Here at XCEL Fitness, one of the most common questions we are asked is how to accelerate fat loss. Research suggests that a very high protein diet, compared to a diet with normal protein levels, can help speed up the fat loss process. Today we’re going to share with you how you can incorporate a high protein diet into your life to accelerate fat loss.
What is Considered a Very High Protein Diet?
Before going any further, it’s important to establish what would be considered a very high protein diet. During research shared in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, a high protein diet was considered to be over 3.4 g/kg/day. However, for this research, a high protein diet was combined with a heavy resistance training program. This resulted in accelerated fat loss and improved body composition in healthy men and women. In previous studies, an increase in protein without an adjustment to a training program didn’t accelerate fat loss. Training is a critical part of fat loss. While adjusting your protein intake can certainly improve your body composition, you are unlikely to see the results you aspire to achieve without training.
Protein consumption is a topic that’s often debated within the fitness industry and is a very individual choice based on your activity level. For most people who train regularly, a 1.4 – 2.0 g/kg/day protein intake is often enough to sustain their training regimen and improve their adaptation to an increased training program. For individuals who focus on endurance training, this could be reduced to 1.2 – 1.4 g/kg/day, and for strength training, 1.6 – 1.7 g/kg/day is generally recommended. The definition of what is considered a high protein diet is often quoted with a different figure, but it generally refers to a diet where the protein intake is higher than 15-16% of your total daily energy. Increasing your protein intake is something that you’ll generally want to take quite slowly, and the recommended protein intake may vary depending on your current diet and lifestyle.
Benefits of a High Protein Diet
There are many benefits that occur when you increase your protein intake, which is why this type of diet is often encouraged to accelerate fat loss. A higher protein intake will boost your metabolism while also reducing your appetite. On top of that, it can adjust weight-regulating hormones, which can help you to lose weight naturally. This type of diet is often followed by those looking to lose belly fat, and protein offers a higher thermic effect, which is the number of calories used just to digest and metabolize your food. Compared to a carbohydrate-rich diet, protein will use up between 20-30% of protein calories to simply digest your meals.
Protein helps your body to burn more calories as it boosts your metabolism, so you’ll burn off these calories throughout the day and night. It’s believed that increasing your protein intake can boost your calorie burn by 80 to 100 calories a day, but this may increase if you are overfeeding and increasing your protein intake even further. Another reason that a high protein diet helps to accelerate fat loss is that it leaves you feeling more satiated, which can reduce your calorie intake during the day. Without having to obsessively count calories or measure out portions, you’ll find you may naturally begin to eat fewer calories. For this to be effective, you’ll need to ensure you are eating protein with each meal as it works on a per meal basis. It can also reduce the need to snack during the day or late at night, which is a common reason for weight gain or the inability to lose weight.
Here at XCEL Fitness, we encourage anyone who is increasing their protein intake also to consider their current training plan. To accelerate fat loss, you’ll want to ensure you are also following a regular workout plan to see the benefits of these diet changes. XCEL Fitness offers hundreds of training plan options and daily classes to fit everyone’s needs. We have something for everyone, so regardless of whether you enjoy Pilates, CrossFit, Barre, or are just looking for personal training sessions, there’s something to suit your preferences. Our friendly staff and qualified personal trainers will work with you in our excellent facility to help you reach your fitness and weight loss goals this year. For more information about how we can help you on your fitness journey, don’t hesitate to contact our team today.
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