When using weights you need to make sure you’re eating foods that help your muscles recover more effectively and that’s why protein is exceptionally important in your diet. There are several ways in which you can get all the protein your muscles needs into your diet. Best sources of protein for building muscles include:
The best sources of protein are natural and wholesome. Irrespective of if you are a vegan or vegetarian, you can get the right amount of protein from both animal and plant sources – here is a fine collection of some of the best food sources of protein. These are also the best lean-muscle building foods.
Eggs are a real source of muscle building food. This food is one of the highest quality protein sources available to you. Plus they also contain plenty of amino acids, which is crucial for helping to build up healthy muscle.
Depending on size, each egg contains 5-8 grams of protein. The body can absorb egg protein at almost 100 percent for building lean muscle mass. You can choose between small-, medium- and large sized eggs, as well as between white or brown colored eggs. Regarding egg color, it makes no difference in nutritious content. It’s your choice as to what you prefer.
If you like to reduce fat and cholesterol within your nutrition schedule, restrict your consumption of egg yolks because fat and cholesterol are only found in the egg yolk.
3. Skinless chicken breast & turkey breasts
This particular food provides you with one of the leanest sources of protein your body needs. Just 3 ounces of skinless chicken breast is going to provide your body with 94 calories, 20 grams of protein and 1 gram of fat.
Turkey is a very good choice for protein intake also. Chicken breast has slightly more protein than turkey breast, but turkey thigh is minimally higher in protein than chicken thigh. The other meat cuts provide equal amounts of protein.
Fresh poultry has a shiny surface and doesn’t smell.
4. Legumes
The kinds of legumes you must include in your strength training diet are lentils, beans and peas. All of which are packed full of protein and carbs. Lentils also contain high levels of Vitamin B, which are great for helping to boost metabolism. Also lentils contain plenty of magnesium and iron, which aren’t only good for your bones but also to ensure your body produces plenty of healthy red blood cells.
5. Tofu
Tofu is a derivative of the soybean, one of the few legumes that has complete protein. In tofu, you have found a vegetable-based food that contains all of the essential amino acids that the body cannot synthesize.
As well as containing high levels of protein this vegetarian food also contains large amounts of fats that are good for your heart and free from cholesterol.
6. Low fat cottage cheese and other low-fat dairy products
Low-fat cottage cheese is low in fat, low in carbs and contains about 14 grams of slow-digesting casein protein in just a half cup serving. Casein proteins offer a slower absorption rate of around 7-8 hours and continue to constantly provide amino acids into the blood stream for this time. It is a good source of calcium, phosphorus and riboflavin, and contains a certain amount of the other water-soluble vitamins. It is easily digested and assimilated.
Another thing that makes casein a good protein is the fact that micellar casein proteins contain high percent of amino acid glutamine which is vital for muscle repair and cell volumization, growth factors, and properties that support the immune system. Eating cottage cheese can also help you lose weight as the casein content is slowly digested which satisfies your hunger for a longer period of time. Cottage cheese is a perfect alternative to normal hard cheeses plus makes a great addition to cakes, muffins and pancakes for a creamier consistency. Choose a low sodium one for your sweet dishes.
A word of caution, though: Dairy products can be high in fat, so be sure to choose low-fat or nonfat dairy foods such as milk, cheese, and yogurt. Therefore always take a closer look at food product labels regarding the fat content. Low-fat or nonfat milk, cheese, cottage cheese, Greek yogurt (plain, unsweetened), and kefir (drinkable yogurt) are acceptable choice.
7. Quinoa (Keenwah)
This particularly mild grain has quite a pleasant chewy texture and is very high in protein compared to most plant foods. In fact the levels of protein found in this particular food are even higher than what’s found in normal whole grain products. You can add it to a stew or put in a salad. Therefore quinoa is an excellent protein source for vegetarians and vegans.
8. Fish rich in Omega 3
Fish contains good levels of protein and contains very little saturated fat, which leads to arteries becoming clogged. Also eating fatty fish that has high levels of Omega 3 can help to bring levels of triglyceride in the body down.
