The pros of protein

If I had a dollar for every time someone mentioned a Netflix documentary as a source of nutrition information, I wouldn’t be writing this column. I’d be retired, living out my days in Playa del Carmen. But I digress.

Maybe you’ve watched documentaries like Game Changers or You Are What You Eat and immediately dumped all the meat from your freezer into the garbage. (Both shows are full of issues I could make a column out of, but that’s for another time).

Documentaries are meant to entertain and support their position, not present all the facts in an objective way. While plants shine in terms of vitamins, antioxidants and phytochemicals, animal meats have a high percentage of protein and are typically richer in bioavailable minerals, especially iron, beneficial fatty acids like omega-3s and B-vitamins.

Here’s what I do know, first and foremost: You can lose fat on a plant-based diet. You can lose fat on a meat-based diet. You can be unhealthy on a plant-based diet. You can be unhealthy on a meat-based diet.

This should not be a yelling match between vegan/vegetarian advocates and meat eaters. This should be a discussion about what the current consensus is in the research and determining what works best for you.

I’ll stick with the science and give you the simplest solutions for your goals so you don’t have to pick a side and still succeed, assuming losing a bit of weight and getting healthier is tops on your list.

First off — we’re sorry to report — weight loss still comes down to the law of thermodynamics, which means you have to be in a calorie deficit, but that’s not to say the type of calories is not important. To the contrary.

And the king of calories is protein.

First off, protein contains four calories per gram, the same amount as carbohydrates, with fat containing nine calories per gram. But your body burns some of those calories back just digesting the foods you eat. Scientists call this cost ‘the thermic effect of food’ or TEF for short. And protein shines brightest here by far, with up to 30 per cent of protein calories being burned during digestion. This means calorie for calorie, nearly one third of the protein you eat simply doesn’t count. It’s a difference that adds up, with carbohydrates in the five-to-10 per cent range and fat even lower at zero to three per cent.

Apart from the high TEF it requires to digest, research has shown consuming more than the recommended daily allowance of protein is a real diet hack.

Why is that? You can still gain weight eating nothing but protein, it doesn’t defy the ‘calories in vs. calories out’ rule we spoke about earlier, but it directly and indirectly helps you stick to that rule with less effort and fewer headaches.

How? Let’s dive in…

Protein boosts feeling of fullness

‘Satiety,’ or the feeling of being full, signals your body to stop its hunger cues. Studies suggest protein is very filling due to an increase in satiety hormones after consumption, such as glucagon-like peptide 1 (the same peptide artificially increased by drugs such as Ozempic) and cholecystokinin, as well as a reduction in the hunger hormone, ghrelin.

One study showed that by simply upping participants’ protein intake by 15 per cent, they consumed 400 or more fewer calories each day, leading to around five kilograms in weight loss over 12 weeks, with no other conscious changes to their diet.

Protein helps maintain muscle mass

The goal of any sensible program should be to prioritize fat loss, not just weight loss. There’s a big difference. When you reduce calories in the pursuit of losing pounds, muscle loss can occur.

We see in research that it’s even more pronounced if you don’t maintain sufficient protein intake (in conjunction with regular strength training, but that’s a topic for another day). The whole ‘skinny-fat syndrome’ can result, which can also result in a lower resting metabolism due to muscle loss.

Research has shown that a high-protein diet, alongside resistance training, can help to prevent muscle loss, even during prolonged diets.

And a high-protein diet can prevent weight regain after weight loss, according to clinical trials of six to 12 months.

I’d suggest this is likely due to the fact healthy behaviours that contributed to your weight-loss results were sustained. Lifestyle and identity change are the most important factors in keeping the weight off, as I’ve written about at length in this column previously. The Big Five framework is worth reviewing if you missed it.

Protein helps you age better

One study analyzed the food intake and health outcomes of just under 50,000 nurses from the 1980s to 2016. Healthy aging was defined as being free from 11 major chronic diseases, having good mental health and not having impairments in either cognitive or physical function.

Higher protein intake was significantly associated with higher odds of healthy aging. Some of the benefits likely come directly from protein’s essential bodily functions, while other benefits come from protein’s favourable effects on muscle retention and reduced fat mass.

Muscle strength isn’t just for lifting weights; it supports every movement, from carrying groceries to playing with your kids or grandchildren. We find, time and again, our clients north of 60 benefit the most from the one-two punch of increasing protein and adding strength work into their routine. The quality-of-life improvements are immediate. Why? Well, muscle mass is your best defence against age-related limitations. There are more and more studies linking low muscle mass with premature death.

Plus, muscle burns more calories at rest than equal amounts of fat. Think of it as a sports car compared to a minivan; both might be idling, but one’s burning more fuel (good in this context). The more muscle you have, the more fuel (calories) your body burns just doing nothing. It’s not a huge difference, but it can add up.

How much protein do you need to succeed?

You probably need to eat more protein than the daily recommended amount if you exercise regularly and desire to change your body composition for the better. The current recommendation for adults is very low at 0.75 grams per kilogram of body weight. That equates to maybe a chicken breast a day for the average person.

A good rule of thumb if you’re active and wish to build or maintain muscle is to aim for 0.8 to one gram per pound of body weight. So if you’re 180 pounds, aim to consume 144-180 grams per day.

If you’re overweight, and hoping to lose 20 or more pounds, I recommend doing the math based on your goal body weight, not your current weight.

Are high-protein diets dangerous?

A widely held and controversial myth that high-protein diets may cause kidney damage in healthy adults was debunked by scientists at McMaster University a few years ago.

Instead, the meta-analysis published in The Journal of Nutrition found that higher protein increases, not decreases, kidney function.

Researchers analyzed data from 28 papers dating from 1975 to 2016, examining the effects of a low/normal protein intake versus higher-protein diets on GFR (glomerular filtration rate) in healthy individuals.

The publications involved more than 1,300 participants, including those who were healthy, obese or had Type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure. None of the participants was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease and all consumed either a high-, moderate- or low-protein diet.

However, it is important to note that underlying health issues, including kidney disease, would change that. Specific recommendations should be discussed with your health-care professional.

Mitch Calvert is a Winnipeg-based fitness coach who has helped more than 1,475 people transform their bodies and lives over the past decade. For more details, visit mitchcalvert.com.