When it comes to eating healthy, fats, carbohydrates and sugar tend to get a lot of the attention. But the truth is that eating healthy comes down to a lot more focus on the positive foods that you want to be eating than it does on solely cutting out the bad foods. Protein, for example, is an often misunderstood component of a healthy diet. When you are trying to lose weight, eating lean protein sources is essential to helping you achieve your weight loss goal.
Protein is the building block of the body. When you are trying to lose weight, protein helps to provide your body with what it needs to generate muscle growth, which can help you achieve that toned and trim look that you are going for as you focus on exercising and eating right.
As it is, many people get their protein from sources that are high in fat, and when it comes time to lose weight those foods are often some of the first to be cut from the diet plan. But when you want to lose weight, you need to make sure that you are adequately replacing your protein intake with healthy sources of the important nutrient—and not just enough to prevent a deficiency, but enough to make a positive impact on your diet and health.
There are plenty of reasons to focus on incorporating more protein into your weight loss diet plan, such as:
- Protein helps with appetite management, helping to control hunger and therefore helping you to cut down on calories as you are trying to lose weight.
- Protein improves your body’s ability to form muscle, and increased muscle mass means improved strength. Protein is what helps your muscles achieve that toned look.
- Protein helps to preserve bone strength, helping to prevent you from injury and bone decomposition with age.
- A diet rich in protein is found to improve your metabolic functioning, meaning that you will burn calories faster and more efficiently.
- Protein can lower your blood pressure, helping to keep your heart healthy as you lose weight.
There are plenty of healthy ways that you can add more protein to your weight loss dietary plan. Lean protein sources like chicken and turkey are a great way to naturally incorporate protein into your dinners, and Ideal Protein shakes can give you a boost earlier in the day too. Before making any changes to your diet plan make sure that you check in with your weight loss coach.
