Why You Need Protein For Weight Loss
Proteins are not only involved in almost every physical process, but are also perfect for fighting stubborn kilos on your hips and thighs.
Building and maintaining muscle, transporting various molecules, cell repair, hormone balance, enzyme production, hair growth, strong nails and the function of the immune system: our organism needs proteins for almost everything. This is because they are made up of amino acids - the most important building blocks in our body.
But amino acids are not only essential for all these physical processes - proteins can also help you lose weight.
How exactly does protein help you lose weight? Here are the top 3 protein benefits for a slim line.
#1 Proteins promote muscle growth and thus weight loss
20 percent of all muscle is protein, so it's safe to say we need it for muscle growth and retention. While carbohydrates and fats are important sources of energy for muscle work, the intake of proteins is necessary to maintain existing muscle mass, build it up or repair it after training.
This is particularly important for women over the age of 40, as our muscles are now unfortunately steadily and naturally breaking down (this is known as sarcopenia) and our muscle strength is also decreasing (dynapenia). 44 percent of women over 65 suffer from sarcopenia to a moderate or severe degree - and if we do nothing to counteract the decline in muscle strength, we will lose 50% of it by the age of 80.
However, having fewer muscles is not only unfavourable for strength and bone density, it also increases the risk of gaining extra kilos. This is because muscles burn calories! Not only during sports training, but also afterwards (during the so-called afterburn effect) and even at rest, our muscles are burning calories. This is down to the fact that muscle mass increases our basal metabolic rate - our calorie consumption at rest.
So if we don't take care of muscle maintenance through strength training and protein-rich muscle food, our percentage of body fat increases and with it almost always our abdominal girth. This is something we often have to contend with anyway, especially during the menopause.
Incidentally, crash diets have the opposite effect: due to the lack of nutrients and therefore protein, the body attacks its own muscle protein instead of breaking down fat - and thus reduces muscle mass. Although you lose weight in the short term, your basal metabolic rate also drops due to the reduced muscle mass. Consequence: You gain weight more easily later on and may therefore see a yo-yo effect.
#2 Less hunger through protein
Protein is a natural appetite suppressant. It is more satiating than the same amount of carbohydrates or fat, as it has to be thoroughly pre-digested and remains in the stomach for a long time. This means you don't feel hungry again so quickly, as your stomach is pleasantly full.
It also lowers the concentration of the appetite-promoting hormone ghrelin and at the same time increases that of the satiety hormones. So not only is the stomach full, we also feel full for a really long period of time.
A study from 2020 shows that a high-protein diet fills you up and can also lead to easier weight loss.
It compared a standard protein diet with 0.55 - 0.88 grams per kilogram of body weight per day (16 - 21% of total calorie intake) with a diet containing 1.1 - 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight.
Scientific conclusion: If the participants ate twice as much protein, they lost more weight and also more fat mass. In addition, their fat-free mass and resting energy consumption increased significantly.
And it's quite clear: if you are properly full, sweet or savoury temptations along the way tend to leave you cold. Which brings us to the next point:
#3 Proteins keep blood sugar stable and prevent cravings
Although proteins provide fewer calories than alcohol (7 kcal/g) or fat (9 kcal/g), they have just as many as carbohydrates: 4 kilocalories per gram. Unlike carbohydrates, however, they do not affect your blood sugar.
Fluctuations in blood sugar are not only generally unhealthy and can lead to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes in the long term, they also cause us to put on weight. Unhealthy belly fat in particular stubbornly accumulates.
This is because the breakdown of fat (lipolysis) is inhibited under the influence of insulin. Frequently high blood sugar and therefore high insulin levels are therefore significantly involved in the build-up of body fat and make losing weight more difficult.
If we eat too little protein, we are also more likely to feel hungry again shortly after a meal or snack, and therefore continue snacking due to cravings and thus consume much more than we actually need. In this way, proteins can make it easier for you to lose weight.
Proteins are particularly important for weight loss in women
All three reasons show how important proteins are for losing weight. For women over 40, however, there is another hurdle to overcome. Past the age of 40, something changes in how efficiently the body can utilise the proteins ingested with food for itself. Unfortunately, this is to our disadvantage, as we now have to eat more protein to achieve the same effect as before.
This is because our body develops what is known as "anabolic resistance" with age. This means that the body of a 50-year-old woman converts proteins from her diet less efficiently than that of a 20-year-old woman. Although they both consume the same amount of protein, we receive different amounts as a building material for all physical processes - and also as a secret superhero when it comes to losing weight.
From now on, we therefore need to pay even more attention to giving our bodies enough protein in order to really benefit from the positive effects.
How much protein do I need to lose weight?
The ideal amount of protein is given in grams per kilogram of body weight and, depending on the source, is recommended to be between 1.4 and 1.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. If you do a lot of sport, we recommend even more.
To lose weight, it is recommended that you eat around 30 grams of protein per meal. And this should be at each of your three daily meals: Breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Of course, you should ideally avoid eating in between meals, especially if you are trying to shed a few kilos. However, if you get hungry between meals, it's better to snack instead of starving yourself.
SOURCES & REFERENCES
Moon J, Koh G. Clinical Evidence and Mechanisms of High-Protein Diet-Induced Weight Loss. J Obes Metab Syndr. 2020;29(3):166-173. doi:10.7570/jomes20028
Schöenfeld BJ, Aragon AA. How much protein can the body use in a single meal for muscle-building? Implications for daily protein distribution. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. 2018;15(1). doi:10.1186/s12970-018-0215-1
Ford CL, Chang S, Vitolins MZ, et al. Evaluation of diet pattern and weight gain in postmenopausal women enrolled in the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study. British Journal of Nutrition. 2017;117(8):1189-1197. doi:10.1017/s0007114517000952
Kapoor E, Collazo‐Clavell ML, Faubion SS. Weight Gain in Women at Midlife: A Concise Review of the Pathophysiology and Strategies for Management. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 2017;92(10):1552-1558. doi:10.1016/j.mayocp.2017.08.004
Moon J, Koh G. Clinical Evidence and Mechanisms of High-Protein Diet-Induced Weight Loss. J Obes Metab Syndr. 2020;29(3):166-173. doi:10.7570/jomes20028
Baum JD. The benefits of a High-Protein diet across the lifespan. Scientia. January 2021. doi:10.33548/scientia623
Baum JD, Kim IY, Wolfe RR. Protein consumption and the elderly: What is the optimal level of intake? Nutrients. 2016;8(6):359. doi:10.3390/nu8060359
