The one you actually eat.
Have a wonderful day…
JUST KIDDING
It really should be that short though!!
Because often my biggest struggle as a coach is getting athletes who want to lose weight, change body composition, or just get jacked 6 ways from Sunday, is getting people to just eat protein.
Eating too many carbs? Eat more protein, you won’t be as hungry for the carbs.
Don’t know what to eat? Eat protein then figure out the rest.
Wanna build muscle while losing fat? High protein diets sure do the trick.
So, my answer when people ask me “what protein should I eat?” That’s my answer, the one they will eat.
But, I know this isn’t a satisfactory answer to most! So, here is my Buzzfeed style breakdown to help everyone out!
Best Vegan Source of Protein:
Pea/Rice Protein Supplements and Legumes
Now I’m not one for suggesting supplements as a main source of protein, but with a vegan diet it is a tough world for protein. Yes legumes have them. Nuts have them. And they are making Vegan meat substitutes, but they all are heavily weighed down with another macro (sodium for those substitutes and fat for the rest except for legumes).
The problem is, that it is incredibly hard to eat enough to put on a ton of muscle. So, supplementing tends to be necessary in my experience with Vegan athletes to break through a plateau.
Best Vegetarian Source of Protein:
Eggs, Milk, Whey Protein, and Cheese
While I suggest whey protein here, it is supposed to play a much more minor roll. Usually on days where your diet isn’t as catered to on vacation or with long days at work.
Milk and Dairy products where the ratio of protein is greater than the fat is an awesome thing to throw in on top of a strong protein rich vegan diet. Basically get your protein in first with things like cottage cheese, feta, and milk then fill in the rest with a ton of protein rich vegetables and you’re cooking with gas there my friend.
Best Pescetarian Source of Protein:
Low Mercury Fish (Salmon is the champ here) as well as those little sea bugs (Scallops and Shrimp).
As you can tell, this list is building based off of how restrictive the diet is towards protein. Pescetarians should have enough access to protein rich foods that getting it through Whole Foods shouldn’t be an issue AT ALL. (Check the stats on Scallops. 29gs of protein per serving there my friend).
The danger here is what is a high mercury fish (as in you don’t wanna put your liver and kidneys through too much in your life): Tuna is the most common watch out fish here.
Best Protein For Everyone Else
Chicken. Bison. Beef Sirloin. Turkey.
Chicken is cheap, lean, and plentiful. If you’re a college student on a bulk, this is your friend till the end.
Basically the name of the game here is to try to mix it up and include the protein for the other lists but use your advantage in freedom of choice to access easier to find protein sources.
Protein is a tough game. But, through consistent practices that you can find in this blog post (How Much Protein Is Enough) and choosing these protein sources, you’re gonna be crushing the protein game in no time.
TLDR?
Read those nutrition labels. The higher protein is compared to the rest, the better. Don’t make your whole diet tuna.
To talk with a coach today, click the link found HERE to schedule your No Sweat Intro