The Protein Mistakes Slowing Your Progress

00:00I think this one surprises people the most. Protein is the most satiating macronutrient, meaning the more protein that you have in the day nutritionally, it's going to keep you fuller for longer than carbs or fat do. As you age, the muscle building signal is being lowered. Your body is having a less efficient time at converting the protein into muscle tissue. So as you age, you need more than someone that's actually younger than you in the protein category.

00:35What's going on, everyone? Hey, you guys. Welcome back to another episode of The WarriorBabe Show with your host, Nikkie Stott. And on these episodes, we talk about mindset, methodologies, and tactics that will help you lose body fat, build muscle, be strong, and feel insanely confident. In today's episode, it is a topic that you have heard me talk about many, many, many, many times. Stay with me, though, because you can never get enough of this topic, in my opinion.

01:07And maybe today, when I dive into talking about protein and all the things about protein and why it's so important, there may be some new things that come out of this episode today that leave you learning something new about either how to implement it or how to get more of it or just how to make sure you're staying consistent with it throughout the day. And we're going to dive into various different topics when it comes to this today. We're going to talk about the incomplete and the complete again. We're going to talk about pre and post. We're going to talk about making sure you know how much you're getting. We're going to talk about all of this stuff, okay?

01:39And I want to go deeper than just like a generic protein conversation, okay? We're talking about all of those things that I just said and like what your body uses it for, why it matters as you're getting older, and like all of those things, all right? And again, just stay with me. If you are new, this is going to be extremely valuable to you. If you are somebody that has been listening to this podcast over and over and over again, you've heard me talk about protein many, many, many times. But I will tell you that the more that I've learned in my coaching career that I repeat things over and over and over again,

02:12there may be just this one line or this one part in this episode today that makes the light bulb go off that maybe didn't in the last time that you heard me talking about protein, okay? By the end of this, I hope that you guys are going to understand protein at just a level that is genuinely going to change what you do with your food moving forward. So let's start with the most important part of the protein conversation, which is the protein foundation because I never want to assume that everyone is starting from the same place.

02:43Like I said, some of you guys are beginners. Some of you guys are more advanced. But some of you that may be just getting started, you just need to know that protein is one of the three macronutrients alongside carbohydrates and fats. But protein is very unique. While carbs and fats are primarily energy sources, protein is a structural macronutrient. It is your body's primary building material, which right there is like, I know a lot of you don't get enough protein.

03:14This should be just a light bulb right there that like, I don't get enough protein. That's why I'm probably not building my hair and my skin the way that I want to or my nails the way I want to, my skin is getting, you know, breaking out or why my muscles aren't growing, right? There is a building material. So your body uses protein every single day, building and repairing muscle tissue, producing every enzyme and hormone inside of your body, building and maintaining your immune system. Like I said, supporting your hair, your skin and your nails,

03:45transporting oxygen through your blood and keeping your metabolism running efficiently. And I think this one surprises people the most. Protein is the most satiating macronutrient, meaning the more protein that you have in the day nutritionally, it's going to keep you fuller for longer than carbs or fat do for your body. If you are somebody that just eats snacks and fats during the day,

04:15you're going to find yourself hungry at the end of the day because you didn't give your body the most satiating macronutrient, which is protein. Okay. Protein is made up of smaller building blocks that are called amino acids. And I want you guys, I've said this before, think about amino acids like individual Lego pieces. Your body breaks down the protein that you eat into these amino acids and then it uses them to build and repair whatever it needs. Muscle, hormones, enzyme, tissue, all of it. This is why personally, you're going to hear people say, yeah, take BCAAs.

04:49I personally think that your most important focus that you could do is making sure you're just getting enough protein in your day instead of wasting money on a supplement. Because this is going to give you exactly what that supplement is giving you. And you're probably spending more money on a supplement than you are on a pack of chicken. Just some food for thought. Now, there are 20 amino acids total. Nine of them are called essential amino acids, meaning your body cannot make them on its own. You have to get them from food.

