How to Use Protein for Faster Weight Loss

Low carb diets are not the healthiest way to lose weight, but they do get something right.  They get you to eat more protein.  While it’s not a good idea to drastically cut your carb intake, it’s very beneficial to increase your protein intake.  In fact, adding more protein to your diet can help you lose the weight faster than cutting calories alone. 

Protein can actually increase your metabolism, allowing you to burn calories at a faster rate.  The more calories you burn, the more weight you lose.  Also, protein helps to stop muscle loss caused by losing weight.  While you may want to drop the pounds, you want to lose fat and not muscle.  Getting enough protein in your diet will help you burn fat instead of muscle during your workouts.  It will also supply you with the necessary amino acids to recover and build more muscle.

Another great benefit of protein is the ability to keep you fuller longer.  It can be hard to restrict your calories when you feel hungry all of the time.  Since it takes longer for protein to be processed by your body than carbs, you will stay full much longer after having a meal with protein.  This will help you avoid mid afternoon cravings or bingeing at your next meal. 

Of course, you don’t want to eat just any protein.  You want to pick choices that are going to provide other nutrition besides protein.  Unlike the recommendation of low carb diets, you don’t want your protein choices to be high in fat.  Some great sources of protein are fish, lean meats, eggs, low fat dairy products like yogurt and cheese, beans, nuts, soy, and tofu.  These are all sources you can incorporate into your meal plans.  If you want protein on the go, you can mix up a whey protein shake or even grab a protein bar.  Some protein bars are high in calories, so you might keep this in mind before you make them an everyday snack.

While the source of protein is important, the amount of protein you get each day is as well.  There is not an exact science to the amount of protein a person should have, but a good rule of thumb is 1 gram of protein per 1lb of lean body mass.  If you do a lot of working out, you may want to increase the amount to 1.5 grams per 1lb.  Once you add the protein in your diet you can adjust it as needed.  If you notice your weight loss has hit a plateau, you can increase the protein.  If you start to gain fat, you’ll want to cut the protein back.  It will just be trial and error until you find the amount that’s right for you.  

A high protein diet can really help you with your weight loss efforts.  It’s best combined with a lower calorie diet.  While the protein is very important, make sure you don’t leave out other important food groups like carbs and fruits and vegetables.  It’s also important for you to get enough healthy fat in your diet if you want to be healthy while you lose weight.  You should see fast weight loss results by following a high protein diet.