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How to add more protein to your breakfast
As we’ve seen before, eating adequate protein at breakfast is a great strategy for improving body composition and maintaining muscle mass. In this article we explore how to add more protein to your breakfast. Protein for breakfast As discussed in a previous article, higher protein breakfasts can help with satiety and weight management. Moreover, sports nutrition science points at an ideal dose of 0.25-0.30g of protein per kg of body weight per meal (including breakfast!) for building muscle. High protein breakfasts Breakfasts that can be naturally high in protein include: Leftovers from dinner Egg-based breakfasts (boiled/poached/fried/scrambled eggs, omelette, frittata) Smoothie with milk, yoghurt and/or protein powder However, if your breakfast…
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Should you eat breakfast?
Should you eat breakfast? This continues to be a controversial topic when it comes to health and nutrition. Although every person’s biology is different, it seems that the majority of people would benefit from not skipping the first meal of the day. Breakfast: the most important meal of the day? Conspiracy theorists and skeptics tend to be of the opinion that breakfast was proclaimed “the most important meal of the day” as a marketing strategy to increase the food industry’s profits. However, there has been some scientific evidence to suggest that breakfast is indeed associated with weight loss and improved body composition (1). Benefits of eating breakfast Satiety and hunger…
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Protein requirements for female athletes
Are protein requirements for female athletes the same than those of male athletes? Although it makes sense to think that body composition, energy metabolism and sex hormones may play a role in nutrient requirements, there are no fast and hard rules, but sensible guidelines as detailed below. Protein requirements for female athletes In theory, female athletes should have slightly lower protein requirements than their male counterparts because oestrogen causes exercising female bodies to increase fatty acid oxidation and decrease amino acid (and carbohydrate) oxidation (1, 2). Moreover, protein catabolism is higher in the luteal phase when oestrogen and progesterone are high (1). On the other hand, some studies seem to…
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Product review: Nutriboost
Nutriboost is a high protein flavoured milk drink made with no added sugar. It is enriched with fibre and vitamin D and has a 5 health star rating. Nutriboost Nutriboost is made by infamous Coca-Cola Company. Before you stop reading, remember that they also make water, juice and other not-so-bad-for-you beverages. Nutriboost is enriched with milk proteins, polydextrose as a source of fibre, and vitamin D. It is sweetened with an artificial sweetener. The drink comes in 3 flavours: chocolate, vanilla and banana. It is available at Woolworths supermarkets, and often discounted when buying 5 or more. Ingredients Below are the ingredients lists for the current 3 flavours. Note they…
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Product review: The Complete Dairy
The Complete Dairy is an Australian brand of high protein milk. As discussed in my previous post, milk can be used as a sports supplement in part due to its protein content. The Complete Dairy high protein milk The Complete Dairy high protein milk is made using a cold filtration process which increases its protein content. At the same time, this process reduces the milk’s lactose content. As a result, this milk is suitable for people looking to increase the protein content in their diets and lactose intolerant individuals. This high protein milk comes in full fat and light varieties. Both are available in 1 litre bottles in the refrigerated…
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Milk as a sports supplement
Milk as a sports supplement? Why not! Milk is a relatively inexpensive source of many nutrients, which include protein, calcium, vitamins and minerals. Milks from different ruminants (e.g. cows, goats, water buffalo) have similar nutrient profiles. However, for the sake of this article we will be talking about cow’s milk as it’s the most available and commonly consumed. Nutrients in milk Milk and other dairy foods contain calcium, protein, B vitamins (including B2 and B12), vitamins A and D, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, zinc and iodine. The table below shows average content for some nutrients of different types of plain cow’s milk (data from 1). A glass of milk has 8…
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Should you take BCAAs?
Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) is the name given to three of the nine essential amino acids. BCAAs are sold as a sports supplement to increase muscle synthesis and recovery. Today we answer the question: Should you take BCAAs? What are BCAAs? BCAAs or branched-chain amino acids are leucine, isoleucine and valine. They are essential amino acids (EAAs), meaning they cannot be made by our bodies and must be taken from the diet. Unlike other amino acids, BCAAs are not metabolised in the liver (1, 2) but in skeletal muscle (2). They can be oxidised and used as energy (2, 3). BCAA supplements are commonly used in athletic populations. Most supplements…
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Recipe: Chocolate peanut butter protein shake
This recipe is for the chocolate + PB combo lovers out there. It is great as a post-workout drink if your next meal is a few hours away or can sub for breakfast as it is high in protein and reasonably filling. This shake can be made dairy-free depending on the protein powder you use. I used natural grass-fed whey protein isolate (WPI) from 180 Nutrition. I’m also a big fan of the True Protein natural WPI. For a dairy-free/vegan version, you can use pea or rice protein (or a blend) from one of the brands mentioned before. I used peanut butter powder from True Protein. Other supplement shops also…
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Product review: F4U formulated meal replacements
Formulated For You (F4U) is an Australian health food company based on the Gold Coast. F4U formulated meal replacements are designed to help with weight loss by replacing one meal a day. F4U formulated meal replacements These meal replacements are based on grass-fed whey protein concentrate (WPC). Each serve provides 30g protein, 5g of fibre and 25 vitamins and minerals. The protein and fibre contribute to satiety and, therefore, weight loss. The product is gluten-free and low in sugar. It does not contain any artificial flavours, colours or sweeteners (it contains stevia extract). Other products F4U also offers protein powders, including organic pea, organic rice, organic hemp and grass-fed WPC.…
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Protein timing and quantity for building muscle
Protein intake is essential for muscle synthesis and repair. The digestion process breaks down protein into amino acids, which are the building blocks of muscle and many other components of our body. We have explored protein quality in a previous article. Today we will focus on protein timing and quantity for building muscle. How much protein in total? The total protein requirement depends on many, many things. I won’t go into any detail in this article and just say the range is typically anywhere between 0.8 and 2 grams (g) of protein per kilogram (kg) of body weight. How much protein per meal? The optimal dose of protein for muscle…