05:22And whether you are consistently getting all nine of them is one of the most important nutritional questions that you can ask about your diet today. And then there are complete and incomplete proteins. That's where they come in. And we'll get there in a few minutes. But first, I want to talk about why protein is especially critical for women listening to this. Because I know a lot of you guys are women who are 35, who are 40, who are 45, who are 50, who are in their 60s.

05:55And I just want to really lean in here. Because as we age, something called sarcopenia begins to occur. Sarcopenia is the natural age-related loss of muscle loss. And it can start as early as our mid-30s, you guys. After 40, the rate of muscle loss accelerates if we are not actively doing something to counteract it. And here's why that matters beyond just like the way that you physically look.

06:27Just a reminder for some of you that have been listening to this for episodes on episodes. Muscle is metabolically active tissue. Meaning, it burns calories at rest significantly more than fat tissue does. So as you lose muscle, your metabolism slows down. Your body needs then less energy to function. So fat storage just becomes easier to your body at that point. And suddenly you are eating the same way that you've always been.

06:59But your body is responding completely differently. This is not, you know, all in your head. This is just how the body works. And protein is one of the most powerful tools. You have to fight back against this. There's also something called anabolic resistance that increases as we age as well. Meaning, your body becomes less efficient at converting the protein that you eat into muscle tissue. The muscle building signals gets blurred over time.

07:32Which means that as you age, you actually need more protein than younger women to get this same muscle building response. Not less. Which a lot of you guys think, I need to eat less. I need to eat less. Because it's going to help me to lose more weight. But that's actually, I know this all sounds very counterproductive to the way you've, or counterintuitive to what you've learned. But just trust me here, please. Because we've helped over 21,000 women inside of Warrior Babe. And on the other side, they have now more muscle.

08:04Their metabolism is revving. They're losing the weight. They're getting more toned, right? So it's like, then they believe these things coming in. They thought I had to eat less and eat less. But that wasn't getting them anywhere in terms of results. As you age with these things that are happening, this is why you need more. Because the muscle building signal is being lowered. Your body is having a less efficient time at converting the protein into muscle tissue that you eat into muscle tissue.

08:34So as you age, you need more than someone that's actually younger than you in the protein category. This is why the I think I eat enough protein claim needs to be examined honestly. Where somebody is like, I think I eat enough protein. For someone that is over the age of 35, enough is higher than most people think. Most people, most women are significantly under eating in protein. And the consequences of that is muscle loss, muscle breakdown, low energy, and reduced strength.

09:08They are very real. These are very real. The consequences of that are very real over time. Some of you may be already experiencing that. And if you could just look at one thing in your day, am I eating enough protein? Now, and I'm going to challenge that thought because I hear that all the time. I would say, do you actually know how much you are eating? Because a lot of women, when they actually break it down for me, I'll be like, what does that look like to you? What does that mean to you? And they break it down. They're still only eating 80 grams of protein.

09:40So I'll have some eggs for breakfast. I'll have some chicken for lunch. And then I'll have something for dinner. That is nowhere near. I'm going to make it make sense in a second. So just think about that. And a lot of people in the space I've talked to before have been like, oh, well, that's just like the bodybuilding world. Like protein is just for bodybuilders. It's not just for bodybuilders. It is for every woman who wants to maintain strength, support their metabolism, and feel good in her body. At every age, especially as you get older.

10:11Quick break. If you're finding this episode helpful so far, it would mean a lot if you could hit pause for just a second, leave a quick rating or a review, or share it with someone who could benefit from it. Your support helps more women discover these tools to build muscle, lose fat, and feel confident. Thank you so much for being a part of this journey with me. Okay, so let me, what I pinned earlier, which was the complete and incomplete proteins. I just want to bring this up again here.

