Make Your Protein Count

Quick Win

Getting enough protein is important, but how you get it matters. Create a weekly routine to get the most out of this important nutrient.

Try This Today

• Spread it out. Make a weekly meal plan that includes a good source of protein at breakfast, lunch and dinner. This may help your body use the protein you eat. 
• Vary your sources. Include a mix of protein-rich foods in your weekly menu. Animal sources contain all the amino acids your body needs — including leucine, which helps with maintaining muscle strength. Plant proteins such as lentils and beans contain fiber, which is essential for digestion and blood-sugar control. 
• Plan to pump iron. Schedule two or three weekly strength-training sessions. Eating enough protein and doing resistance exercise are both important for maintaining and building muscle strength.

Why

Meal planning may give you an edge when it comes to eating well. Compared with people who didn’t plan meals, those who did were more likely to meet nutritional guidelines and eat a variety of foods — and were less likely to be overweight — in a large population study of French adults reported in the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity in 2017. Spreading out dietary protein throughout the day may help the body use it. Eating protein-rich foods evenly throughout the day was linked to greater muscle strength in a study of 192 healthy women ages 18 to 79 reported in 2022 in Nutrition and Metabolic Insights. Resistance exercise is important on that front, too — and it appears to work in synergy with dietary protein to help build muscle, according to a 2022 review of dozens of clinical trials in Sports Medicine — Open.