Top 5 Ways to Increase Your Protein Intake

1. If you're looking to put on a lot of muscle, you may need to supplement your protein intake. The two most popular protein supplements are casein and whey. Casein protein is found in milk and its main characteristic is that it is digested slowly. This supplement is best taken at night to give your body a slow release of protein giving your muscles the building blocks they need to get repaired and become stronger. Whey protein is digested and absorbed a lot quicker. Because of this, you should take whey right after a workout when muscle repair needs to begin quickly.

2. Meat including chicken, lean cuts of beef and seafood are great ways to add protein. Relatively small amounts of these foods are low in calories but very high in protein. Tuna is a cheap way to add a lot of protein into your diet. Each can contains just 150 calories of almost pure protein (around 30 grams). You have to watch out for the sodium content and if you're pregnant, limit your consumption of seafood.

3. Eggs have some of the best quality protein you can find. It is complete and very easily absorbed and digested. If you don't want the fat intake associated with eggs, you can try egg substitutes or new vegetarian fed hen's eggs which are lower in saturated fat and cholesterol.

4. Dairy is an overlooked source of protein because it is usually high in saturated (bad) fat. You can get around this by using low fat cheese and milk. They still have the same protein content but are much lower in fat. Milk is a great way to add protein to your day because of the ease with which you can drink it: it's like water.

5. There are also some non meat sources that can be used to increase protein intake. While these proteins aren't complete on their own, mixing them with other vegetable proteins will help make them complete. Good source include beans, soy products, nuts and legumes.

For more information on protein in food, visit the Guide to Proteins. You can also see what foods others use to increase their protein intake by visiting the nutrition forums.

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