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Hitting Your Protein
One of the biggest struggles we see with people who are new to tracking macros or tracking their food intake in general, is difficulty hitting their protein macros. Most people are typically eating a diet lower in protein that when they receive higher protein macros they think “how the heck am I supposed to hit these numbers?”
Well we are here to give you 5 tips that will help you hit your protein macros, no problem!
1. INCREASE THE SERVING SIZE OF LEAN PROTEIN WITH EACH MEAL
Instead of having 3 oz. of chicken with dinner, have 4.5 oz. instead. If you have 3 or 4 meals per day, that extra 6 oz. of protein will add up and get you closer to your goal.
2. DIVIDE YOUR PROTEIN EVENLY THROUGHOUT THE DAY
Spreading your protein out throughout the day has so many benefits. It will help with protein muscle synthesis (aka building your muscles), improving body composition, help with muscle recovery, and will help you feel more full and satisfied.
For example:
If you have 5 meals throughout the day and your protein goal is 130.
130g protein / 5 meals (or snacks) = 26g of protein per meal.
3. INCLUDE PROTEIN IN YOUR SNACKS
Including a protein source in your snacks will help you feel more full and satisfied and will help you hit your protein macros. There are many easy to grab and go protein sources out there such as: string cheese, protein bars, deli meat, beef jerky, and Greek yogurt. Our two favorite brands of Greek yogurt (with bomb macros) are Dannon Light and Fit and Two Good Greek yogurt.
4. SUPPLEMENT WITH PROTEIN POWDER
While we do recommend the majority of your diet should come from whole foods, a protein powder is a great way to get additional protein into your diet. A post workout shake is great or mix protein powder into your oatmeal for breakfast. Whey protein is a great option for post workout as it digests quickly and will help aid in recovery. Protein shakes can be as simple as almond milk and protein powder or you can get creative and make smoothies such as a peanut butter banana smoothie. Quick, easy, and delicious.
5. LOOK AT FOOD LABELS FOR HIGHER PROTEIN OPTIONS
If you are still having difficulty hitting your protein, try looking for higher protein alternatives. You can find many foods that will have brands with a higher protein content. Banza is a popular pasta brand that has higher protein. Dave’s Killer Bread has bread, bagels, and English muffins with more protein per serving than other bread companies. You should always be looking at the label on the foods you buy, but checking the macronutrient profile can also help you hit your protein targets.
We hope these 5 tips help make hitting your protein target just a little bit easier! Protein is crucial when it comes to making the body fit and strong so we want to make sure we are hitting our protein goals the best we can.