Protein does everything – build, repair, oxygenate, digest, and regulate. Are you getting enough protein in your diet? While you may watch the intake of sugar and salt, you should also make sure to consume enough protein. Get enough of this essential macronutrient for optimal muscle gains and training performance.

Protein – The Essential Macronutrient

It is also considered a "macronutrient," meaning that you need relatively large amounts of it to stay healthy. While proteins are macronutrients that are essential for building muscle strength, their role in the body is not limited to only that function. Proteins are virtually present in each of the trillion cells in your body and every type has a different function to perform.

Why does your body need protein?

• Repair and regenerate muscle and cells
• Help build and strengthen our immune system
• Hormonal function

It is important to consume protein every day as part of your diet. Daily protein intake plays a role in keeping your cells in good shape and should be part of your daily health maintenance plan. Protein is the building block of muscle, and no bodily function can happen smoothly without it. It helps to keep bones, cartilage, and blood healthy, and it works to keep hair, skin, and nails revitalized and nourished.Protein also helps fight infection, balance body fluids, and carry oxygen through your body.

Foods rich in protein

If you want to follow a healthy diet, choose your protein wisely. Protein isn’t just found in meat. Protein is found in animal products like dairy, eggs, meat, fish, and poultry, as well as plant sources like legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, fruits, vegetables, and soy. However, not all proteins are created equal. Our bodies cannot store protein and will excrete any excess, so the most effective way of meeting your daily protein need is to eat small amounts at every meal. Simply put, the consumption of protein is vital to workout recovery and results. A good way to project how much protein you should consume in grams is to aim for your target weight, not what you currently weigh. The amount of protein you want to consume depends on your fitness goals. We can help you with those fitness goals. Try our online fitness programs to keep your the fitness on track!

Now, let’s talk about how protein can affect fat loss and hypertrophy (muscle growth).

Protein and Fat Loss

When looking at weight loss, fat loss more specifically, protein is the most important nutrient you need. Protein consumption will reduce hunger and boost your metabolism (disclaimer: you will not lose weight if you are not in a calorie deficit) by directly effecting and reducing the levels of the ‘hunger hormone’ Ghrelin. Protein has a higher thermic effect compared to the other macronutrients (carbohydrates and fats) being at 20-30% meaning 20-30% of the calories are burned just through the digestion of protein consumed. From a ‘calories in vs calories out’ standpoint, this is going to help with calories out.

Protein & Hypertrophy

Hypertrophy means increasing muscle mass. Let’s start with the basic "What causes muscle growth?" When we exercise, we damage our muscles, whether it’s a sprint or through resistance training. Not damage like a torn hamstring, but small, micro-tears in the fibers. Our brain then tells us that it needs to be repaired, bigger, and stronger than before so then we can avoid the ‘damage’ again.

In short, this is what we need to know:

• Protein for amino acids, amino acids for repair.
• Keeping amino acids in the bloodstream will keep us on top of repair 24 hours a day.
• 4+ protein-packed meals a day, triggering protein synthesis.

Protein is an important nutrient for everyone, not just athletes and bodybuilders. That doesn’t mean you should start drinking protein shakes every day. Most people can get daily protein from a healthy and balanced diet. Some fad diets promote extremely high protein intake. A very high-protein diet can strain the kidneys and liver. It can also prompt excessive loss of the mineral calcium. It is therefore important that you take a balanced diet along with the best fitness routine. We, at Stronglife, have the best fitness trainers in Australia. Unlike a typical weight loss program, our online fitness coaches will take your body to its maximum potential with a personalized online fitness program and will help you achieve your health goals.