Sarah Di Lorenzo: Meat versus plant protein matters for muscle health, aging and better daily nutrition

When you think of protein, steak or chicken breast might come to mind. But not all proteins are equal. Animal-based foods are an excellent choice as they contain “complete proteins” but you can still get enough with a well-curated vegetarian or vegan diet.

“Complete” means it contains adequate amounts all of the nine essential amino acids your body can’t make on its own. Most animal proteins such as meat, chicken, fish, eggs, dairy are in this category, as well as a few plant foods like soy, quinoa, buckwheat and hemp. Animal proteins are considered high-quality because they closely match human needs and are generally very digestible.

Because of this, animal proteins are very effective for supporting lean mass, recovery, growth, hormonal health, enzyme production, mobility, transport, stability, weight loss, feeling satiated, immunity enzymes, energy and metabolic health per gram of protein.

But you do need to be choosing lean options as many animal proteins (especially processed ones) contain saturated fat and have been linked with higher risks of heart disease and bowel cancer. Leave the skin off chicken and cut the fat off your meat.

Plant-based food is usually an “incomplete protein” — they are low in one or more essential amino acids plus can be not as easy to digest. Most single plant foods such as grains, nuts, seeds, legumes and many vegetables are incomplete. Y

ou don’t need every protein you eat to be a complete one. For example if you eat a varied diet with different plant proteins such as beans with grains and nuts or seeds, your body can pull amino acids from that mix and you still end up with a complete overall amino acid intake.

The key is to eat a variety across the day, you easily cover all essential amino acids and can meet protein needs, there are many vegetarian athletes and body builders getting adequate protein intake.

Excellent combinations also include soy foods such as tofu, tempeh, edamame, soy milk and combining quinoa which is a naturally complete protein.

A good strategy is understanding complementary proteins, this means pairing foods that fill each other’s gaps in amino acids.

For example, include lentils or chickpeas with wholegrain bread or rice with beans or dahl, hummus with wholegrain crackers as well as peanut butter or other nut butters on wholegrain toast.

More combinations are meals like corn tortillas with black beans.

For the lacto-ovo vegetarians (who eat both dairy and eggs) think Greek yoghurt with oats and seeds, or cottage cheese with wholegrain crackers or an omelette with wholegrain toast.

When you’re tallying daily protein, it helps to remember that protein “density” changes with water content and processing.

Raw meats and fish contain more water, so they have fewer grams of protein per 100g than the same piece after cooking, which drives off water and concentrates the protein. In a similar way, fresh, high-moisture cheeses like cottage cheese or ricotta have much less protein per 100g than hard, aged cheeses such as pecorino or parmesan, where most of the water has been removed.

Practically, that means 100g of cooked steak delivers more protein than 100g of raw steak, and 30g of a hard cheese can contribute as much or more protein than a much larger serving of a soft, wet cheese.

Keeping these differences in mind makes your protein counting more accurate and helps you build reliably higher-protein meals without needing huge portions

Choosing high-quality protein sources for your meals is about more than just meat versus plants.

It’s about understanding both the nutritional profile and how they fit your own needs and preferences.

Aim for 1.2g of protein per kilogram of your own body weight per day for adults especially over the age of 40. Protein requirements do vary on age, stage in life and level of activity. Protein powders can help many reach protein targets.

Look for whey protein isolate, it’s highly purified (around 90 per cent protein or more), low in carbs, fat and lactose, and very fast to digest.

This means you get a large hit of complete, leucine-rich protein in a small serving therefore it is excellent for triggering muscle protein synthesis, supporting recovery after training, and helping with appetite control and body-composition goals.

Animal proteins remain the gold standard for complete, easily digestible amino acids, but plant-based strategies can fully meet daily protein targets when a variety of sources are included.

By combining legumes, whole grains, dairy or soy, and paying attention to the water content and density of foods, you can accurately build balanced, satisfying meals for muscle, recovery, satiety, and metabolic health. Ultimately, the best protein intake is one that is high-quality, appropriate for your goals and sustainable for your lifestyle.

Sarah Di Lorenzo’s book The Power Of Protein contains 150 recipes and is out now.