Best Protein Foods & Timing for Weight Loss and Health
If you’ve ever asked how much protein do you need to gain muscle or lose weight, is there a thing to protein timing and what are the best protein foods for your goals, then you’ve come to the right place! This is your complete guide to the best protein sources and protein timing for both muscle growth and fat loss.
I am going to start this by saying something a bit controversial; it will be easier to optimize your protein intake by eating animal products. While you can get enough protein with a vegetarian or vegan diet, it takes a lot more work, especially if weight loss or weight management is a priority. Keep reading to learn why I feel animal products provide the highest quality protein, the best plant protein sources, how much protein you want to eat in a day and when to eat it for both muscle gain and weight loss.
What are the best protein-rich foods for muscle gain and weight loss?
People think that protein is just one thing, but it’s actually made from a variety of amino acids that form a chain. There are 20 amino acids in total and 9 of them are essential, which means we must get them from our diet as our body cannot create them. Each of these amino acids has an important role in our body and none of them are interchangeable. Different protein sources are made from different amino acids, in differing amounts.
When you think of eating protein, it’s important to consider your goals and the quality of the protein. If you want to gain muscle, support fat loss, build your body’s tissues and organs and optimize your health, you need to focus on eating the 9 essential amino acids we find inside of protein. Because we can only get those from our diet, and that is what leads to muscle protein synthesis and whole body protein synthesis. Our body can produce the non-essential amino acids if we consume enough total protein.
Feeling overwhelmed? Do not worry, this is actually quite easy!
Here are a few questions to ask when determining if a protein source is the best one for you:
1. Is it a complete protein?
Not all proteins are made equal; they contain different amino acids in varying amounts. Each amino acid has a critical role in our body, and they are not interchangeable. Certain combinations will stimulate more protein synthesis than another source. A complete protein contains all 9 essential amino acids. Animal products like meat, dairy, eggs and fish provide all of the essential amino acids in the right ratio to stimulate protein synthesis. A few plant based proteins do as well; quinoa, buckwheat, chia, soy and hemp seeds. But we also have to take into consideration how our body processes these proteins.
2. Can my body actually access and use the amino acids from this protein source?
Remember, our body uses amino acids not the protein as a whole. A protein is considered to be highly bioavailable if we can easily break it down, absorb it and use the amino acids. The most bioavailable protein sources are whey, egg whites, fish and meat. But even if these are the most bioavailable it doesn’t mean that they are the best sources for you. Animal sources tend to be highly digestible and bioavailable, while plant sources can be harder to digest and absorb, making them a less effective way to obtain the protein you need. It’s not that you cannot use the protein from plant sources, but you will need to consume higher amounts to get adequate protein to trigger protein synthesis. Which brings us to our final question…
3. How calorie dense is the protein? And how much will it take to get what we need?
Plant sources also come with carbohydrates and fat, while we can get a high amount of protein with very little fat and zero carbs from a lot of animal sources. We need 30 grams of protein in one sitting, with 2.5 grams of leucine, to stimulate muscle protein synthesis. We can get this from 3oz of steak or any cut of beef, but it would take between 4-6 cups of quinoa to get adequate leucine, which is a difference of about 1000 calories. So if weight management or fat loss is a priority for you, sourcing your protein from only plants will add a bit more of a challenge.
Plant-based proteins vs animal proteins
I have tried many different diets throughout my life. I adopted a low-protein vegetarian diet at the age of 8. This eventually transitioned to a vegan diet. Twenty years later, I was constantly getting sick, getting out of bed was a struggle, I had regular breakouts, I was gaining weight and my digestion was a mess. Part of it was that I was eating foods that didn’t work for my body, but part of it was that I was malnourished. It took me a few years of more experimenting, but once I started prioritizing protein and plants, my body transformed. I mean no disrespect to vegetarian or vegan diets. I understand that these diets are often adopted for ethical and religious reasons, and there should be a conversation around sustainable farming practices that benefit our earth and the animals. These diets can also be used as a therapeutic intervention for a short period of time. While I do feel that people can thrive on these diets, it will be a lot harder. And I simply didn’t put in the required work. It takes a great amount of understanding and planning, and it’s easier to get what you need from chicken, steak or fish. Meat is one of the most nutrient-dense foods we can find; it provides fat-soluble and B vitamins, minerals like selenium, zinc and iron that are critical for our thyroid, immune health and for energy, plus all 9 essential amino acids.
How to get enough protein on a plant based diet
You can create complete proteins by eating ‘complementary proteins’. For example, by combining grains and legumes, you will get all 9 essential amino acids needed for muscle protein synthesis. In addition to that, you can consume the complete plant proteins listed above. If you eat eggs and dairy, that will also provide complete protein sources. If weight management is important to you, you will need to be more conscious when planning out your meals to ensure you’re still eating within your caloric needs. And be aware of how you feel digestively, if eating certain plant-based proteins causes a lot of bloating and gas, you are likely not breaking down these foods effectively.
I also recommend adding in BCAAs or EAAs to ensure you are getting adequate essential amino acids. Supplementing with creatine will also support muscle, cognitive function and performance. Another animal sourced nutrient that is important for our health is collagen . If you do not eat animal products, adding in a quality omega 3 fatty acid supplement and a B12 vitamin is important. And I recommend getting regular bloodwork to check for common deficiencies including vitamins B12, D3 and iron.