10:41I've talked about this before, but back to those nine essential amino acids, right? Because this is where the quality conversation gets really important. Quality, not quantity. Quantity is the amount of protein that you eat in a day. Quality is the sources of where you're getting it from. And if it's good or not. A complete protein is a protein source that contains all nine essential amino acids in adequate amounts. When you eat a complete protein, you are giving your body the full set of building blocks that it needs to do its job.

11:18Complete proteins are examples of, they're primarily animal-based proteins, but they are chicken, they are turkey, they are beef, pork, eggs, fish, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, seafood, whey protein, white fish, haddock, tilapia, cod. An incomplete protein is a protein source that is missing one or more of those essential amino acids. It's still healthy. It's still valuable.

11:48But it's not giving your body the complete picture on its own. In my personal opinion, America, I've said this before, it needs to make more options of protein. Because I get it and I feel, you guys, I don't want to eat that kind of stuff. It's boring and I have to eat it repetitively. And there's not a lot of options I can choose. Like there's from carbs and fats. If I could do something about it, I totally would. But until America decides to make more protein sources, this is what we got, guys. All right?

12:19So yeah, incomplete proteins, they're primarily more plant-based. So think nuts, nut butters, beans, lentils, oats, rice, vegetables. But here's what I need you to understand. And this is where a lot of women get stuck without realizing it is you can be eating plenty of grams of protein and still not getting a complete amino acid profile. And most of your protein is coming from incomplete sources. Peanut butter, almonds, oatmeal, chickpeas.

12:52Oh, this has protein in it. That's good. It has 7 grams. It has 10 grams. Your body is not getting the full signal that it needs to build and repair muscle efficiently. So this is why two women can eat the same number of protein grams in a day and get very different results. The quality and the completeness of the protein source matter big time. Like they're complete game changers. If you eat primarily plant-based, you can absolutely still get complete proteins through complementary proteins.

13:23So the way that I explain this is you can combine two incomplete protein sources that together cover all nine essential amino acids. So the classic example is like rice and beans. Incomplete on their own but complete together. Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause?

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14:28Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warriorbabe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation. That's warriorbabe.com forward slash apply. All right, let's get back to the show. So, but for most women that are focused on like, you know, body composition goals and toning, the most efficient strategy is anchoring your meals around complete protein sources first.

15:02So everything else can build around that. All right, so I just wanted to just add that little, I've talked about it before. There's a whole episode on incomplete proteins. I dive into talking about it over like 30 minutes. So if you're interested, I would go find that. But I just wanted to plug that into this episode since we're talking about all things protein. Now, I want to get a little bit more specific because eat more protein is not a number, and numbers are what actually change behaviors, right? So we talked about the quality of it. Now, into the quantity of it, the research on protein for active women that are targeting that

15:39body composition change, it consistently in a broader range points to 0.7 to 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight per day. Now, for women over 40, 35, over 40, getting older, I highly recommend that you lean more towards the higher end of that range because of what we've already all talked about here on this episode so far. And it's beneficial given what we know about that anabolic resistance that we just learned

16:10a couple of minutes ago. So if you weigh 150 pounds, for example, this is just for example, you guys, if you want to learn exactly what your numbers seem to be, you can either grab, go check out our macro method, which is going to have you take an assessment and it's going to give your protein numbers inside of the course and then also just so much more. Or you can get a VIP coach and work one-on-one with a VIP coach to help you through all of this. WarriorBabe.com. Check it out. So if you weigh 150 pounds, you're looking at roughly 0.7 to 150 is like 105 to 150 grams

16:51of protein per day. If you weigh 175 pounds, then you're looking at around like 120, 120-ish grams to 175 grams. I'm not going to quick math. If you are somebody that is like 250 pounds, okay, I'm not going to tell you to eat like anywhere from 200 to 250 grams of protein. I'm going to say, what is your goal weight that you want to get to that is realistic? Typically, it's like, let's start at 200 first.

