When it comes to fueling your hard-trained body, finding enough ways to consume more than enough protein each day can be a difficult task. As always, you look toward the bodybuilding staples: chicken, turkey, beef, steak, and eggs. They have an outstanding protein profile, containing most of all the essential amino acids—all of which are crucial to enhance muscle growth. And not only is it difficult to consume a significant amount of protein with those prime staples, it’s also boring. How many times can you eat a hard-boiled egg during the day?
With all that said, it’s time to start considering other protein options… ones that aren’t as mainstream. Enter: protein bread, protein chips, protein ice cream, and more. As for the protein chips and ice cream, they won’t destroy your fat or carb macros, containing little as 2 grams of fat and 5 grams of carbs. For once you’ll enjoy eating several times a day. Click on through to find out more about these protein alternatives and how to incorporate them into your daily eats, sample meal plan provided.
A lot of us like to start our day with a cup (or three) of joe. Unfortunately, that only scores us about .3 gram of protein. Brands like Javapro and Chike Nutrition have jacked java blends that have around 20 grams per cup — you do the math.
10. Protein Cereal
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When you’re in a morning rush, sometimes a bowl of cereal is the only thing stopping you from skipping the most important meal of the day. Standard bowls will net you about three of five grams of protein (not including milk), but there are plenty of affordable versions that will triple those numbers. For those willing to spend a little more, CDS Sports has a cereal with 25 grams of protein per serving!
9. Protein Water
Before you grab your pitchforks, no, we’re not saying that you should replace the original. You should be drinking about a gallon of water a day, so why not add a little protein while you hydrate? Some brands offer as much as 15 grams a bottle!
8. Protein Yogurt
Greek yogurt is a typical snack in a bodybuilder’s diet, but the six-ounce cup of it doesn’t do the protein macro justice. Enter: Powerful Yogurt, which contains 20 to 25 grams of protein per serving in an 8-ounce cup. Thanks to a larger container size, you’ll be able to efficiently fuel your protein needs during snack time.
7. Protein Bread
Have you ever thought that two slices of bread could give you 28 grams of protein? P28 is the maker of high protein bread where the bread is made with whey isolate, oat, flax seed, sunflower see, millet, and eight essential amino acids. And not only that, two slices of P28 bread will fuel your body with omega-3 fatty acids, which is essential for burning fat and building muscle. So swap out your old whole-wheat bread for P28.
6. Protein-Packed Dried Meat
Chowing down on plain beef jerky can get boring, that’s why there’s Epic Bites—bite-size pieces of grass fed beef. Just six pieces alone provides nine grams of protein, vitamin E, B vitamins, and omega-3s, all of which are needed to fuel your hard trained muscles. Also Epic Bites come in a variety of meats: bison, bacon, beef chicken, and beef liver.
5. Protein Chips
Chips have been the answer to many snacking question, but the carb overload and sodium can squash one’s macro profile for the day. So for the days when you want to grab a bag of chips, choose Quest Protein Chips. You’ll be able to fuel your cravings guilt-free with 21 grams of protein and 5 grams of net carbs.
4. Protein Ice Cream
Healthy ice cream? Yes it does exist; Halo Top ice cream is low in calories, high in protein, and low in sugar. At six grams of protein and 60 calories per serving, consider ending a long training day with a little ice cream. You’ve worked hard for it, and dieting should be fun.
3. Protein Soup
Look, we’ll be honest, we don’t know how this one tastes. That said, if you’re looking for a protein-cereal-level-effort meal for the evening, look no further. NutriWise has a line of high-protein soups that clock in around 15 grams of protein and only 80 calories a bowl.
2. Guyere Cheese
For any cheesemongers out there, guyere has a sweet, salty taste with a hint of earthy flavors. For straight-up bodybuiders, it’s just the cheese that has the most grams of protein per slice (8 grams). Melt it in your mac & cheese or shred it on your protein pizza for some gourmet gains.
1. Protein Peanut Butter
The one downside to peanut butter is its fat content, that’s not the case with it’s supp-infused brother. Nuts N’ More Peanut Butter boasts 12 grams of protein and only nine grams of fat. That’s half the fat of Jif Peanut Butter and twice as much protein — hallelujah!
The Meal Plan
Meal 1
Protein Cereal & Coffee
1 scoop CTD Sports isoLicious protein cereal
1 cup non-fat milk
1 1/2 scoops Javapro
12 oz water
1 cup mixed fresh fruit
Totals: 383 calories, 1.5g fat, 36g carbs, 54g protein
Meal 2
Snack
1 Powerful Yogurt
1/2 cup Nature Valley Crunchy Granola Protein: Oat’s N Dark Chocolate
1/4 cup blackberries
Totals: 261 calories, 25g fat, 30g carbs, 30g protein
Meal 3
Beet Chicken Wrap
1 P28 Protein Wrap
3 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup sliced beets
1/2 cup raw baby spinach
1 oz semisoft goat cheese
2 tbsp Newman’s Own Light Balsamic Vinaigrette
Totals: 582 calories, 22g fat, 31g carbs, 61g protein
