Why Do I Need Protein and What Can I Eat To Get It?

When starting your muscle building attempts, one of the things you’ll hear from friends and trainers is that you need to eat protein. Why do we need protein? It’s essential as protein provides the required amino acids that will help your body to build and repair muscle.

So without protein, it is impossible for your body to build muscle to bigger than it currently is. Now, the problem with protein is that people don’t know what to eat, or can’t fit it into their meal plans due to work, an inability to cook or other problems. This article will help you understand what kinds of food you can eat – that won’t cost you a tonne of money and are easy to make!

You should aim to eat some protein within half an hour to an hour after your workout. You don’t need to overeat, but you should aim to get a little into your system. What foods contain protein and are easy to get?

Meat, poultry and fish. Chicken, pork, beef, salmon and cod have lot of protein in them and best of all they taste great if cooked right.
What if you’re a vegetarian? Thankfully, not only meat contains protein.

Dairy products like milk, cheese (cottage, cheddar and mozzarella are good varieties) can help you build up your protein levels and are best had for breakfast. Talking of breakfast, you can also have…

Eggs are known for their high protein levels. Depending on how much muscle you want to build, you can have one a day or more. Check with your dietician on the specific number of eggs you should eat as it varies from person to person. Try and cook eggs in a healthy way – avoid having fried eggs too often but scrambled and boiled eggs are great for you.

Beans and Nuts. Sometimes you may want a little protein in between meals, in which case you can snack on beans (like soybeans and black beans) and nuts (like almond, cashews and peanuts).

Remember to keep your protein levels up. To build up your muscle, you should aim to intake at least one gram of protein per pound of body weight.