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How Much Protein is Too Much? Know The Right Amount.

March 8, 2019 By Angie 2 Comments

The most common comment I receive about Paleo is, “Isn’t there a lot of protein?”.

Why are people afraid of protein? 

Every cell and every metabolic function needs protein. We need protein to maintain muscle mass. And not just any protein. Our body needs quality protein – that is, we need the complete range of the nine essential amino acids. Without them, we can’t be healthy.

So, when people say, “A lot of protein”, I wonder what they’re imagining. I mean, we’re not eating a T-Bone at every meal. And “quality protein” doesn’t mean just red meat. It includes eggs, fish, seafood, poultry and game.

Vegetable sources, such as legumes and soy, aren’t considered to be “quality” because

  • they’re problematic for the digestive system
  • they don’t contain the complete range of amino acids and
  • they come ‘packaged’ with a lot of carbohydrate

Compare the protein obtained from beans and chicken:

1 cup of beans: 6 grams protein, 10 grams carbohydrate

1 cup chicken breast: 35 grams protein, 0 carbohydrate

So, in order to receive the same amount of protein from beans, you’d need to eat almost 6 cups of beans, which would also deliver 58 grams of carbohydrate (as well as the digestive problems). But because the amino acid isn’t complete, you’d need to add another plant based protein – which means even more carbohydrate. This is a big problem because we need to keep carbohydrate levels low.

Macronutrient calculations should start with protein because it’s so important. Next on the list are healthy fats. Carbohydrate, as a macronutrient, is overrated. We don’t need much, and if we’re adapted to burning fat, we can be perfectly healthy without it. But the essential amino acids and the essential fatty acids are – yes – essential. We need to receive them from the diet.

How Much Protein Do We Need?

For every kilo/pound of lean muscle mass, we need an average daily intake of between 1.5 and 2.2 grams ( 0.7-1.0 pounds ) of quality, complete protein. The differences in those averages account for activity levels. If the body doesn’t receive the right amount, it simply won’t be able to be healthy.

Lean muscle mass is body weight minus fat. You can guess your lean body mass. You don’t need to be obsessive.

Male: Athlete 10%, Fit 15%, Unfit 22%

Female: Athlete 20%, Fit 22%, Unfit 30%

So, Fiorenzo weighs 65 kilos. He’s a fit man but not an athlete, so we can estimate his body fat at 15%. He’s quite active, so lets say he needs 1.8 grams of protein daily.

65 kilos – 15% body fat = 55,25 kilos lean muscle mass x 1.8 grams protein = 99.45 grams quality protein each day.

I weigh 54 kilos. Like Fiorenzo, I’m fit, but not an athlete, so we can estimate my body fat at 22%. I’m active, but not as active as Fiorenzo, so let’s say I need 1.7 grams of protein daily.

54 kilos – 22% body fat = 42,12 kilos muscle mass x 1.7 grams protein = 71,60 grams quality protein each day.

So, we need to consume an average of 85 grams of quality protein a day. (Some days we’ll eat a little more, some days a little less. That’s okay.)

What Does 85 Grams / 187 pounds  of Protein Look Like?

Here’s what the protein component of our meals looks like:

Breakfast: 2 eggs – 26 grams

Lunch: 125 grams beef – 32.5 grams

Dinner: 125 grams salmon – 25 grams

Total: 83.5 grams


As you can see, that’s not “a lot of protein”. 

We eat a lot of healthy fats, a wide range of vegetables and salad, and a moderate amount of quality protein. In this way, we provide our bodies with all the nutrients and energy that they need.

What does your daily protein intake look like?


On the Side

Gelatin, Collagen, Glycine – You don’t want to miss out on the essential proteins found in these.

Tell Me About Peptides – Related to the post above.

Tell Me About the Perfect Ratio for Omega 6 and Omega 3 – It’s all about the balance.


