Protein is an incredibly important food that's needed to help achieve and maintain a body recomposition goal (losing body fat while maintaining muscle mass).
In fact, this was a huge revelation for me throughout my body recomposition journey.
As I increased my protein intake from high quality sources, I saw my body change in many different ways.
My skin improved, I lost body fat, I increased healthy muscle mass, my energy levels stabilized and my anxiety decreased.
Protein foods are also rich in necessary nutrients like essential amino acids, iron, vitamin A, choline, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids.
But growing up I was a vegetarian and I only started eating some dairy and meat-based products in late high school. Even then, I mostly only relied on chicken, some cheese and maybe eggs.
This meant I had very little variety and would quickly get burned out with my meals.
It wasn't until I started to introduce additional (and more nutrient dense) proteins that I started to love my meals and feel even more nourished.
Today I'm sharing the 6 high protein foods I wish I started eating earlier that helped support my body recomposition journey while also providing variety (as well as nutritional variety) with my meals.
Chuck Roast
I know this might sound basic to a lot of people who grew up eating meat.
I grew up as a vegetarian, so chuck roast was a very recent revelation for me.
For those who aren't familiar, chuck roast is a fairly inexpensive cut of beef that's often used for pot roast.
It's very high in protein as well as other important nutrients like bioavailable iron.
Beef in general is also one of those most satieting foods, which means it helps to shut off hunger and cravings.
I'm particularly a fan of chuck roast because it's kind of a difficult meat to mess up if you're new to cooking meat.
You simply sear it on all sides and then let it slow cook with seasonings and a bit of water or broth. The end result is a satisfying and tender meat that never fails to impress.
Plus, if you have a family or a lot of people to feed, it's an excellent protein source to cook on a budget.
Canned Tuna
I hated all types of fish growing up because I was never exposed to it.
But tuna and salmon in particular are great sources of quality protein and anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids (salmon is higher than tuna, but both are still great).
I love that canned tuna is extremely accessible and generally available to everyone in canned form.
Being a new mom, finding time to prep and cook protein at lunch is pretty much impossible.
So having a pre-cooked protein that's rich in nutrients already in my pantry that I can just dump on a salad or quickly whip up into a tuna salad is an absolute game changer.
I love the brand Safe Catch because they test for mercurcy. You can find them HERE.
Ground Beef
This is also probably a "basic" ingredient for you if you grew up eating meat.
I did not, so this was another game changer for me.
Ground beef, like the chuck roast, is fairly inexpensive when compared to other cuts of meat.
It also has the same nutritional benefits as chuck roast.
However, unlike the chuck roast, ground beef is very versatile and can be used in 10 minute meals or slow cooked meals.
I love that I can make a quick beef and veggie sauté in 10 minutes when I'm in a pinch or I can make more complex and flavorful dishes like meatballs or slow cooked bolognese.
Skyr
Skyr is a type of high protein yogurt. It's similar to greek yogurt, but skyr tends to have even more protein.
Both skyr and greek yogurt are significantly higher in protein than regular yogurt. When you opt for the full-fat variety, they both are also packed with vitamin K2, which is incredibly important for bone and heart health.
With just 1 1/4 cup skyr, you can get a whopping 30 grams of complete protein!
I love using skyr (or greek yogurt) as the base of a yogurt bowl or as a topping to my protein waffles and pancakes.
Whole Milk
Because I didn't grow up eating dairy, I used to be quite lactose intolerant.
However, after years of healing my gut with Intermittent Fasting and slowly incorporating various dairy products, I can now have some whole milk without the stomache ache I used to get.
And whole milk is a great source of bioavailable calcium.
It does have some protein, but it's not very high. One cup has around 8 grams of protein.
I don't rely on whole milk as a main protein source of a meal.
However, I do like to add whole milk into meals for a boost of protein as well as vitamin K2 and calcium.
I'll add it into my bolognese, make a whole milk latte or I'll whip up my delish zero added sugar hot chocolate for a nutrient dense treat at the end of the day.
Cottage Cheese
Even though cottage cheese is fairly low in lactose, it used to be an issue for my gut, before I had healed it with Intermittent Fasting.
I remember first trying cottage cheese about 8 years ago and immediately loving it. But sadly, the stomach pains I experienced immediately after were not worth it for me.
But once my gut had healed and I slowly ate more and more dairy, I'm now at a point where I can eat a whole tub of cottage cheese without any issues.
Which is great, because cottage cheese is very high in protein.
Just 1 1/4 cup (depending on the brand) has around 30 grams complete protein.
I love dumping cottage cheese into a bowl with some fruit and nuts for a simple three ingredient, high protein lunch.
Looking for other ways to sneak protein into your diet?
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