Are You Dieting? Read This to Avoid Muscular Loss

The basis of any diet or nutritional program is the amount of high-quality protein. Unfortunately, the majority of traditional nutritional advice (the low fat - high carbohydrate diets) is lacking an adequate protein intake. As a result, as much as 50% of any weight loss can be loss of muscle weight.

Why you must avoid muscle loss

In order to avoid muscular weight loss, your body requires that each day you provide it with enough high quality protein to allow the proper development of all its vital functions such as normal metabolism, repair the daily tear and wear of vital body structures, and replacing elemental fluids and organic chemicals.

How much protein does your body need?

It depends on your current level of physical activity. Activity levels and according protein requirements are:

1. Sedentary. If you are a person with almost no physical activity, then your protein need will be 0.5 gram per pound of lean mass.

2. Active. If you like to participate in physical activities that make you sweat for 30 minutes at a minimum at least 3 times a week, then your protein intake must be no less than 0.70 grams per pound of lean mass.

3. Athlete. If you are an athlete in training and you are engaged for an hour or more daily doing heavy physical workouts, then your protein need is 0.9 gram per pound of lean body mass.

To figure out your own needs, simply take your body lean mass (in pounds) and multiply it by the number corresponding to your level. The answer will be your MINIMUM protein requirement in grams per day. If you are doing 3 daily meals, then just divide the result between 3, and that is your protein requirement intake for each meal.