The Protein Pacing Diet: The Scientific Breakthrough for Boosting Metabolism, Losing Fat and Gaining Lean Muscle

By Nicole Stawicki

Supercharge your MetabolismYou already know to eat more protein and less carbs. However, recent studies have shown how eating protein at specific intervals throughout the day will help you achieve a healthier, higher performing metabolism. With The Protein Pacing Diet, you don’t limit calories or cut foods. Instead, you use the scientifically backed method to orchestrate a change in the way your body processes energy.By combining The Protein Pacing Diet with a regular exercise routine, you gain even greater benefits, including: • Lose weight• Gain lean muscle• Burn fat• Increase energy• Regulate blood sugars• Improve heart healthPacked with 40 delicious, high-protein recipes as well as helpful tips, shopping lists and schedules, this book makes it easy for you to incorporate the protein pacing diet into your lifestyle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Mar 13, 2018
• ISBN: 9781612438085

Book preview

PART 1

THE RESEARCH

INTRODUCTION

Though there is a lot of information out there on nutrition and health, I still see clients who struggle to lose weight and end up yo-yo dieting for years. It’s even harder for people who have desk jobs or are busy and cannot find time to exercise regularly. And no one wants to have to give up their favorite foods or spend hours cooking, especially if they already have very little free time.

I often hear that it is hard to know the right thing to do. It seems that every time you turn on the TV or computer, different nutrition and diet stories give different recommendations. How do we know the right thing to do if all the information is conflicting? When I was growing up, the fad was to stay away from fats and red meat and instead eat lots of processed, refined carbohydrates. I was taught that fat would lead to heart disease and weight gain. I remember eating margarine because we were told how bad butter was, only to find out down the road that margarine was actually loaded with trans fats, which are way more dangerous than the saturated fats in butter! My lunch as a teenager was often a bagel or cereal bars, which I thought were healthy because they were low in fat. However, they were made from processed, refined white flour and were almost entirely carbohydrates. All the diet food that was being sold was low fat and loaded with added sugars and chemicals. Even though America was eating low fat, people continued to gain weight.

It wasn’t until I got to college that I really took a look at my diet and what the food I was eating was doing to me. This is what made me decide to major in dietetics and pursue this career. Not only did I want to eat better to improve my own health and well-being, but I wanted to help other people, as well. However, though I learned a lot about food and nutrition and really overhauled my diet, I frequently found myself getting nutrition information from less reputable sources. I still read nutrition tips from grocery store magazines because I hadn’t learned that I needed to look at the source of the information. It wasn’t until I became a dietetic intern and started to educate clients and patients that I realized how important it was to have an evidence-based practice. That is why this book is based on scientific studies that have proven to be successful.

Why Protein?

Many popular diet plans focus on increasing the amount of protein you are eating. Protein is so important in the diet because it has numerous roles in the body, and including protein foods at meals can help increase satiety, meaning you will feel full faster. Increased satiety alone can help with weight loss, because you will consume less total food during mealtimes. But while everyone can agree on the fact that protein intake is important, there are a lot of different factors to consider: How much protein is the right amount? When should you be eating it? Does it matter how much you exercise?

Over the past few years, a lot of studies have been done on protein pacing. The great thing is that the research was not done with people who were all the same; instead, the studies have focused on different groups of people with a variety of body types, fitness levels, and health goals. Protein pacing has consistently been shown to help people lose weight and reduce body fat, in addition to providing other health and fitness benefits. People have also found that protein pacing improved their athletic performance. By adopting a scientifically proven weight-loss plan like protein pacing, you are more likely to be successful in achieving your weight-loss, fat-loss, and health goals.

Using This Book

This book may include terms that are new to you, so I’ve included a glossary in the back to explain them. You’ll see key terms commonly throughout the text, so it may be helpful to look at the glossary first.

The book is divided into two parts. Part 1 has a brief overview of why it is so important to have protein in our diets. It also discusses the different functions of protein in the body, why we need more protein when we are exercising, and some common myths about protein that I often hear when counseling clients.

Then, the science behind protein pacing is discussed in detail: the research, the results, and why it works. Using my insight as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), I will review the other health benefits of protein pacing aside from just losing weight, and offer guidance so that you can make protein pacing work for you. You will learn how to add the right type of protein to your diet and when you should be eating it.