17:22Okay, cool. Then we'll go on the either high end to middle spectrum of what that protein looks like in a day. And I know for a lot of women, that number sounds so high, more than what they're currently eating. And that gap between like what you're eating and what your body actually needs is one of the most common reasons women are not seeing the results that they're working for, looking for. So I just want to make it realistic in what it looks like in a real day and not let it overwhelm

17:54you and think that it's just this high number that is just seems so unattainable. 150 grams of protein looks like this in a real day. If you have three whole eggs in the beginning of the day, that is roughly 18 grams of protein. You could even just have one egg and have mainly egg whites and that's going to help you get more protein, putting you up into like the 20 range of grams. Then let's say for lunch, you have six ounces of a chicken breast. That's not a lot, you guys. That's roughly like 45 to 50 grams of protein right there.

18:27And then maybe for like a snack mid-afternoon, you have roughly, you have like Greek yogurt. That's around 20 grams of protein. Then let's say after a workout, you have a whey protein shake. That's like 25 grams of protein. And then for dinner, let's say you just have like salmon or some type of other protein source. Six ounces of salmon is roughly like 40 grams of protein. It's not, when you break it down like that, it is completely achievable, but it requires intention.

18:58And it requires knowing what your number is. Not just broadly saying, eat more protein. We're not just broadly saying, I eat a lot of protein already. I think I eat a lot of protein. I get enough protein in a day. No, no, no. No, if you, if I ask you how much, do you know your number on what you're getting in a day? And you say no, I don't believe anything in that statement that you just said before. Okay. It requires you to have intention. It requires you to strategize. It requires you to take this seriously.

19:30Okay. So now I've heard, again, all things protein. You know, I want to dive into the, the, the timing, the protein timing, because I think that this is something that is a very, it's like thrown around there in the fitness space. And it's kind of like a gray area for a lot of people. First, before we dive into it, I just want to introduce you guys. If, if you haven't heard me talk about this before, introduce you to it. If you haven't really talked about it before, I'm going to reintroduce you to it, to a concept

20:01called muscle protein synthesis. This is the process by which your body builds new muscle tissue. Every time that you eat protein, you trigger a muscle protein synthesis response, meaning your body uses the amino acids from that protein to repair and to build muscle. Here's the critical thing to understand about muscle protein synthesis. It has a ceiling per meal. So there's been research around this, that a single meal triggers a maximum muscle protein

20:34synthesis at roughly 30 to 50 grams of protein for most women. So eating 80 grams of protein in one sitting does not produce a proportionally bigger response than eating 40 grams of protein. Your body can only use so much of at once for building muscle and repairing muscle. The rest gets kind of, it gets used for other functions. And I'm going to talk about this in a second, because that's a myth that I also have to debunk. It doesn't get stored as fat. It just gets used for other functions. But primarily for those of you guys that want to build muscle and be more toned, essentially

21:06you're wasting the protein that's not going to get utilized for muscle protein synthesis. This is why spreading your protein evenly across three to four meals throughout the day is so much more effective than loading it all into one or two meals. And I know I'm talking to the babes or women that are listening to this, that macro hoard at the end of the day, and they have to get their protein in. Think about it this way. If your goal is 150 grams of protein per day, there's option one. There's a lot of what a lot of you guys are doing right now.

21:37There's 10 grams of breakfast. There's 15 grams at lunch. And then there's this mass flood of protein intake at dinner. 100 grams plus. One big protein response at the end of the day. Meaning minimal muscle protein synthesis for the rest of the day. For most of the day, there's been minimal muscle proteins and this is to be triggered to have that response. Option B is 40 grams of breakfast, 40 grams at lunch.

22:10And you can make it smaller. 30 grams, have a snack. But you get my point. 30, 40 grams at dinner, 30 grams from a snack. There's four separate muscle protein synthesis events spread throughout the day. Same total protein, dramatically different results. Because in option B, your body is getting consistent signals all day to build and repair muscle. And this matters so much for women as we age.