How much protein do you need in a day to optimize your health?
Most of us are unaware of how much protein we actually eat. And the amount of protein we eat, and when we eat it, matters if we want to feel and look our best. Men and women have the same requirements; what impacts our needs are factors like age, ideal body weight, illness, injury and our goals.
The majority of us are not eating enough protein. This could be in part because the RDA for protein is 0.8g per kilogram (or 0.37g per pound) of body weight. This is not the optimal amount for health, rather the minimum amount needed to prevent deficiencies. This amount is insufficient for the elderly, to maintain lean body mass for anyone eating in a caloric deficit (ie in a fat loss phase), to build muscle and for satiety.
Gabrielle Lyon, the founder of Muscle Centric Medicine, suggests eating 0.7 grams to 1 gram of high quality protein per pound of ideal body weight if you want to age well, have control over your weight and feel your best. This works out to roughly 30-50 grams of protein, per meal, for most people. She recommends not exceeding 250 grams per day. I have found that a minimum daily target of 1 gram of protein per pound of ideal body weight works best for myself and for my clients.
The one exception to this is for individuals who have kidney damage who need to restrict their protein intake. Otherwise, there is no evidence showing that a high protein diet has a negative impact on our kidney function.
Individuals who will want to aim for the higher end of this range for protein intake include:
Those are injured, sick or have a chronic inflammatory condition as this increases our needs in order to rebuild and protect the body
Those who want to gain muscle
Older populations
Vegetarians or vegans
Note on Collagen
While collagen has many benefits for our health, stimulating muscle growth is not one of them. For this reason, I recommend adding collagen in addition to your daily target. Collagen is not a complete protein but it does have 3 important non-essential amino acids that are excellent for improving joint, gut, hair, skin and nail health. Read more about collagen here.
How much protein and protein timing for weight loss and muscle gain
Priority one is to eat adequate protein within a day. And your second priority is to consume at least 30g of protein within about 30 minutes if you want to gain or maintain muscle. This amount allows the level of leucine in our blood to reach 2.5g which is the amount needed to trigger muscle protein synthesis (MPS). Leucine is an amino acid we get from protein sources like meat, eggs, dairy and tofu. I’m not telling you to set a timer and race to eat your lunch, rather don’t make the mistake of sipping on your protein shake throughout the day if your goal is to grow muscle. Depending on your goals and size, you may consume more. You will see the maximum benefits with around 30-50g of protein in a sitting .
If you are under the age of 30 and healthy:
You can get away with less protein and timing doesn’t matter as much. It’s probably ideal to still aim for these targets. You will reach your peak bone mass between the ages 25-30 and consuming an optimal amount of protein will support this, helping to set you up for an easier and slower aging process.
If you are 30 years old or older:
In this phase of life, if you don’t prioritize protein and strength training, you will likely start to lose energy, gain fat and start to see muscle loss. This is because our protein needs increase.
Why do we need more protein as we age?
Your muscle becomes less responsive to protein. Our anabolic (growth) hormones help to stimulate MPS; so as our testosterone, estrogen and other hormones start to decline in our 40s, we have to overcome that by eating more protein.
Your body cannot break protein down as easily because your stomach acid production decreases. We rely on our stomach acid to break down protein into the amino acids we absorb and use.
Protein timing
Protein at Breakfast
So many of us opt for a muffin or a bagel for breakfast, but having an optimal amount of protein for your first meal of the day is a priority for everyone who wants to live a quality life. If you start your day with 30-50g of protein, it will set you up with more balanced blood sugar and satiate you. This means you’ll have more energy, less cravings, you’ll have more control over your hunger, it’ll support your sleep that night and it will make it easier to hit the total protein amount that will help you to maintain and build muscle.
Protein at Lunch
Lunch (or your middle meal) is not as important in terms of nailing that 30g target. But I look at it like this; it becomes harder and harder to build muscle so why not take advantage of every opportunity we have? Plus this will help to ensure we have a smooth curve in our blood sugar which has a huge impact on our health.
Protein at Dinner
Having a protein-rich dinner is important for muscle maintenance and growth because our muscle can start to break down as we fast overnight. This also supports balanced blood sugar, and in turn, a higher quality sleep.
Protein Timing to Optimize Training
If you are older or obese, aim to have at least 30g of protein shortly after training. You will have more blood flow which primes the body to take up the nutrients needed to trigger MPS. This becomes more important for these populations, because low-grade inflammation blunts MPS so this helps to offset that. Outside of these populations, there is not a rush to get in your protein shake within an hour of training, despite what you may have heard. What matters the most is your total daily protein and secondly, how much you are having at a sitting. And if you want to do everything you can to optimize muscle growth, there may be an advantage to training between two protein-rich meals within a 4-6 hour window.
Protein Timing for Building Muscle
If your main goal is to build muscle, then consider having 30-40g of protein every 3-4 hours throughout the day, up to your optimal daily target. Adding in a quality essential amino acid supplement can help to achieve this without disrupting digestion and blood sugar.
More Protein Resources
Have more protein-related questions? Check out the following resources to learn why protein is important for your weight loss, digestion and hormonal balance, how to easily hit your protein targets and for high protein recipes!
The Benefits of Collagen, EAAs and Glutamine