In Part 2, you’ll learn how to incorporate protein pacing into your life. You do not need to get out and start running marathons to make this work for you (unless you want to!). However, this book will address the types of exercise that you can do in addition to protein pacing to see results faster. I will also go over simple ways to add more activity to your day-to-day life.

Additionally, you’ll find information on how to make easy changes to your current diet as well as food purchasing options and sample meal plans. I even share my own experience of testing a protein pacing diet, to give you an idea of what it might look like in your daily life, and to share practical results.

The book concludes with dozens of recipes to help jump-start the program and get you on your way to losing weight and reducing your overall body fat. Even if you aren’t necessarily looking to lose weight, protein pacing can be an ideal plan to follow, as it provides many other health benefits and can help you achieve your fitness goals.

CHAPTER 1

WHY DO WE NEED PROTEIN?

The study of nutrition and how food affects our health and well-being has quickly become popular, though the science is still relatively new. Back when nutritional science first emerged, the focus was on dietary deficiencies and different diseases. For example, a deficiency in niacin, which is a vitamin, can lead to inflamed skin, diarrhea, and a change in mental status. Over time, food became more readily available and the focus of study changed. Nowadays, more research is being done on how nutrition and diet are linked to chronic illnesses, in addition to overall health and well-being. Some chronic conditions that have major nutritional components include diabetes, obesity, and heart disease.

To understand nutrition, it’s important to learn about macronutrients. We need large amounts of macronutrients in our diets to support day-to-day activities and health. The three major macronutrients are carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.

Carbohydrates are the main fuel source for our bodies. After we eat carbohydrate foods, they are broken down into glucose, a type of sugar, which is then used for physical activity and to support different bodily functions. Glucose is the sole fuel source for our brains and red blood cells. Because of this, everyone needs to include carbohydrates in their diet. While carbohydrates are found in many healthy foods, such as potatoes, legumes, and fruits, they are also found in less healthy foods, such as soft drinks and candy. The type of carbohydrates we eat is extremely important. When choosing carbohydrate foods, it is best to choose foods that have been minimally processed and are low in added sugars. Sugars do naturally occur in some foods like fruit and dairy products, but foods high in added sugars should be limited, as they provide extra calories with minimal vitamins or minerals.

Fats also play an important role in providing energy to our bodies. When we are exercising, our bodies first use carbohydrates for energy, but after around 20 minutes, stored fat is used for fuel. Besides providing energy, fat has many other functions in promoting good health. We need fat in our diet, as it provides structure to cell membranes and insulation for nerve fibers in our brains. Fat also provides a cushion around some of our vital organs to help protect them (although having too much fat in this area can be dangerous, which I will explain in detail later). Another role of fat is keeping our skin healthy, as one of the most obvious signs of a deficiency is dry, rough, flaky skin.

Although dietary fats should be included in our diet, they are high in calories; if you consume too much fat, you will gain weight. You also must look at what type of fat you are consuming. Saturated fat is mainly found in animal foods, such as red meat and full-fat dairy products. Trans fats can occur naturally, but they are mainly produced when regular oils go through a process called partial hydrogenation. Both saturated fats and trans fats can increase your risk for heart disease.

Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are mainly found in plant sources. You can identify them because the oils are liquid at room temperature. These types of fats are protective for your heart. Monounsaturated fats include olive oil, peanut oil, and avocados. Polyunsaturated fats include sunflower oil, walnuts, and flaxseeds.

The last macronutrient, which is the focus of this book, is protein. Humans need to eat some form of protein to survive and go about their day-to-day activities. Although it is easier to get complete proteins from animal products, vegetarian diets can provide adequate protein, as well.

Once protein is digested and broken down into its molecular components, called amino acids, it’s used by every cell in the body. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein and are necessary to consume, since our bodies cannot produce them all. Until dietary protein is broken down into amino acids, it cannot be used by the body. One of the most important functions of amino acids is to help build and repair tissues in the body. And while most people know that protein helps build muscle, it builds a lot of other cells and tissues, as well. Amino acids support cell