Talkin' Turkey (or beef, or tofu, or eggs, or ...)

No recipes today - we're spending this Foodie Wednesday talking about the importance of protein! Exciting!

If you're a sentient human being you need protein just to maintain a reasonable quality of life - without it, your hair falls out and your body eats its own muscles in order to get enough energy and that's just unpleasant. And if you're following any sort of exercise program you need protein even more, because protein is what builds and repairs muscle tissue not to mention gives you the energy to exercise in the first place. Muscle tissue burns calories, so the more muscle you have the more calories you're burning, so by properly fueling your body you're creating this lovely positive cycle wherein your protein intake helps with your weight loss and you're just nonstop winning (at least in the muscle-building/weight loss regard). I work with so many people who would be so much happier with their workout results if they'd just let themselves take in more protein. Cut your calories elsewhere!

So how much do you need, really? I should probably warn you, there's math involved.

• If you are sedentary, uninterested in gaining muscle mass, and pretty generally healthy you need about .36 grams of protein for every pound of body weight.  
• If you are active (either as an athlete or as someone who's trying to lose weight), it's anywhere between .8 and 2 grams per pound - you'll want to play around with it to find your best level, but start on the low end and increase until you start seeing your desired results.
• Recommended intake for those who are injured is pretty similar to the recommendations for athletes, about .7 grams per pound of body weight, which makes sense since a body that's repairing an injury and a body that's building muscle mass are both in an anabolic state of tissue repair.
• For the elderly, a baseline amount of .5-.6 grams per pound is recommended, of course increasing with the individual's activity level. Interestingly, I had a very difficult time finding an actual definition of "elderly," so I can't help you there.

As for when you should be ingesting your protein? Again, you'll want to play around with it to find what works best for you but definitely start your morning with at least a little bit (there's a reason why omelets keep you going so much longer and more efficiently than pancakes), and within 30 minutes after you exercise have a snack comprising more or less equal parts protein, carbs, and healthy fat (try to skew more protein, less fat but still keep a bit of a balance, if that makes sense). As I said above, play around with it, find what works best for you both in terms of amounts and of variety, and don't be surprised if you see major changes in your energy level and body composition.

Tomorrow we're back on the situation-improvement train, and that train is making a stop in your closet. As for whether it's for boarding or disembarking, you'll just have to find out then.

Have a beautiful day!
- Sarah