First of all, I want to thank all the kind people who were very supportive of my first progress pic. It was very affirming to know that I’m off to a good start in my IF journey. Several people mentioned that I need to supplement my diet with protein, I was wondering if I could get advice about that.
I have no issue with staying committed to fasting and regular physical activity, however dieting isn’t in my forte mostly because it was something that didn’t cross my mind until my weight really started to show.
I fast 16-18 hours, 5 days a week. I’m not following any formal diet, but I’ve been cutting my portions in half. I eat only twice a day: the break of my fast (btw 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm) and dinner (btw 8 pm to 9 pm).
Meal 1 — typically a salad (with tofu or hard boiled eggs as protein) and fresh fruit. If I’m able to make it ahead of time, instead of salad I would make bone broth, either beef or fish depending on what’s on sale.
Meal 2 — my dinner usually consists of a cooked grain (rice or quinoa), a cooked vegetable, and some form of protein. My protein used to be poultry and beef but now I’m trying to switch to legumes and the occasional fish.
What protein sources should I add to my meals? I’m hesitant about adding protein supplements because I had a family member who ended up damaging their kidneys because they overdid it with the creatine powder. Generally, I avoided powdered protein either because the ones I tried tasted bad or had too many additives. Any recommendations are helpful, but I’d definitely prefer something that has natural ingredients.
Answer
Some non-meat sources of protein are dairy (hard cheeses, yogurt, cottage cheese), eggs, lentils, beans, nuts, and whole grains like oats or quinoa. If you want a bigger hit of protein you can eat tofu, seitan, or tempeh.