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Filed Under: Health & Lifestyle, Paleo FAQ Tagged With: Health, paleo diet

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Comments

  1. Matthew Zastrow

    March 8, 2019 at 9:15 pm

    I’m roughly 165lbs and I feel my best eating about 150-200grams protein daily. I lift heavy 2-3x per week and do some long hikes/runs each week.

    Reply
    • Angie

      March 9, 2019 at 7:20 pm

      Hey Matthew, thanks for dropping by. Yep – that’s interesting and a really good point – the more you’re working out, the more protein your body needs to recuperate. It’s very much a case of experimenting to see exactly what works for you, isn’t it? I’m a very intuitive eater – I rarely weigh and measure my macros – but my hormones just let me know. Some days I happily skip meals because I’m not hungry… other days I want to eat the world! You sound so fit, good for you, stay strong! Best, Angie

      Reply

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Hi, I'm Angie. Thanks for popping by. I'm here to help you say goodbye to allergies, reduce inflammation and lose weight... naturally and forever. Scout around the website, there's loads of information. And when you're ready to make real, sustainable changes, get in touch and I'll talk you through my Primal Health Coaching programs. You don't have to live with the pain - trust me. Been there, done that, I know. I'm looking to meeting you, and I look forward to helping you live a much healthier, happier life.

Need help reaching your health and wellness objectives? Call Me for Coaching!

Angelina Brazzale is a certified Primal Health Coach. She cna help you reach your goals of health and vitality through evolutionary diet and lifestyle practices.

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Disclaimer

I’m neither a doctor nor a nutritionist, but, as a Primal Health Coach, I can work in collaboration with them.  I’m a person with a passion for health, food and learning, and I want to share my findings with you. All opinions expressed here are my own. Be sure to seek the supervision of a licensed healthcare professional before making changes to your diet or prescription medications.

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Recipe! Make ahead meals. Take away meals. "I'm ha Recipe! Make ahead meals. Take away meals. "I'm having trouble with food preparation." "I leave home at 4.30am. What can I have for breakfast, instead of a brioche?". These two questions, yesterday.

👏 Egg & Bacon Muffins are one of the easiest, best, healthiest & tastiest things you can make in advance. They're easy to pack & don't require cutlery. Pack them with whatever: spinach, pre-cooked pumpkin, cauliflower. Quality protein from the eggs, healthy saturated fat from the bacon, goodness from the vegetables. Filling, sustaining, nourshing.

The second image? Made by my neice, the amazing @mekenq , science witch extraordinary.

⭐️ My Top Tip: use Silicon Muffin Moulds. If you use paper, they'll stick.

🐝 To download, poke around under "Recipes" on the Blog.

Makes 6
🥄 5 eggs | 3 rashers bacon | 1/4 cauliflower | 1 cup fresh parsely, chives, thyme

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/ 360°F. Grease 6 large silicon muffin moulds & place them on a baking tray.
2. Lightly beat the eggs with a pinch of salt. Cut the bacon into 1cm cubes. Finely chop the cauliflower so that you have 1 cup of 'rice'. Mince the fresh herbs.
3. Place the bacon & cauliflower into a frypan. Sautè over a medium heat until fat is released & cauliflower has softened, about 5 mins. Take off  heat & allow to cool slightly. Add minced herbs, stir to combine. Spoon into muffin moulds.
4. Pour over the beaten egg, stopping a little before reaching the top.
5. Bake 40 minutes or until puffed up & golden. Remove from oven. They'll shrink a little as they cool.

Store in an airtight container in the fridge & consume within a couple of days.

🙋🏻‍♀️
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🤔 Develop an autoimmune disease & be dependant on pharms for life or
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What we discovered is that Health is Easy. You just have to Eat, Move, Sleep, Connect & Think in ways that promote it.

What's hard is changing habits. It requires that you have the right information & the right support. This is why I became a Primal Health Coach - to equip women with exactly what they need so that they can be free from pain, excess weight & stress & start living again.

