I hate peanut butter. No, it's not just because I'm allergic. Many people often mistake peanut butter as a high protein food when it's really not. Peanut butter is the biggest lie you’ve been told about protein…
Don't Judge a (Protein) Bar by its Cover
For a while, there's been somewhat of an epidemic in the fitness space. People talk about “high protein” foods that, in reality, aren’t high in protein whatsoever. Take peanut butter, for example. There are 7g of protein in a serving (2 tbsp) of peanut butter. Sounds great until you realize there are also almost 200 calories in those 2 tbsp. Do you know what has more protein than peanut butter for 200 calories? Quinoa, with 10g for 200 calories. Except this time, you get to eat an entire cup, not just 2 tbsp. Also, there are some types of bread that have more protein. BREAD, yes, BREAD can have more protein than peanut butter for the same amount of calories.
“But I usually have more than 2 tbsp”. Ok, if your goal is to gain weight, this is great for you. If not, you’re shooting yourself in the foot. My rule of thumb is that for an item to be high in protein, it should have at least 1 g of protein per 10 calories. Chicken breast, for example, has about 40g for 220 calories (6oz). This is more than 4 times the amount of protein in peanut butter for the same amount of calories.
Even worse are the protein bars you’ll frequently find at supermarkets and even vitamin shops. In no world should a protein bar have less than 10g of protein when it packs over 400 calories. It’s just glorified candy, so I would stay away from it.
The Hamburger Protein Hack
I realized this was a source of confusion for a lot of people in when I saw my friend grab 4 hamburger patties and a plate of rice in an attempt to create a high-protein meal. Yes, the meal had 80g of protein. Here’s the thing: it also had over 1000 calories. For some people, this is more than half of their daily intake. Again this is great if your goal is to put on weight, but if you're going for weight loss this'll set you back. Additionally it was super high in sodium and saturated fat (the unhealthy one). Had he switched out the hamburger patties for an equal amount of protein with chicken, the calorie count would have been reduced by 400 calories and total around 600-700 calories.
In reality, many stereotypical “high protein” foods are just high-fat foods. Peanut butter, for example, boasts 16 g of fat per serving. It’s a great source of fat. Just like you wouldn’t cut your steak with a spoon, you shouldn’t use peanut butter as your source of protein. It’s just not the right tool for the job.
Pressed About Protein
The reason I feel so strongly about products like these is because they usually attract beginners who want to eat something healthy but don’t have the knowledge to check whether or not the packaging matches what’s inside. The same goes for the 800+ calorie salads that you seem to see more of each day. People don’t realize what they are putting into their bodies, and the companies that make these foods are taking advantage of this. Making something taste better by adding loads of unhealthy ingredients and then marketing it as a health product is dishonest.
It seems that today, you have to be an expert on nutrition and fitness to pursue your fitness goals. The growing popularity of social media makes it easier for those looking to make a quick buck to pump out pseudoscience diet plans and promise the world.
“What Gets Measured Gets Managed” -Peter Drucker
So… how do we get around this roadblock. I recommend the same thing I recommend to all those who come to me for fitness advice: a calorie tracking app like MacroFactor (see left). This way, you can see what you put into your body. Though counting calories often gets a bad rep, it is a very helpful way to gain awareness of what your diet actually looks like. The majority of the people I’ve talked to are fully convinced they are eating healthy or are in a calorie deficit. The thing is, they don’t count up all the handfuls of candy or other unhealthy snacks they’ve had in passing. They don’t accurately measure portions according to serving size.
When an extra tbsp of peanut butter is an entire 100 calories, one might think they’re eating a sandwich with 400 calories (2 tbsp plus 2 slices of bread) when they are actually consuming more than 800 calories depending on how much they put on their sandwich. Cereal is another great example of this. Have you ever seen the serving sizes for cereal? I’d like to know who actually uses only 1 cup of cereal and 1 cup of milk. Most people fill the bowl and add enough milk to cover the cereal. This results in them consuming double or even triple the calories they thought they were.
So, the next time you’re looking for healthy snacks, check the label on the back. Check what the serving sizes actually are. Don’t fall for the nonsense being pushed out by fitness media right now, and keep it simple. Ultimately, a meal of lean meat, complex carbs, and simple healthy fats will always be healthy. The simpler you are willing to eat, the easier your fitness becomes. It’s like I always say…
Keep Fitness Simple
-Tom
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