Good Sources of Protein ~ WeeklyQ&A
Grams of Protein!
It’s so critically important to build up and keep muscle. Most people do not get enough protein in their diet. We will talk about exercise later but if you don’t have the building blocks for muscle it’s not going to happen! To gain muscle we need almost 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. So if your 150 pounds you need about 150 grams of protein.* No one likes counting calories or measuring grams BUT it is very important to do so for a short period of time (a week) so you can at least know where you're at accurately so you get a good idea of what you need to change. You’ll need to measure your muesli and use the package label, measure your greek yogurt etc.
It gets even more interesting with meat as different Meat proteins have different amounts of protein percentages. Eg, Tuna has 30g of protein per 100g and other fish has 20g of protein per 100g serving. Chicken is 30g per 100g serving, venison is the same.
Veggie sources of protein must not be overlooked as well! It’s an easy google search but a few of my favourites are Black beans, Chickpeas (hummus), Buckwheat, Lentils and nuts.
Poor sources of protein are things like hot dogs, bacon, sausage, and regular ground beef. In these products most of the calories are fat and almost always have questionable additives. I recall in a biology lab when I was at U of A we had difficulty even finding protein in a piece of hot dog. It was almost all fat and carbohydrate!! Skip Hot Dogs!!
Instead, focus on high-quality protein sources that truly support muscle growth and overall health.”
~Dr. Darrell
WellnessDoc Blog - Muscle March 2025
*Note this is well above the recommended dietary allowance of 0.8g of protein per kilogram of body weight. The RDA represents the minimum amount needed to maintain nitrogen balance. It is far too low if you have a goal of increasing muscle mass and reducing sarcopenia, especially as we age!
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