Follow By Email: Your Top Nutrition Questions of 2022 💚

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Happy New Year!
We're continuing our tradition of answering your most frequently asked nutrition questions from the year! Check out our latest blogs at the end of this email and our sample meal plans for recipe inspiration this month. We have many exciting nutrition resources planned for 2023 and will release the Eleat Endurance Fueling Guide late January!

WHAT ARE YOUR BEST TIPS FOR WEIGHT GAIN?
The graphic below lists a few tips to successfully gain weight. Writing down what you eat for at least a few days can be a great tool to identify where you may be falling short. Athletes looking to gain weight should be eating frequently and incorporating calorie-dense snacks. Click the graphic for more information on these tips, and click here for my performance weight gain manual.

HOW CAN I INCREASE MY PROTEIN INTAKE?
Adequate protein intake is critical for the growth and maintenance of lean muscle mass, but we often see individuals struggling to meet their needs. Below are a few of our top tips for increasing your protein intake throughout the day.

Eat consistently throughout the day. It can be tough to meet your daily protein needs if you are only eating 1-2x a day. Eating every 3-4 hours not only makes it easier to get in more protein, but also supports optimal muscle growth. Aim to include a protein-rich food at every meal and snack throughout the day.
Choose higher protein snacks. Foods like edamame, Greek yogurt, string cheese, cottage cheese, eggs, jerky, and canned tuna are all great options to help increase your protein intake.
Choose leaner cuts or types of meat and poultry. Choosing leaner cuts of protein can help you get in more protein for the same portion size. For example: 4 oz. of 70/30 ground beef contains about 17 grams of protein, while the same portion size of 90/10 ground beef contains 24 grams of protein!
Choose a higher protein pasta. Swap regular pasta on occasion for a higher protein alternative like whole wheat, or legume-based like chickpea or lentil. This lentil pasta contains nearly twice as much protein, along with fiber, iron, and magnesium!

WHAT IS CREATINE? SHOULD I BE USING IT?
Creatine is a compound that occurs naturally in the body, and is found in foods like meat, poultry, and seafood. A majority is stored in your body's muscles as phosphocreatine. Phosphocreatine helps provide energy for short, high-intensity exercise. Supplementation with creatine increases intramuscular creatine concentrations and has been shown to enhance sprint performance, maximal strength and power, and have positive effects on lean muscle mass.

Creatine supplementation may be beneficial for any individual consistently training at high-intensities and weight training. Vegan and vegetarian athletes may especially benefit from supplementation. If you decide to supplement, we 3-5 grams per day of creatine monohydrate and to only use products that are third-party tested (Informed Sport or NSF Certified for Sport).

WHAT SHOULD I LOOK FOR IN A PROTEIN POWDER?
We recently reviewed 50 different protein powders to compile a list of our top recommended products. When looking for a protein powder, we recommend a product that contains minimal ingredients with at least 20 grams of protein and 2 grams of leucine per serving. Choose a product that uses only whey isolate or a combination or whey and concentrates. For plant-based powders, choose a product that uses multiple protein sources (brown rice, pea, soy, etc.) to achieve a similar amino acid profile to whey. We recommend avoiding ingredients like artificial sweeteners, sugar alcohols, and carrageenan, as these can cause GI upset.
There is zero regulation when it comes to supplements, so you must always use caution when using them. Athletes should only use products that go through a third-party certification, such as NSF certified for sport, Informed Sport, or Banned Substance Control Group (BSCG). These certifications are required for athletes to ensure they aren't taking any illegal supplements; these certifications assure what's listed on the package is what's actually in the product. Even if you aren't in collegiate or professional sports, I still highly recommend seeking out a protein with this certification. Why? Because that means the product is constantly going through rigorous testing to make sure it's legit.