Proteins are often referred to as the ‘building blocks of life’ and considering it is involved in nearly every body function, you can understand why.
Protein is essential for all the hard work the body puts into building and repairing itself. Your muscles, skin, hair, nails, organs and bones are all made up of protein. Along with fats and carbohydrates, protein is a ‘macronutrient’, which means the body needs large amounts of it to function at optimal levels.
How much protein you need varies drastically from one individual to the next. We found this helpful online calculator to help you work out how much protein is enough. Once you have worked out how much your body requires you can then look at quality sources of protein to suit your lifestyle.
Vegan Sources Include – beans, lentils, artichokes, green beans, soy, quinoa, nuts, seeds, tempeh, spinach, broccoli, spirulina, tahini, nutritional yeast, chickpeas.
Vegetarian Sources include – eggs, cheese, yoghurts + all the vegan sources
Meat Sources Include – fish, chicken, red meat, turkey + all the vegan and vegetarian sources
Goal for the week – Get the right amount of quality protein throughout the day.
Having a diet rich in quality protein will help you maintain your bodies natural energy levels, keep you feeling satisfied for longer, help with those post workout aches and pains, reduced cravings, you may find it easier to loose weight, better brain function and bone density, faster recovery from injury and a better nights sleep.
This is a very helpful and informative article on protein and why we need it. I do appreciate your sharing this.