For the next two weeks, I challenge you to eat a source of lean protein with every main meal.
The word protein means ‘of prime importance’ – and protein is certainly important to health. Its high thermic effect helps boost the metabolism, building lean muscle tissue and reducing body fat to make us look better.
Despite it being a key nutrient for optimal body composition, many people are drastically undereating protein. High protein diets have occasionally grabbed the headlines for being unhealthy, but the research never holds up. This habit will show you the benefits of a higher protein diet, and how much you actually need.
How can I personalise this habit?
Choose which sources of protein you would like to eat, and in what quantities. If you never eat protein with meals, then start with a small portion per meal. If you are used to eating a higher protein diet, then focus on increasing your consistency to eating the recommended portion sizes each meal. The important thing to remember is to include a protein source with each meal you eat.
The role of protein is essential to health and has one major role and that is to repair and rebuild all living tissue and cells within the body. So, this means that muscles, tendons, bones, skin and even the production of hormones are down to the protein within the diet.
Protein has a large satiety effect; in that it takes the stomach and the digestive system longer to breakdown to get it into the system. This often refers more to animal-based protein sources rather than plant based as they require the body to work harder to break down and absorb.
Not all protein is created equal.
The quality of a protein source comes down to the quantity of the essential amino acids, namely 9 in total which are essential for the body in growth and repair as the only way to obtain them is through the diet.
A complete protein contains all 9 essential amino acids and is commonly seen in animal and dairy products.
An incomplete protein does not contain all the essential amino acids and so this is commonly seen in plant-based protein sources. Plant based also are not absorbed as well by the body so not all of the protein value from these foods is utilised by the body.
This explains why animal proteins (meat and dairy) are so important in our diets, and why they top the list for highest protein content.
Buy the highest quality protein sources you can afford. Not only will you get better quality protein, but more protein as a result. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for!
Today I want you to pause for a moment to remember your intention for this habit, your deeper reason for doing it.
Protein is that macronutrient that the body cannot survive without, the formation and repair of muscle tissue, the regulation of your immune system, the production of enzymes and hormones as well as part of cell repair.
Protein absorption is a calorie burner, this is called the TEF, thermic effect of food as the body can use up to 5% of its daily calories by just breaking down and absorbing protein.
So if weight loss is one of your aims and objectives consuming more protein to encourage the body to work harder to break down those proteins is a winner for you.
Staying on track at the weekend can be hard as many things are going on in our lives. If you can focus on this fact and continue with your habit you will get a greater reward in the long run.
Knowing that there might be an obstacle in our way at some point will allow us to know its there and deal with it without too much of an issue.
Staying focused is the habit and remember habit is repetition.
There are a ton of other reasons why protein is so important in our daily diets.
Let me give you the whole picture and a gentle reminder. For instance, one of proteins primary function is essentially for tissue growth and maintenance, as they provide the building materials (amino acids) for growth and repair. That makes them vital for forming skin, nails, hair, bones, organs, tendons and of course muscles.
But protein also plays a regulatory role in the body, managing enzymes, hormones, antibodies, fluid balance and nutrient transportation.
Lastly, if the body really needs to, it can use protein to provide the calories it requires to meet the body’s energy needs. Protein has a ton of important functions outside of just making your muscles look good.
You are laying the foundations to incredible results.
Keep up the great work and enjoy your weekend!
As a good rule guide about a palm size piece of protein should be consumed at every meal to give you optimal returns for your health. For most of us this equates to about 20 grams of protein.
So what does 20 grams of protein look like, follow the link below to give you some handy ideas.
Remember the high protein Ebook too, there are lots of great recipes to help you reach your protein target.
When you complete the habit today, take a minute to reflect on the past week or so of doing the habit.
What has it actually been like, as opposed to the fantasy you had about it before you started?
What have you learned?
What do you appreciate?
What obstacles have come up, and are there ways to overcome them for next week?
Consider writing a short journal entry about these reflections, to solidify your learning.
Treat habit formation as a learning process, to learn about yourself, your mind, mindfulness, resistance and more.
If all went well last week, and you did not struggle or skip the habit for more than a day, I recommend that you lengthen the habit this week.
If you have struggled, keep it the same as last week or make it even easier.
For example, if you have just been eating an exceedingly small amount of protein with each meal, then try increasing the amount this week.
Or if you have struggled with eating protein at a certain meal, put extra focus this week on getting it right. Never make too big an adjustment so that it becomes too difficult.
This slow change process of expanding the habit a little at a time helps overcome the resistance of the mind to change and discomfort.
Each step is not difficult, so your mind doesn’t rebel much. Gradually the habit becomes your new normal and you can expand a bit more, pushing your comfort zone a little at a time.
During the phase of a calorie reduced eating plan the role of protein has a greater importance and helps to ensure that we are not losing lean muscle mass. The key role of a calorie deficit is to allow the body to lose body fat and not muscle mass.
The lean muscle mass we carry helps us burn calories at a greater rate even when the body is at rest, hence why a higher protein intake ensures that this stays in place.
Protein also has a greater thermic effect on the body in take we use more calories absorbing and digesting the food itself, this process takes longer and allows us to feel fuller for longer too, giving that satiety effect.
Dietary protein can and will reduce hunger between meals, for example a 20g whey protein shake as a snack has been shown to reduce foods consumed at that subsequent meal.
Protein increases the hormone leptin which makes us feel full, while reducing the hormone ghrelin which makes you feel hungry.
The consumption of fats and carbs in the diet allow the system to be topped up whenever they are consumed. Protein is not like that and so once consumed it is not until 3-4 hours later that we need to restock on protein.
This happens because of what is called ‘the muscle full hypothesis’ effect and that once topped up we have to wait for the empty signal to go off before we need to top the system back up, hence the 3-4 hours window in consuming protein.
So, continue to reinforce your new habit and make yourself accountable for the process.
It is a good idea to take a look at what is going on in your life – do you have a big work project, a lot of stress, travel, illness, family crisis, busy-ness with your family or friends?
Are you overwhelmed or stressed out?
Any one or more of these factors can cause you to have low drive for creating new habits and messing up on habits in this case does not reflect on your discipline levels.
So, let’s set you up to win this weekend and achieve your habit with ease.
How and when will you do the habit this weekend?
We are almost at the end of the ‘Eat lean protein with every meal’ habit challenge.
As you prepare to move onto the next habit challenge, you will want to put this current habit into ‘habit maintenance mode.’
This is a way of continuing it with less of a focus. By now, the habit should start to become more automatic if you have been a little consistent. You do not need reminders to start the habit, and it’s feeling a bit easier, more part of your ‘normal.’
So, as you begin to move your focus to the next habit challenge, all you want to do is not forget about this habit. You do not need to keep track of it every day if things are going well.
But every few days, pause and reflect on this habit and check in to see that everything is still going well.
Maybe once a week, use one of our Sunday reflection sessions to assess whether you have any obstacles around this habit, need to adjust, learned anything new.
Over the last two weeks you have completed the ‘Eat lean protein with every meal’ habit challenge – nice work!
Today, take a minute after practicing your habit to reflect again on the past week of doing the habit.
What has the habit been like and how have you done?
What have you learned?
What parts or how much of this habit will you continue to do?
Consider writing a short journal entry about these reflections, to solidify your learning.
Treat habit formation as a learning process, to learn about yourself, your mind, mindfulness, resistance and more.
Remember the power and importance of protein in your new healthy lifestyle.