One particular fish you should include in your diet is cod. Cod is a common and affordable fish with a good nutrition profile. Not only does it contain around 18 grams of protein per 100g serving but also contains selenium. This is an enzyme that has very strong antioxidant powers, which will help to improve the function of enzymes in the body.
Choosing which type of protein to eat
It depends on what food you enjoy. You’ll find both meat and vegetarian dishes provide you with your daily protein requirements. In general, animal foods are the best sources of protein containing all the amino acids. Overall, the highest-rated protein food is eggs, followed by beef and fish. With the exception of soybeans, which are mostly carbohydrate, vegetable foods individually contain only some of the amino acids. Combining the right non-animal foods can provide a complete amino-acid meal. But eating all the amino acids at one meal is not necessary. For those who don’t eat animal products, obtaining all your amino acids is accomplished by combining enough variety, since no one plant-based food (except soybeans) contains all the amino acids. Certain combinations of plant foods, such as beans and rice, or whole grains and legumes, can provide a complete protein.
This does not mean that there are no other foods that are rich in proteins and can be part of your diet, but if you eat any of the above foods daily, you will definitely be entering the quality protein that is needed for development and adaptation after the training. These foods listed above are also low in fat as opposed to many other protein sources which are high in calories and unhealthy fats.
Bodybuilding foods are high quality proteins, complex carbohydrates, and essential fatty acids coming from lean protein sources, grains, fruits, nuts and seeds. They are nutrient dense foods that contain high nutritional amounts of nutrients necessary to build energy, help with recuperation periods, and fuel muscular growth. And starting out your diet plan begins with figuring out your daily protein intake, fiber, carbohydrates, fats and caloric needs for what your bodybuilding purposes are going to be. We’re starting with the proteins!
Proteins you should avoid
- Chicken with a skin: The skin just adds the fat you do not need.
- Chicken with bread: Bread crumbs add unnecessary simple carbohydrates.
- Salami: Made with too much chemicals and of poor quality meat.
- Bacon: fatty, but tasty and basically not good for health.
- Farm-raised fish (reared fish – fish farming): contains less Omega-3 fatty acids. Also, according to the results of some studies fats from farm-raised fish meat can be very unhealthy. You should always choose wild-caught fish that moves and feeds in an autochthonous environment. Fish in the wild eat a natural diet and tend to be significantly lower in saturated fat than farm-raised varieties.
- Fatty minced beef: minced beef below 85% (lean-to-fat ratio) is not suitable to be on a plate of a serious bodybuilder. It’s true that we make a real juicy burgers or meatballs from this type of meat, but you just can not afford to eat it.
- Fatty piece of red meat. Just look at the steak. If it has a little fat on the outside, but is red from the inside, you can eat it. All you have to do is to cut off the fat from the edges of the steak. If the whole steak is permeated with white strips, you get a tasty but very fatty piece of meat that is best avoided.
Tips for vegetarians & vegans
To get enough essential amino acids from a vegetarian diet, select foods that complement one another’s limiting amino acids. In other words, mix and match foods during the day so that foods low in one essential amino acid are balanced by those that are higher in the same amino acid. It’s not necessary to combine these proteins at one meal. You can simply eat a variety of protein sources throughout the day.
For example, grains contain a limited amount of lysine but a higher amount of methionine. Legumes such as navy beans, kidney beans, and black beans are high in lysine but low in methionine. Thus, by combining grains and legumes, you create a complete protein meal. Soybeans are an exception and are considered a complete protein.
If you are a vegetarian who chooses to eat milk and eggs, you needn’t worry about combining foods. The protein in milk, eggs, cheeses, and other dairy products contains all the essential amino acids you need for tissue growth, repair, and maintenance.
Closing thoughts about choosing high protein foods
For most people, getting enough protein should not be a problem as there are many healthy options. To get the most out of your body, you need to give it the best-quality fuel, so focus on getting protein from a wide range of wholesome foods, such as lean red meat and poultry, fish and seafood, eggs, low-fat dairy products, nuts, seeds and legumes. This will help limit your saturated-fat intake and provide you with a range of vitamins and minerals. However, you should never forget that your diet shouldn’t only contain protein. The diet you need to follow must contain plenty of carbs to provide your body with the energy it needs as well as moderate amounts of fat.
