The One Amino Acid You Should Be Eating to Lose 62% More Fat
There are far too many fad diets out there that skimp on real nutrition, and worse, sell pre-packaged foods that are called ‘low fat’ when they also include GMOs, MSG, and a host of artificial colors and flavors. Aside, from simply detoxing your body so that you can lose weight safely, research shows that eating more protein, and specifically one amino acid in particular, can boost your metabolic rate 3 times more than eating a diet high in fat and simple carbs.
Some think it is as simple as calories in, calories out to lose weight – meaning what you eat in excess, you have to work hard to lose. But weight loss and maintenance isn’t always that simple, and it doesn’t always work like that. For example, numerous studies have shown that eating more protein can really boost weight loss, and the body doesn’t recognize ‘calories’ as we have defined them up until now.
This works, in part, because protein takes longer to digest, and can significantly curb hunger cravings. Protein can also help to balance blood glucose and lipid levels, too. Even better, you don’t need to consume protein that is from animals; even vegetarians can boost their protein intake to find good results. (You just need to know some good vegetarian protein sources.)
What is a fairly new discovery in the ‘eat more protein’ camp is that a specific amino acid does a lot of the fat burning for you. This amino acid is called leucine. It helps to prevent the loss of muscle when you are losing fat, as well as helps to retain muscle that is normally lost due to aging. You may know that muscle burns more than fat, so it is very important to retain muscle when you are trying to slim down.
In one peer-reviewed study, participants lost twice as much weight when taking a leucine supplement as those who were given a placebo. Yet another study published in PLOS found a significant effect on adipose tissue (fat cells) when the amino acid leucine was given to mice.
One of the simplest and most effective tricks to losing weight may be to increase your protein intake, but to make sure you are eating enough leucine. The amino acid leucine can be found in the following foods:
| Egg Whites | 4233 mg |
| Organic Soy Protein Isolate | 4226 mg |
| Organic Free Range Chicken | 3220 mg |
| Wild Caught Tuna | 3574 mg |
| Pacific Cod | 3459 mg |
| Buffalo | 3456 mg |
| Raw Spirulina | 3915 mg |
Well…this leaves vegans out.
no, you can get it in soy protein isolate (she mentions that above).
Yummy more Estrogen mimickers on top of the BPA you already eat…. no thanks.
Yummy more Estrogen mimickers on top of the BPA you already eat…. no thanks.
And spirulina
No, were good…..1
Seaweed, spirulina, rawLeucine: 3915mg
Seaweed, spirulina, driedLeucine: 3412mg
Pumpkin leaves, rawLeucine: 3347mg
Watercress, rawLeucine: 3017mg
Seaweed, laver, rawLeucine: 2862mg
Pumpkin leaves, cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 2610mg
Pumpkin leaves, cooked, boiled, drained, without saltLeucine: 2610mg
Horseradish-tree leafy tips, rawLeucine: 2472mg
Alfalfa seeds, sprouted, rawLeucine: 2322mg
Jute, potherb, rawLeucine: 2282mg
Turnip greens, frozen, cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 2118mg
Turnip greens, frozen, cooked, boiled, drained, without saltLeucine: 2118mg
Beans, kidney, mature seeds, sprouted, cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 2103mg
Beans, kidney, mature seeds, sprouted, cooked, boiled, drained, without saltLeucine: 2103mg
Beans, kidney, mature seeds, sprouted, rawLeucine: 2083mg
Turnip greens, frozen, unpreparedLeucine: 2055mg
Spinach, cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 2008mg
Spinach, cooked, boiled, drained, without saltLeucine: 2008mg
Spinach, rawLeucine: 1939mg
Spinach, canned, drained solidsLeucine: 1904mg
Taro leaves, rawLeucine: 1867mg
Taro leaves, cooked, steamed, without saltLeucine: 1783mg
Taro, leaves, cooked, steamed, with saltLeucine: 1783mg
Turnip greens, canned, solids and liquidsLeucine: 1771mg
Turnip greens and turnips, frozen, unpreparedLeucine: 1762mg
Soybeans, mature seeds, sprouted, cooked, stir-fried, with saltLeucine: 1760mg
Spinach, canned, no salt added, solids and liquidsLeucine: 1726mg
Spinach, canned, regular pack, solids and liquidsLeucine: 1726mg
Amaranth leaves, rawLeucine: 1696mg
Amaranth leaves, cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 1590mg
Amaranth leaves, cooked, boiled, drained, without saltLeucine: 1590mg
Broccoli raab, raw [Broccoli rabe, Rapini]Leucine: 1546mg
Soybeans, mature seeds, sprouted, rawLeucine: 1537mg
Swamp cabbage, (skunk cabbage), rawLeucine: 1537mg
Cabbage, chinese (pak-choi), cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 1516mg
Cabbage, chinese (pak-choi), cooked, boiled, drained, without saltLeucine: 1516mg
Squash, zucchini, baby, rawLeucine: 1514mg
Turnip greens and turnips, frozen, cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 1512mg
Bamboo shoots, cooked, boiled, drained, with saltLeucine: 1491mg
Oddly, the SelfNutritionData leaves out what is far-and-away the best source for leucine – whey protein. One quick check (GNC’s Wheybolic) indicates that based on the 200 calorie serving size (as used for the SelfNutritionData chart) there are 5500 mg of leucine in that one brand alone. Nearly 30% more leucine per serving – how did this not make the list???
And, should one prefer to avoid any animal-derived protein sources, one can easily just supplement with l-leucine; which is readily available. No need for men to risk the deleterious effects of the phyto-estrogens in soy-derived protein products.
I think whey protien was left off the list because although it may contain high levels of leucine, it also contains high levels of casein — known to “cause kidney damage, liver problems, kidney stones, excess fat gain, contribute to the damaging of the lining of artery walls, lead to plaque build up in arteries, result in lethargy, diminish bone density, and cause a host of other health problems” Dr Colin Campbell.