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How goegeous are these flowers? Last year I had th How goegeous are these flowers? Last year I had the idea of putting this big pot beneath the pomegranate tree & planting it with bulbs that would flower before the tree was thick with leaves. I wasn’t expecting it to be so glorious. 

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🌷 In our unconscious, there are the seeds of both beautiful & ugly flowers.

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🌷 Then go back to cultivating your beautiful flowers. 

— 

🦋 If you’re holding in your hand the seeds of health, freedom & joy, what do you want the flowers to look like?
🦋 When do you want them to flower? 
 🦋 What conditions do they need in order to grow?

Share in the comments! 🐝

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This was lunch today: Low carb, quality protein an This was lunch today: Low carb, quality protein and hidden healthy fats. I made a marinade of olive oil, lemon juice, salt, fresh ginger, fresh rosemary and chives and soaked the steak in it for about half an hour.

Then I pan fried pumpkin in butter! So good.

The leaves are the hearts of various types of radicchio - here in Italy, we love our bitter greens. The salad is doused with extra virgin olive oil.

After this gorgeous plate, we had a small fruit salad (half a banana, a quarter apple and half a kiwi is enough for both of us) topped with grated coconut, chunky coconut chips, thick coconut cream AND.... a spoonful of collagen for extra healing.

So, the hidden healthy fats: butter, extra virgin olive oil, coconut everything.

What did you have (or what are you preparing) for lunch today? How are you adding healthy fats?

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#healthyfoodchoices #healthyfoodblog #healthyfoodtips #lowcarbideas #lowcarbdinner #lowcarblunch #lowcarbdieta #lowcarbfoods #lowcarbhighfatdiet #lowcarbweightloss #lowcarbpaleo #paleodieta #paleoitalia #paleolife #paleoliving #paleolowcarb #autoimmunepaleo #autoimmunewarrior #autoimmunewellness #eatfatloseweight #eatingright #eathealthyfood #eatfattolosefat #womenshealthmatters #womensbusiness #womensupportingwomen❤️ #womanbefabulous #paleoreset31 #primalhealthcoach #healwithfood
Relieved. Amazed. Visibly healing. And because of Relieved. Amazed. Visibly healing. And because of this, feeling confident, lucid and bold. This is how Sandra is presenting right now. Before she started, she was anxious, confused, in chronic pain, frustrated from lack of explanations and feeling horribly unattractive because of the outbreaks on her skin. 

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She's putting herself first, asking for help, prioritizing her health... and learning how to say,"No."

I'm so happy for her. Transformations like this are incredible to witness.

And I feel so blessed. It’s amazing to have people trust you enough that they’re willing to invest in your support & follow your advice even though some suggestions may seem strange... 

If you're suffering from chronic pain - muscles, joints, tendons, nerves, digestion - and if you want to heal and manage it all naturally, then jump to my bio and click through. Get in touch. I know what's it like to live with the stress of unexplained pain, and I love helping women heal and start living again.
The way you start the day impacts upon how the res The way you start the day impacts upon how the rest of the day unfolds: Is this true for you? It is for me.

My morning wake-up and get ready routine looks like this:

🐝 I get up when my eyes open, around 6.30am.
☕️ Coffee and a magazine on the couch (with 🐾).
🧘🏻‍♀️ Meditation, 25 minutes.
🍳 Breakfast, proteine and fat.
🌿 Walk, stretching, nature.

All that done (& the bed made, dishes washed etc), I'm at the desk around 9am, happy to have made time for myself, spirit, body and mind.

What's your Morning Routine? Are you happy with it? If not, how would you like it to be different?

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🐥How are you going to feel when you get there?

When you look back, why will Easter 2021 be significant for you?

Share a little about your new project, practice or perspective - empower the energy!💪💃🏻

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PALEOMANTIC

Hi there, I'm Angie. I help women heal from Pain, Stress, Excess Weight, Burnout, Autoimmune & Allergies... Naturally & Forever.
Read my story here

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