How To Choose A High Protein Snack
Protein plays a role in muscle growth, bone health, tissue development, immunity, enzyme function, and may even play a factor in weight loss! Here are some dietitian tips to choose a high protein snack that works for you, even if you are vegetarian or vegan!
As a dietitian, I always advocate for a balance of carbohydrates, fat, and protein in your meals and snacks. Each macronutrient has its specific role and function, and today we are going to talk about protein.
Protein is one of the macronutrients and can be found in many different foods, plant and animal. It has many different roles in the body including cell creation and repair, immune support, muscle growth and more.
Can Protein Help With Weightloss?
Because of its role in muscle growth and maintenance, protein therefore, also plays a vital role in metabolism, weight loss, and maintaining weight lost. The most important thing to note is that, if your goal is to lose weight, adequate protein must be eaten within a calorie deficit. Beyond that, protein intake can help with weight loss in a variety of ways including:
Preserving muscle: Especially during periods of weight loss, protein intake is imperative to preserve your muscle as you lose body mass. This muscle preservation maintains a healthy body composition and will make it much easier to maintain weight loss in the long run since muscle mass is a primary driver behind your basal metabolic rate or BMR. In fact, research supports that consuming a higher protein diet can reduce body weight and enhance body composition. Simply put, prioritizing protein at a maintenance calorie level or within a calorie deficit is essential to retain muscle mass and maintain metabolism.
Promoting satiety: protein has the highest satiety level of all of the macronutrients… meaning it keeps you fuller for longer and helps you stay satisfied. This is important because when you feel more satisfied from your meals or snacks, you will have an easier time eating within a calorie controlled diet.
It’s important to know that this protein intake must be paired with resistance-based training as protein intake alone will not grow muscle but will help preserve and grow the muscles you train during exercise. In addition to its role in muscle maintenance and growth, protein also increases satiety or the satisfaction and fullness you feel from food, and it digests slowly, making sticking to a calorie-controlled diet much more manageable.
How Can I Eat More Protein?
I recommend eating a protein at every meal and every snack. No more naked salads… that is, salads with just lettuce and nothing else. Leave behind the lonely fruits… that is, fruits not paired with a satiating fat and protein food. Want to know how much protein to eat? While everyone’s protein needs will vary, I recommend aiming for at least 20-30 grams of protein per meal and at least 10 grams of protein per snack. Including high-protein snacks in your day can help maintain blood sugar, promote satiety, and give you another opportunity to eat protein that you may have missed at meal times.
Cottage cheese as a protein snack
What To Look For In A High Protein Snack?
There are a few things I recommend paying attention to when choosing a high protein snack and that is the quantity of protein, the quality of protein, and how to pair your protein with other nutritious options.
Quantity of protein: Want to know how much protein to eat? I generally like to see about at least 10 grams of protein per snack and 20-30 grams of protein per meal. This recommendation is a jump off point and should be tailored to the individual, but it is a good starting point to ensure you are building up satisfying meals and snacks that can help you meet your protein goal.
Quality of protein: It’s important to know that not all protein sources are created equal. Most often, you want to choose high quality, complete proteins because they provide your body with all of the amino acids (or building blocks) our bodies need. Animal proteins like meat, milk, dairy products, eggs, and more are all examples of high quality proteins that can be incorporated into meals and snacks. Dairy, eggs, yogurt, and cheese are high quality, vegetarian protein options to choose from. If you are vegetarian or vegan, some complete plant proteins to choose are edamame, tofu, and quinoa. You can also pair plant products together to ensure that you are getting your essential amino acids.
Pairings: with all this protein talk, it can be tempting to choose a snack that only contains protein but protein tends to work best when it is paired with other macronutrients. To build up a high protein and balanced snack, I recommend pairing a high quality protein with a higher fiber carbohydrate and top with some healthy fats.
Protein Powder for Protein
5 Easy, High Protein Snack Ideas?
If you are looking for some easy, high protein snack ideas then you might like to try:
Beef Jerky + raspberries
Beef jerky is one of my favorite grab and go high quality protein options. While the sodium content can come under fire, there are many brands out there that keep the sodium in check while still creating a delicious protein snack. Pair beef jerky with high fiber raspberries to build up a high protein and colorful snack.
Ranch Cottage Cheese + carrots and broccoli
This is a good example of a high protein vegetarian snack (assuming you include dairy products). Cottage cheese is low in calorie, high in protein, and has a very mild flavor making it easy to incorporate in recipes. Sprinkle your favorite savory seasoning into your cottage cheese and stir it up to make a delicious, high protein veggie dip. Looking for more ways to eat cottage cheese? Here are 10 ways to use cottage cheese!
A spinach and berry smoothie with milk
Blending 8 oz of milk with your smoothie is a delicious way to get in high quality protein, vitamin D, calcium, and b vitamins.
Smashed edamame and avocado with Triscuit crackers
This is a great high protein vegan snack example because soy products, like edamame, are also a complete protein which can sometimes be hard to find in plants. Avocado not only adds heart healthy fats, but is also high in fiber making it a great pairing for your edamame protein. Smash them together to form a mix and eat with whole grain crackers like Triscuits.
Greek yogurt and banana spread on whole wheat toast
If it is protein you are after, Greek yogurt is always a great choice for snack. Greek yogurt is created through a different straining process which makes it higher in protein and lower in carbohydrate than regular yogurt. This is another great high protein vegetarian snack option. Try to keep the added sugar <6g and the protein at 10g or higher for a snack. Top Greek yogurt with nuts or spread it onto whole wheat toast for a balanced, high fiber snack idea.
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Disclaimer: please note that I am a registered dietitian but I am not YOUR registered dietitian. This information is meant to be educational and should not be used as personalized medical or nutrition advice.
Hey! I’m Lauren
I’m a registered dietitian and my goal is to give you tips and tricks to make healthy eating fun, easy, and even delicious!