LEARN 13 REASONS WHY PROTEIN IS SO IMPORTANT IN OUR NORMAL DAILY DIET & WHY IT IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT WHEN LOSING WEIGHT!!
People use protein for many different reasons, in fact most people automatically associate increasing their protein with ending up looking like a ‘body builder or muscle man' which isn't what most people want to achieve. Yes body builders do use protein to the extreme to totally change the look of their bodies and to repair and rebuild their muscles.
However there is a huge proportion of the UK population that don't take in enough protein each day and it's simply because they are totally unaware of how much protein they should be having. For example a 5ft 7" female (reasonably tall) weighing approximately 9 stone (underweight for height if anything) would require a staggering 85g of protein approximately each day!!
Now that doesn't sound a lot I know, but in fact that's the equivalent of eating around 3 average size chicken fillets each day! So break it down again, think along the lines of what most people have for their breakfast:- toast with cereals, yes the milk contains some dairy protein, lunch:- perhaps a sandwich, crisps, piece of fruit and a bar of chocolate seems a pretty average working day lunch. But depending upon what the sandwich contains, maybe Tuna, ham, beef, egg or just salad then this too contains a small amount of protein and for this example lets say the person eats a chicken fillet for their evening meal giving them an extra 25g of animal protein.
In total for the day, they've probably managed to hit around 30-40g of protein for the whole day! Nowhere near the 85g required to keep a 5ft 7" slightly underweight female's body functioning correctly, let alone a male or someone who is overweight. So having insufficient protein during the day will mean that they will constantly be hungry and more than likely start to snack and experience cravings. So you can see why protein shakes are so popular as they provide a quick infusion of protein to the body.
Below are 13 reasons why our body needs the correct amount of protein each day.
1 Not enough protein can lead to cravings for sugar and carbohydrates it can lead to mood swings, depression & a lack of energy in the afternoons.
2 Protein is excellent for fighting off hunger pangs because it increases the feeling of fullness for longer. It actually sends messages to the brain telling the brain that it is full and this feeling fuller for longer helps to prevent people snacking on the wrong foods.
3 Too much animal protein isn't good for the body either, it can cause too much fat, too many calories and higher cholesterol and can have longer term consequences on the bowl, the colon and the kidney. Whereas vegetable/plant protein - ie Soy Protein is extremely kidney, heart, blood and cholesterol friendly and can actually help to reduce cholesterol.
4 Our bodies naturally store carbohydrates which slow down the metabolism, protein helps the body work harder to burn off the carbohydrates which in turn helps to speed up the metabolism.
5 Protein builds lean muscle and reduces body mass. Which when dieting means you lose inches. Think of 1lb of fat sat on a plate and think of 1 lb of lean chicken fillet, they both weigh the same but the area that the fat covers is far larger than the area that the lean chicken takes up. This is what happens when you introduce more protein into your diet when trying to lose weight. Protein helps to build lean muscle.
6 Protein repairs and rebuilds the body.
7 Hair, nails, organs and muscles are all made up of protein and if we don't provide the body with sufficient protein each day then the body will rob it's own muscle mass to get what it needs!
8 Protein stops muscle loss whilst dieting and promotes genuine fat loss which is exactly what you want when losing weight. You want the weight loss to come from the fat stores and not through loss of lean tissue.
9 Soy protein is 100% absorbed by the body which means it's not inflammatory on the digestive system.
10 Protein gives better body shape whilst keeping body bulk.
11 Protein helps to keep weight off once you achieve your target weight.
12 Athletes are well known for using protein to help their bodies recover, repair and rebuild after exercise. Soy protein is the fat free way for them to keep lean and fit.
13 Vegetarians struggle terribly to get their protein intake up and quite often have a carbohydrate loaded diet which is why many vegetarians struggle to lose weight. Soy protein is an excellent way to redress this situation.
