How Much Protein Should You Eat to Lose Weight?

When it comes to losing weight, exercise is only part of the solution. You also need to take into consideration what you are eating and how much you are eating. Certain types of foods, like anything high in protein, can help you with your weight loss goals. But how much protein should you eat to lose weight?

The importance of ratios

How much protein you need to eat will depend on several factors. First, the amount you will need will be determined by how much you weigh and how much you exercise. A good starting ratio for protein will be .73 to one gram of protein per pound. However, if you are more athletic and do intensive workouts you will want to bump that ratio up to two to three grams of protein per pound. 

As an example, if you are currently 225 pounds you will want to eat anywhere from 164 to 225 grams of protein every day. Following the previous example of 225 pounds, if you do a heavy amount of exercise on a regular basis, you will want to consider eating at least 450 grams of protein or more every day.  Though you will want to be careful with how much protein you eat as excessive amounts will just be stored on your body as fat.

What kinds of protein-rich food should you eat?

Once you know your ratio of protein that you need, the next thing to figure out is what kind of food you should eat. There are certain kinds of protein-rich foods that you should eat more of and ones that you should avoid. As far as meat goes, you will want to focus on lean meat like chicken and turkey and avoid beef. Fish and eggs are also an excellent source of protein.

Lean meats will often have thirty or more grams of protein, especially chicken. Fish, especially salmon, can easily add thirty or more grams of protein to your diet. Have some kind of meat in your meals, and you will achieve your daily protein intake goal easily. There are many good options for you to choose from.

If you are a vegetarian, there are several good options for you to choose from. Nuts, seeds, and beans are a great source of protein as a single cup can give you anywhere from five to forty grams of protein, depending on what kind of nut or seed you are eating. Regardless of your dietary preferences, there are many foods that will help you achieve the amount of protein you need to start losing weight.

To make things easier, there are a lot of great recipes out there in books and on the internet that are part of high protein diets. These recipes are designed to help you get the protein you need to lose weight. Combine that with a little bit of exercise and you will start seeing a drop in your weight within a few weeks.