22:41Because remember the anabolic resistance? This means that the muscle protein synthesis response is also getting blunted. It's also getting somewhat muted out. Maximizing the number of times per day that you trigger it is one of the most powerful strategies available to you as you get older. So the practical takeaway here is that, especially as you're getting older, every meal needs a meaningful, complete protein source. Not a sprinkle of protein.

23:13Not like I had almonds or I had peanut butter and I got my protein in there and I added more protein to it. No, a real complete source. So 30 to 50 grams, breakfast, lunch, dinner, and ideally having like a protein-rich snack. And you could even have a fifth meal in there after you're somebody that's like hungry, hungry, hungry. Or just break it down like that. That is the rhythm that your body needs. Now, if you're going to look at something when it comes to, if you're going to audit your nutrition, one thing about your nutrition after this episode, audit your protein distribution.

23:46I am willing to bet that most of you are backloading your protein heavily at dinner. Hopefully you understand why this is costing you results. Now, another question I get is like timing around workouts. What about timing around your workouts, Nikki? You've probably heard about like the anabolic window, right? The idea that you need to consume protein within 30 minutes of finishing a workout or the gains disappear. That concept is heavily amplified by the supplement industry because

24:17it conveniently made protein shakes feel urgent and necessary. So, the more current research, the more up-to-date research tells a more complete story. The post-workout anabolic window is real. It's very true. That is factual. But it is wider than 30 minutes. The elevated muscle protein synthesis response after a workout can persist up to 24 to 48 hours.

24:55Now, what matters most is not whether you drank a protein shake within 30 minutes of your last rep, but it matters whether you are consistently eating adequate protein across the entire day. Okay? Okay? So, what I said is like the response after a workout, that muscle protein synthesis response goes upwards of a day to two days. So, it doesn't matter if you consume something within 30 minutes. It just, you just need to make sure that you get adequate sources across your entire day.

25:25Now, that said, having protein around your workout is extremely beneficial. So, a protein-containing meal, like at least one hour to an hour and a half before training helps to make sure that your body is getting those amino acids and they're circulating around during your workout internally. And then a protein-containing meal within at least one to one and a half hours after training supports recovery and it maximizes the muscle protein synthesis response, your workout triggered.

26:01Now, I want to highlight that because I think there's a lot of women, and I have also been the coach to say that you should get something within 30 minutes to 45 minutes. However, like I say, I'm not a good coach unless I continue to keep studying and continue to keep up with the news and continue to keep up with the things that I believe are true and challenge the things that I don't believe are true. I would say that getting closer to that one hour mark is important and just being that person that just gets in the habit of carrying the protein shake with you

26:31when you're going to work out. So, like, for example, what I do is I put it in my gym, my workout bag, and then after my workout, when I'm driving home, I'm sipping on my protein on my way home. If you know that you're immediately going home afterwards, like, I would just make sure because you can get in the house and, like, things can be distracting. I would just recommend that you just have your protein ready to go. I always recommend regardless that you have your meals packed the day before and you already know what you're going to eat the next day.

27:01So, for most women, just eating regular protein-containing meals throughout the day, those windows are naturally covered, okay? So, I just want to say you don't need to stress about, like, the antibiotic window is real, but it's wider than you think. So, just focus on totals and distribution of your protein. That's where your results live. That's what matters the most. Okay, so before we start closing out this episode, I want to talk about myths that need to die.

27:32Like, these myths need, I need to close a loop. You guys know me. I'm a loop closer because some of these are generally holding women back and they need to just, poof, be gone. I've heard myths around, if you eat too much protein, that's going to make, it will store extras as body fat. So, first and foremost, yes, any macronutrient that is consumed in a significant excess of your total caloric needs will contribute to fat storage. It can contribute to fat storage.

