Do Women Need Protein As Much As Men?

By Author: Sylvia Nasser
Total Articles: 56
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Ahhh the protein question! Yes ladies, you need protein and I will shed the some light on how to calculate how much protein you really need.

Protein is second to water as the most abundant substance and the primary source of building materials for muscles, blood, skin, and other organs. It is important when you engage in weight loss and fitness plan to study the importance of protein as it helps in the healing process of muscles and other tissues.

Here's a super quick muscle physiology lesson which will take ya 10 seconds to comprehend. The aim of muscle building isn't exactly to increase in the amount of muscle fiber in our body but to increase and shape the size of the muscle fiber. When we resistance train, the desired affect is muscle contraction and that's when muscle fiber pull against each other; this friction causes fiber break down where connecting proteins called myofibrils tear off the muscle. To repair the muscle, protein intake is a HUGE requirement.

Now I believe in something called bio individuality. There is not one body that is the same, therefore, protein needs differ according to health, ...
... body size, and activity level. You must remember, as I mentioned before, that the body cannot produce protein but we can preserve and enhance the muscles we do have. Several studies show that women need more protein to achieve the same level of health that men do especially during weight loss and fitness training. Although, there is not much difference when at a younger age, if you want to be better fit, then you need to consider how much protein you need to get from the food you eat.

Another reason why women need more protein is that depression, menopause, PMS, and chronic fatigue significantly vanishes as soon as protein intake increases. And you very well know that these factors play a detrimental role in achieving your weight loss and fitness goals. The American Journal of Nutrition study that reports that diet with low in fat at 20%, high in protein at 30%, and carbohydrates at 50%, there is greater weight loss due to lesser hunger while getting satisfaction while eating.

It is also important that you should now that as you age, you tend to require more protein because your body experiences difficulty replacing muscle. In contrast to men who store protein in the muscle, women do not use protein effectively for future use. If you are engaging in weight loss and fitness program, even you are 40 or even if you approach 40s, you must get more protein to be able to maintain muscle.

Another study by the Journal of Nutrition purports that high protein diet together with a weight loss and fitness plan enhances weight and fat loss because it helps you control appetite and calorie intake. Some nutrition experts suggest that women should have at least 50 to 60 grams of protein per day on average but the science is not always exact. They suggest, too, that you pattern it after your activity level, whether you are engaged in light activities or you participate in a much more intense weight loss and fitness program.

Here is your protein calculation. If you have a sedentary lifestyle, multiply your weight (in pounds) by 0.4 to get your protein needs (in grams). If you lead an active lifestyle, multiply it by 0.6, and if you are a competitive athlete, multiply it by 0.75. If you are light body builder, multiply it by 0.85.

Now stop stressing about getting too much protein, you'll never really look like the big meat and juice heads at the gym (God, I hate those dudes); women's bodies genetically are not designed that way.

For more information, be sure to check out In Home Personal Trainer

Sylvia Nasser is a Long Island Personal Trainer and runs many online fitness classes
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