a rather balanced phase. We have selected this diet to be part of our best weight loss programs for women because many women want fast results in a short period of time and phases 1 and 2 can give you the results you want in 3. The tricky part is to keep the weight off when you are entering phases 3 and 4 and this is where you need discipline. The 1. 20. 0 calorie diet plan introduced in phase 1 is the minimum you can go and since it is only for 2 weeks there are no serious implications. We have also presented our 1. Healthy and safe. Although going as low as 1. Phases 2 and 3 are according to safety guidelines and the overall instructions provided in the 1. The calorie cycling is indeed a way to kick start your metabolism and since each phase is only 1. A program that works and can be followed by the majority of women: You can get results by following this program provided that you do it correctly and by the book. What many women like about this diet is the fact that is has a clear start and end points. You know from advance that you will enter a diet for 6. After that period you evaluate your results and decide the way forward. We did research into various forums and read the experiences of people who followed this diet and most of them did manage to lose weight and most importantly they manage to keep the weight off. Those that failed to do so did not follow the complete set of instructions but they tried a hybrid diet which at the end made them fail. Dukan Diet. We first came across the Dukan Diet right after the media around the world . This world’s interest drove our curiosity to find out more about the Dukan diet and we decided to include it as one of the top 5 weight loss programs for women. The Dukan diet is a . It is not an open diet where you choose what to eat (provided that you are within a certain calorie range) but it is a . In brief the 4 stages of the Dukan Diet are: Preparation Phase – get ready by eating only protein type foods. Weight Loss Phase – eat protein and fiber and lose weight. Protective Phase – start eating foods from carbs, fats and protein and watch your weight. Maintenance phase – Eat healthy foods from all food groups. The 2nd phase does not have a specific timeframe but it all depends on the amount of weight you want to lose. Adherence of the Dukan diet to the dietary guidelines for Americans. As with the 1. 7 day diet the first 2 phases of the Dukan Diet do not fully comply with the suggested standards because they restrict certain food items from your daily diet and promote low calorie meals which are sometimes below the average. The 3rd and 4th stage though is according to standards and best practices. The list of healthy foods suggested by the Dukan Diet has the same characteristics as the foods suggested in the dietary guidelines. Healthy and safe. It can become unhealthy if you over do it. Restricting food groups from your diet for a long time is not healthy or recommended. If on the other hand you follow phase 1 and 2 for a reasonable amount of time (a couple of weeks) then you minimize the possible dangers. A program that works and can be followed by the majority of women: The Dukan Diet worked for Kate Middleton and many other celebrities and it can work for you as well. It needs some preparation work to ensure that you have in stock the foods items you are allowed to eat but if you are really determined to lose weight using the Dukan diet then certainly you can do it. Slim- fast weight loss program. The slim- fast diet is something like an . This gives you the opportunity to consume up to 5. It is based on a 1. Adherence of the slim- fast diet to the dietary guidelines for Americans. Since most of the meals and snacks are ready made products by slim- fast, they ensured that the daily intake of fats, protein and carbs is in accordance to the dietary guidelines. In numbers the distribution of fats, protein and carbs from slim- fast products is 2. Their products also provide satisfactory doses of minerals and vitamins. Healthy and safe. It is a healthy and safe diet to follow. Their products are not considered as supplements but as balanced food items which are both healthy and safe to consume. There are also associated with positive effects on insulin and blood sugar levels. A program that works and can be followed by the majority of women: If you follow the slim- fast program by the book it will work. There is no way out since the major meals are composed of slim- fast products that guarantee the amount of calories you consume. Now, there are both advantages and disadvantages to this approach. First it is costly because you will have to order all those slim- fast products and second there is a chance that you will get bored quickly and quit.
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