Over the course of many decades, diet fads and food trends have been
shaping — and reshaping — the way we eat. And while what we should and
shouldn’t be eating can get confusing (as it changes so often), there’s one
item we want to be sure to get straight: nutrition.
With “meatless Monday” becoming more and more mainstream, a trend we see
growing is a decrease in meat consumption. We all know that meat is a great
source of protein, and that it’s important to be sure that we eat our fill of
it. We also know that we can get our much-needed nutrients from vegetarian
sources. But how much protein are we getting from these meat-free sources? Come
to think of it, how much protein should we be eating in general? And, more
importantly, what is protein?
A protein is a pretty simple thing. It’s made up of nine essential amino acids
necessary for the dietary needs of humans. There are two kinds: complete and
incomplete. A complete protein has the right proportions of
all nine essential amino acids; they are most easily attained from meat,
poultry and dairy.
Proteins from plants, such as beans, legumes and grains, are incomplete
proteins. That means that in order to get everything you need from a
vegetarian protein source, you need to eat a combination of them in order to
create a complete one. For example, if you eat lentils, adding bulgur to your
dish would make that protein complete. And you don’t need to eat these protein
sources during the same meal; so long as you consume them at some point
throughout the day, your body will take care of the rest. And how much protein
you need a day varies from person to person.
Madelyn Fernstrom, of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, told
“Today” that protein intake is determined according to weight. The easiest way
to understand your body’s protein need is to “take your weight, divide it in
half, and subtract 10. The total will be the number of grams of protein you
should consume each day.” So if you weigh 150 pounds, you would need about 65
grams of protein a day. Now, keep in mind that you don’t only get protein
intake from meat or beans, so you don’t need to eat that many grams of high-protein
sources. You get a good amount of protein from rice, cheese, yogurt, bread,
etc.
Since chicken is a go-to source of protein in many households, it’s a
great reference point for figuring out how much vegetarian-sourced protein is
needed to take that chicken’s place on your plate. Most people normally eat a
3-oz (85g) portion during a meal. This equals roughly 21 grams of protein. So to get
the same amount of protein from a 3-oz (85g) serving of chicken you would need:
·
1 cup, plus 2.5 tablespoons of lentils. These little
legumes pack quite a protein punch. If eating a lentil soup, stew or veggie
burger, this quantity can be easily consumed.
OR
·
1-1/3 cups of black beans. Black beans might
not be as powerful as those small lentils, but black beans are often times
paired with rice, which helps equip you with a complete protein.
OR
·
1-1/2 cups (just a little less than this, actually)
of chickpeas. Chickpeas are a versatile ingredient and become a complete protein
when served as hummus with tahini (sesame paste).
What is your go-to meat-free dish? Leave a comment.
Personal Trainers Malta
Darryl Poulton at Fitness & Weight Management+
Mob: 7985 8289 / Email: info@fitnessmgt.com / Website: www.fitnessmgt.com
No comments:
Post a Comment