The scale is at a stand still the last several weeks and I know exactly why. Life has been busy so I have not been able to go to the gym as often as I normally was (I'm down to 2 times a week from 4-5 times a week). Add to that that my diet has gone down the toilet. I am craving junk food more and more which means I am actually eating it too. When this used to happen to me before I would just chalk it up to me being hungry and would fill my day with more carbs or more crap. But now that I understand food and my body better I know that this is not what is going on. The reason I am craving from food that is bad for me (and the environment) is because I am not eating enough protein.
Protein makes you feel full for longer. I was shocked at how much this was actually true until I started to track what I was eating and realized on the days I had protein with every meal that I did not snack at all. I thought eating protein with dinner was enough for the day and like a lot of people I thought eating more protein would make me gain weight. I learned that I was eating about a quarter of the protein that I needed. I also learned that eating more protein doesn't make you gain (fat) weight but instead it helps you burn more calories and build muscle. Just ensure you maintain a balanced diet and eat the lower fat proteins. Deep frying a chicken breast does not count!
I have learned to branch out and try new types of protein too. Protein does not have to = meat. Look for great alternatives as I have found that keeping your diet interesting is key to sticking with it and being successful.
Try some of these yummy recipes that I found on Pinterest
Lentil tacos - surprisingly awesome and so many variations available
Beer lime chicken - Great on salad and in fajitas
Curry chickpeas - I haven't made this yet but it is on my wish list
Gyro made with felafel - Best thing EVER
No bake energy balls - a great snack!
Need to figure out how much protein you should eat? You can use online tools like SparkPeople to figure it out or you can just convert your weight into kilograms and eat that many grams of protein (so if you weigh 60kg you should eat 60g of protein).
Remember when you are adding more protein to your diet to think about the environment. Consider vegetarian/vegan options that have less of an environmental impact than their meat counter parts. When buying meat look for local, organic and drug free.
This poster is hilarious! Is it from the early 1900's and was made by the US Food Administration
How much protein do you eat? What are your favourite recipes?
Go Green Get Fit Status
Fitness - I have been swimming this summer and build up my endurance.
Strength - I want to work on my triceps this week.
Food - Working on a new balance this week.
Me Time - I plan to read a book this weekend.
Go Green Get Fit Blog of the Week - Gretchen at Healthful Mama
Related Posts - Check them Out
Fueling Your Body
Tim Hortons - Say it Ain't So
The Earth is Part of Us
I know I don't eat enough protein, though I'm working on it. I love peanut butter (and have made peanut butter, oatmeal balls similar to the energy balls you linked to), and greek yogurt, so I get a lot there. We also eat lots of chicken. Good luck getting back into the swing of things.
ReplyDeleteHang in there. We all have our ups and downs. Now that you've figured it out, hopefully you can get the protein you need and continue down the road to feeling better and fitter!
ReplyDeleteGreek yogurt is a great way to get protein Meegs! And it is yummy!
ReplyDeleteOK, I absolutely HAVE to try the "no bake energy balls" since every ingredient is something I like, and I definitely want something I can pack easily around. Thanks for the link to a recipe!!
ReplyDeleteThey are delicious! I had to stop myself from eating all of them at once. I love that you can play with the recipe and make it what you want too. I used half almond butter and half peanut butter and they turned out awesome.
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