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The best high-protein snacks can serve a vital role: Meeting your protein goals can be a challenge if you go hard at the gym. Without getting enough protein, you won’t be able to maintain or build muscle. Hopefully, you’re already getting protein at every meal, but it can still be tough to hit your number, and the right snacks are can helps The key is having some of the macronutrient readily accessible, so here are 10 high-protein snack ideas—all recommended by registered dietitians.
What’s Considered a “High Protein” Snack, Anyway?
You already know that protein is important, but maybe things get fuzzy when it comes to how much you should aim to get each day. Registered dietitian and From Burnout to Balance author Patricia Bannan, MS, RDN, says that while individual needs vary based on one’s weight, age, and activity level, a good general rule to follow is consuming .8 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight and between 1.2 to 2.0 grams per kilogram of bodyweight if you’re working out regularly or super active.
Take someone who weighs 180 pounds, or 82 kilograms. For the minimum protein requirement (0.8 grams per kg), multiply that by 0.8, which comes out to 65 grams.
While hitting your daily protein goal is important, registered dietitian Andy De Santis, RD, suggests not to get too obsessive. “A protein target is important, but so is having an overall balanced diet,” he says. If you’re eating the same high-protein foods continuously instead of a wider range of nutrient-rich foods just to stay under a certain calorie budget, De Santis says it’s time to take a step back and reevaluate. What’s most important, he says, is eating a wide variety of nutrient-rich foods so you’re getting a broad mix of everything the body needs.
With all of this in mind, what exactly is considered a high-protein snack? Registered dietitian Kristin Kirkpatrick, RD, says this depends on someone’s individual protein goals, but she considers a high-protein snack to be something with between 10 and 25 grams of protein. Any less than that, wouldn’t be considered “high protein” and any more than that is veering into meal territory, not a snack.
When Is a Good Time to Eat a High-Protein Snack?
“What’s most important is hitting your daily protein target. From there, you can consider how you’re meeting that target throughout the day,” De Santis says, emphasizing that this is where high-protein snacks come in handy. “High-protein snacks can help close the gap between the protein people are getting at their meals and their daily goal,” he says.
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Photographs: Getty Images; Collage: Armando Zaragoza
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