The High-Protein Diet

If you like to keep on top of the latest news in the ever-expanding world of diets and weight-loss, you’ve definitely heard of the much-hyped metabolic typing diet, which claims to determine the rate at which every individual processes food and turns it into beneficial substances that help feed their body.

According to this diet, some people tolerate carbohydrates better, others thrive on proteins and this is what allows them to keep their weight under control. We will be dealing with the metabolic typing in a different article – now, however, it’s time to have a look at what a low carb, high protein diet can do for us in terms of weight management.

The simple answer is – it can do a lot. Protein foods are recommended when it comes to sticking to an eating plan aimed to help you lose those excess pounds – primarily because they need more time to digest and therefore keep us feeling full for longer. Generally, a normally balanced diet includes about 50% calories from carbs and 15% from protein.

However, if you're looking to restrict your refined carb intake and cut back on bread, rice, pasta, potatoes or cereal, you can try to aim for a different ratio – about 30% carbs and over 50% protein. Dairy is essential – you will be needing more calcium than usual if you’re following such an eating plan – and you can easily choose skimmed or low-fat versions over full-fat ones to keep the fat in check.

A high-protein diet involves eating mainly lean red meat, fish, chicken, eggs, dairy, seafood or tofu. Basically, two out of three daily meals would be made up of protein (usually the lunch and an early dinner) and one small meal with a small amount of carbs – cereals or rice for breakfast would be a good choice. You need to be careful, though: high protein diets can raise blood cholesterol levels and expose you to a higher risk of developing heart disease, so it’s important to have regular blood tests and exercise as often as possible.