8 Easy Ways to Add Protein to your Diet

Protein is essential for your health. For that reason, nutritionists recommend that you consume the bodybuilding nutrient daily. If you’re a weight lifter, you’ll undoubtedly have to consume vast amounts of protein.

But for everyone else, eating about 50 grams of protein per day will give you all you need to stay healthy in the long haul. But wait for a minute. How do you know you’re consuming the right amount of protein? When should you consume it? We’ve got the answers below.

Protein Sources

• Lean meat from beef, poultry and fish
• Whole eggs
• Dairy foods
• Legumes like beans and peas
• Soups
• Nuts

Any meal containing the items mentioned above contains protein. The amount of each product you take depends on the time of the day and your objectives. For example, bodybuilders might want to consume significant cuts. But if you’re on a weight loss journey, you’ll want to keep your portions small.

With that in mind, below is an overview of different protein sources, the amount of protein they give you and when best to consume them.

Hard-Boiled Eggs

One hard-boiled egg provides 13 grams of protein. So, adding them to your breakfast or mid-morning salad gives you up to 26 grams. What’s more, they give a feeling of satiety, which keeps you away from unhealthy snacks.

It takes 6-7 minutes to boil eggs after the water reaches a boiling point. However, experts think it’s best to cook a lot of them and stock them in your fridge so that they are easy to access.

Take up the Paleo Diet

You can’t live on a diet of protein-containing foods alone. But you can thrive through the Paleo diet, which reduces carb intake and replaces with protein plus greens and fibre foods. For the uninitiated, this diet imitates what hunters and gatherers used to consume hundreds of years ago.

That means the paleo lacks processed foods, vegetable oils, dairy products, soft drinks, sugar and even grains. Instead, it has legumes, vegetables, fruits, seeds, healthy fats, nuts, eggs and meat.

Of course, you don’t have to eat like our ancestors 100%. You can eat healthy grains and dairies, and all other non-carb products considered healthy by scientists. Consult Paleo meal delivery services to discover more about what you should eat. In fact, you can order prepped meals and save the hassle of finding the right recipes.

Increase your Peanut Butter Intake

If you spread a spoon of peanut, but over your slice of bread every morning, there’s a way to increase your protein intake. Wait for it—spread two or three spoons of the delicious butter. Not only will you increase your consumption from 7 to 14 or 21 grams of protein, but you’ll also get its other benefits.

Peanut butter allegedly helps prevent heart diseases, gallstones, diabetes and lower the risk of cancer. It also helps prevent Alzheimer’s disease. For these reasons, there’s absolutely no reason why you shouldn’t consume more peanut butter.

Power up your Legumes

A cup of legumes contains more proteins than a spoon of peanut butter or one egg. Soybeans, for example, provide 31.2 grams of protein per cut. Lentils give you 17.9 grams, whereas kidney beans consist of 16.2 grams. Peas contain just 5.23 grams of protein per cup, three times less than pinto, black and navy beans.

The beauty of legumes, though, is that they have zero percent saturated fat. Instead, they give you high doses of fibre and starch. So, if you want to increase your protein intake and still lose weight, they are an excellent source of protein.

Snack on Dairies

As we mentioned, dairy products are an excellent source of protein. If you’re trying to add muscles to your body, consider replacing your snacks with some dairies. Cheese is a great example. An ounce of cheese offers seven grams of protein, five grams more than the same amount of chips.

Alternatively, consider taking a blend of nuts with dairies. For example, you can have cashews and gouda or almonds alongside white cheddar. Some people also create smoothies or salads that mix fruit and veggies with dairies.

Although fruits are delicious and healthy, they rank behind nuts when it comes to proteins. An ounce of almonds contains up to six grams of protein. With the addition of cheddar, you now have up to 15 grams of protein from your snack.

Choose the Right Powder

There’s a reason why bodybuilders love power shakes so much. It’s one of the most effective ways to increase protein intake without eating insane amounts of food. Think about this. A spoon of 25 grams gives you the same amount of protein as four ounces of meat.

What’s more, your body absorbs powder much faster than it takes to break down beef or legumes. So, if you’re in an urgent need to power up your protein intake, taking powder might be an ideal option.

Crucially, know your powder type. If you’re vegetarian, consider getting vegetarian powder shakes. Similarly, know the difference between whey and casein protein. Both come from milk but have different effects on your body.

Sea Foods, Beef and Poultry

Seafood, beef and poultry are distinct sources of protein. Unless you grew up in a vegan home, there’s a chance you’ve eaten meat more times than you can remember. But what’s the right amount of meat?

On average, you should consume 50-55 grams of protein daily. An ounce of beef gives you seven grams of protein. You receive the same amount of bodybuilding blocks from fish, skinned poultry, mutton and pork.

With that in mind, it’s safe to eat three to four ounces per serving. You’ll consume significantly more meat than the average person, hence getting more protein. However, you probably don’t want to rely on meat alone for your protein.

Instead, you can consume beef twice or thrice a week and alternate it with eggs, legumes, powder shakes or dairies. That way, you get the best of every source of protein.