28:03I mean, you're eating in a surplus at that point. But protein is actually the hardest macronutrient for your body to convert to fat. Meaning, I've talked about this before, but protein has a thermic effect as you digest it. Meaning, the energy that your body uses to digest it and process it. That is a thermic effect to protein. That is significantly higher than carbs and fats. So, your body burns roughly 20 to 30% of protein's calories just by processing and digesting it.

28:36So, for the vast majority of women, eating in a reasonable caloric range, high protein is not going to cause fat gain. It supports fat loss by preserving muscle and keeping you fuller. Myth number two is that high protein is going to damage your kidneys. Okay, so for healthy women with no pre-existing kidney conditions, the research does not support this at all.

29:08This concern originated from studies on individuals who already had compromised kidney function and which high protein can be problematic. But for healthy kidneys, processing higher protein intake is well within normal function. There's decades and decades and decades of research on athletes eating high protein diets that have not demonstrated to kidney damage in healthy populations, okay?

29:40Sorry, I just want to make that distinction. In healthy individuals, there's no evidence that supports that. If you have a known kidney condition, then I would recommend that you work with your doctor or a nutritionist on this. But for everyone else, high protein is not a kidney risk. There's another one that you can only absorb 30 grams of protein per meal. So yeah, your body can absolutely absorb and utilize more than 30 grams of protein

30:13from a single meal. What the research has shown is that muscle protein synthesis, though, like we talked about, maxes out around 30 to 50 grams per meal. So protein above that threshold is still being absorbed and it's being used for other functions. But just reminding you that that range of 30 to 50 is about optimizing your muscle building signal. It's not about your body absorption limits, okay? Because you can consume the 80 grams of protein

30:43if you want to in a day, but just remember in one meal, but just remember, not in a day, in one meal, that about half of that is going to go towards the goal that you have in mind of building muscle. Anything else, excess after that, it's going to be used for other functions in the body. So those are some of the main myths I want to debunk is eating too much protein is not going to make you store fat. High protein will not damage your kidneys

31:13if you are a healthy individual. And the fact that you can only absorb 30 grams of protein per meal, you can absorb more than that, but just remember, only upwards of 30 to 50 grams is going to help to optimize that muscle building aspect. So we covered a lot here today around protein, I think more than I have in any other episode. So a couple of things to just remind you of as we close out, anchor every meal around a complete protein source, whether that be chicken,

31:43beef, eggs, fish, great yogurt, cottage cheese, whey protein, build that meal first, spread it out, aim for like 30 to 50 grams at each meal across your breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack or two snacks. Don't let your protein live only at dinnertime. Don't backload it. Don't macro hoard protein at the end of the day. And don't stress about the exact like workout window on your protein intake. Carbs are a little bit different, but consistent daily protein distribution

32:15matters far more than hitting a 30 minute post-workout deadline to get your protein in. And ignore the myths. High protein is not going to hurt your kidneys, not going to make you gain fat, or any of the other things that you may have heard. It is one of the most powerful tools that you can have for your body composition, your metabolism, and overall long-term health. All right? So I'm sure some of you guys are going to go audit your protein intake for this week, and I highly recommend that you do. But I would look at it honestly. Look at it, look, log honestly, and look at it honestly.

32:46And see where you can maybe just use that data to tell you how to go about distributing or getting more protein in your day for the week following. And if you guys want to be inside of a community of women that are doing all of this work together, they're asking these same questions, they're sharing what's working, they're inside of the macro method, which is one of our $27 products that gets you inside to learn about macros, gets assessment, we try to make it as personal as possible, then come join us inside the Warrior Babe

33:16free community. It's completely free, but it's full of women in your exact season of life. And I'm biased, but I feel like it's one of the most supportive spaces on the internet that you can feel, it can feel real and practical around the conversations that are being had. So go check it out. It's in the show notes. And I will see you guys in the next episode. Hey, really quick, before you go, I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you,

33:48take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all of the difference, helping more women discover the tools they need to transform the fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path of someone else's journey. Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much.

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