This is an area I’d like to discuss first. It’s incredibly easy to meet your protein requirements. However, I feel that the media and marketing is often responsible for mis-information.

We seem to live in a time where ‘high protein’ is really pushed on everyone; by marketing and the media. Why is this? Is it for profits? I know a lot of companies and businesses say it’s because protein keeps you fuller for longer than other foods. I actually think this is a questionable statement. It completely depends on the source of the protein, plus if you’re cutting out food groups (like carbohydrates) in favour of extra protein, then trust me, you’re not going to be ‘fuller for longer’.

How much Protein do I need?

A healthy adult (under the age of 65 years) only needs 0.8g of protein per kg of body weight.

What does this mean?

Well, I weigh 58kg. So if I multiply this by 0.8, it gives me 46.4g. This is how much protein I need to be healthy and functioning. This amount does not change if I exercise. Unless I’m a professional athlete that works out more than once per day.

Where does the excess protein go?

Any excess protein we consume gets converted to urine and exits the body. It doesn’t squeeze itself into our muscles, or automatically make us skinnier. It is excreted out of the body. However, this is just the pure protein that gets excreted out; the other components of your protein food (i.e fat or carbohydrates), get converted to fat and stored in the body. Which is why often people having ‘high protein’ diets find it challenging to lose fat.

My favourite example is protein shakes; these are generally made up with a lot milk and sugar (fat & carbohydrate). The protein we don’t use leaves the body, but the fat & carbohydrate is going to get stored, generally in the adipose tissue (fat).

Is excess protein bad for you?

It can be.

Going over your protein requirements generally shouldn’t cause any harm. As we just excrete out anything we don’t use. However, persistently having an excessively ‘high protein’ diet can put a lot of pressure on the kidneys. This is because this is the organ responsible to getting rid of the excess protein. It also cuts out valuable other nutrients your body needs, from non-protein sources.

High protein diets can be linked to;

• Weight gain

• Constipation

• Diarrhoea

• Dehydration

• Kidney Damage

If you’re focusing you’re high protein diet on animal sources then it also increases you’re risk of other healthy conditions. Such as heart disease & certain cancers.

Lets look at protein sources

I put this together using ‘McCance & Widdowson’s’ composition of foods (2015). I also occasionally put a range if the item on my shelf showed different values.

I’ve organised this by Legumes, seeds & nuts, then grains. There are also some vegetable sources I’ve noticed other people post about like broccoli, spinach, peas & sweetcorn. They do have more protein than other vegetables (2.8-5.3g/100g). However, they wouldn’t be classes as a protein source. Try and focus on the legumes, nuts and seed sources.

As we all know, there are also a lot of meat substitutes in the market. These are generally quite high protein, and great for adapting your diet to a vegan diet (especially when you first start out). They’re also great if you want something that tastes ‘meaty’. Although, I would recommend having these in moderation; as generally they’re quite high in salt, fat and sugar. Plus, they’re highly processed.

Not all of these meat substitutes are vegan. Some add milk or egg (like Quorn). So double check the label!

What do I eat to get my protein?

Let’s have a look at a general day for me!

Breakfast: Seeded Toast x 2 with (vegan) butter (13.4g)

Lunch: Lentil Soup with seeded bread (1 slice) (20g)

Evening meal: Chickpea curry with spinach & brown rice (20g)

Snacks: Soya yogurt (7g), handful almonds (6g)

Bedtime snack: Half a bagel & peanut butter (12g)

Total protein = 78.4g.

As previous mentioned; I only need 46.4g protein. So I’ve nearly doubled this! And that’s not including my soya latte (a must have), or the little amount’s of protein I’d get from other vegetables in the recipes.

So where will that excess protein go? That’s right, it’s leaving the body as urine. Any excess fat or carbohydrates that I don’t use for energy will then also be stored as fat.

I hope you’ve found this blog post helpful!

Let me know your thoughts, or any questions you have.

As always; if you need bespoke guidance or advice. Please contact me to book an appointment. Alternatively, you can book yourself via by booking’s page.

I’m a Manchester & Cheshire Based Private Dietitian who Specialises in Vegan diets.

I do regular information posts on my Instagram & my Facebook.

Thank you for reading!