High-Protein Nutrition Advice for Muscle Maintenance

Maintaining muscle while on a weight loss journey is key for your overall health and progress. In this blog, we’ll share expert advice on how to incorporate more protein into your diet to support strength, recovery, and long-term health.

What is Protein?

Protein is an essential part of a healthy diet. It's made up of molecules called amino acids. These amino acids are the building blocks that help the human body repair, grow and maintain lean muscle mass during weight loss. The good news is that you can get all the protein you need from your diet.

Why is Protein Important?

GLP-1 medications can lead to a reduction in appetite. With a lower food intake, the risk of muscle mass loss is higher, so ensuring a high protein intake is crucial. Protein plays an important role in muscle preservation, supporting satiety, blood sugar regulation, immune functions and overall metabolic functions. Ensuring you eat enough daily protein will help to reduce the loss of lean muscle mass that typically results when using GLP-1 medications. 

How to Increase Protein Intake?

• Add at least one protein source to each meal
• Swap typical foods for high protein options like bread for eggs or pasta for beans
• Eat high protein snacks
• Drink protein shakes for convenient access to protein

Examples of Protein-rich Food:

• Low fat dairy such as skimmed milk, low fat cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese
• Dairy alternatives such as soya-based products such as tofu, soya yogurt
• Bean, pulses, lentils, chickpeas, edamame, black beans, kidney beans, haricot beans, cannellini beans, green peas
• Whole grains, oats, quinoa, buckwheat, millet, teff, amaranth, sorghum
• Eggs
• White fish, oily fish such as salmon, pilchards
• Poultry such as chicken, turkey 
• Seafood
• Nuts
• Seeds
• Whey powders
• Protein powders
• Skimmed milk powder

Interested in more nutrition guidance?

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About Mei Wan

‍Mei Wan, BSc (Hons), is a Registered Dietitian and Nutritionist and Levity Consultant. Mei obtained her nutrition and dietetics honours degree from the University of Surrey, UK, in 2014. She works across a wide array of specialisms, such as sustainable weight management, type 2 diabetes remission, PCOS, (peri-)menopause, heart health, fatty liver, and habit change. Mei advocates enhancing lifespan through delicious, science-backed nutrition advice.