A high-protein diet complements a strength-training regimen aimed at building muscle mass. Some reduced-calorie diets also emphasize increased protein intake to help you feel fuller and slightly increase your metabolism. Spreading your protein intake across six meals helps your body best utilize the nutrient and satisfies the need to snack.
Amount
For a high-protein diet, aim for about 30 percent of calories to come from protein. If you consume 2,000-calories per day, this amounts to about 150 g of protein daily. You could also determine your protein needs by your body weight. While the average person needs at least 0.36 g of protein per pound of body weight, a high-protein dieter might eat as much as 1 g of protein per pound of body weight. If you weigh 150 lbs., for example, you would aim to eat 150 g of protein daily.
Design
After you know how much protein you need to consume, divide those grams evenly by six to figure how much you need at each meal. If you need 150 g per day, then you would aim to consume about 25 g at each meal. Some meals might have slightly more or less, but try not to overload all your protein into one meal and neglect it at others. Foods to include are chicken and turkey breast, lean beef, bison, pork tenderloin, white fish, salmon, shrimp, tofu, beans and eggs. A 1 oz. portion of chicken, beef or fish contains between 7 and 9 g of protein, while 1 cup of black beans contains 14 g. Round out your meals with a healthy carbohydrate, such as vegetables, fruit or whole grains.
Considerations
A high-protein diet puts you at risk for eating too much saturated fat, which can increase your heart disease risk. Limit fatty cuts of meat -- such as ribs, brisket, bacon and sausage -- and full-fat dairy to keep saturated fat in check. A high-protein diet can be dangerous for people with kidney or liver disease, so check with your doctor before increasing your protein intake.
Sample Plan
For a daily menu containing 1,981 calories and 159 g of protein, start with two scrambled eggs and half of a whole-wheat bagel topped with 1 tbsp. of peanut butter. For your second meal, have 4 oz. of deli turkey on 3 rye crisps with a slice of light Swiss cheese. At lunchtime, toss a large salad with romaine lettuce, sliced cucumbers, grape tomatoes, 1 cup of roasted, skinless chicken breast and 1 tbsp. of olive oil dressing. Your fourth meal could be a cup of low-fat vanilla yogurt with 1 oz. of almonds. At dinner, grill 4 oz. of salmon and have with 1/2 cup of brown rice and 10 asparagus spears. Your final meal contains 1/2 cup of low-fat cottage cheese with 1 cup of fresh blueberries.
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