My Favourite Food Is Protein: A Story Of Getting Lean

On July 13th, after an indulgent holiday in Greece, I noticed I had gained weight.

I went from my usual 60-62 kg to 66 kg, and it was noticeable.

My stomach became an obstacle in my daily life—bending over to pick things up was difficult, and even turning over in bed was a challenge.

I felt heavy, bloated, and sluggish.

Determined to make a change, I decided to go on a diet. I downloaded the calorie-counting app “Lose It!” to keep myself accountable.

My goal was to lose 6 kg while building lean muscle.

The app asked me a few questions and set my daily calorie limit to 1,650 kcal, about 600 kcal less than my usual intake.

Experts advise against drastic calorie reductions because they can slow down your metabolism.

It might sound surprising, but research shows that when we eat less, we also tend to move less throughout the day—our body’s way of conserving energy.

Moreover, extreme diets are hard to maintain in the long run. When people return to “normal eating,” they often regain all the lost weight, and sometimes even more.

Even sticking to 1,650 kcal a day was an adjustment for me. I had to break the habit of using food as an emotional crutch, whether I was sad, excited, or bored.

But most importantly, I had to cut back on sugar—no more chocolate, cakes, or ice cream.

It’s been 1.5 months of being in a calorie deficit while eating more protein

… and this is how I look now

My energy levels are more stable, I’m slowly starting to lose my cravings for sugar, and even though, I’ve only lost 2.5kg, my body composition has changed and it’s all thanks to eating more protein.

Protein has become my favorite food

.. or rather macro.

As I lose fat, I’m less focused on counting calories, and more focused on eating more protein.

I’m ok going above my calorie allowance if it’s eating more protein-rich food like chicken breast, steak, tofu, tuna, prawns, and my new favorite – cottage cheese:

Here’s the ratio of macros I am to hit every day:

Your Protein: 128 grams per day

Your Fat: 55 grams per day

Your Carbs: 177 grams per day

There are many tools online that can help you with figuring out the best macro breakdown. Take this weight-loss calculator by Culinary School.

I already know my BMI (body mass index) and their calculator did an excellent job at estimating my body fat %, and other metrics by asking me questions about my level of activity, height, weight, and age.

If you don’t know your BMI, you can estimate your body fat percentage here.

Protein is an important nutrient for losing weight because it takes more calories to digest than other foods and also helps the body build fat-burning lean muscle tissue. Read more about eating habits that support weight loss here.

Eating smaller portions of balanced meals more often (4-5 times a day) — including at least 10g of protein per serving will give you the energy and the feeling of fullness, which reduces your cravings.

Good sources of protein include eggs, lean meat, fish, plain unsweetened yogurt, chickpeas, and protein powder.

Don’t worry if you overeat some days

If you are good 80-90% of the time, you’re golden.

There will be unavoidable bumps in the road.

This is actually why most people don’t reach their goal weight. They make a diet plan, stick to it for a few days, weeks, or even months, but then, as soon as they hit a bump in the road…

It knocks them off track.

Then they feel like they “failed”…

And they give up.

Soon, any progress they made is gone, maybe with a few extra pounds added for good measure.

Like one wise old butler once said, “Why do we fall, Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.”

After all, you’re a real person with a real life to live.

If your fitness doesn’t make it better – what’s the point?

Your body and brain are hard-wired to resist weight loss

… don’t let them win.

To lose weight, you don’t need to cut carbs, you don’t have to avoid eating out at restaurants with your friends, and you don’t have to go hungry at a social event because there’s no “diet food” on offer.

Challenges and obstacles are unavoidable, but when your diet it just part of normal life, it’s much less likely to get knocked off the rails.

The real secret to sustainable fat loss is consistency

It’s about finding a balanced approach that fits your life and keeps you consistent.

For me, it’s eating tasty food high in protein, while allowing myself treats every now and then.

It also means exercising very day. Even 40 min walk counts as an exercise.

These days I’m all about building lean muscle mass, as opposed to doing too much mindless cardio.

Weight-lifting is better than cardio for weight loss

I used to think endless cardio is the key to fat loss. But here’s the reality: while cardio is great for heart and mental health.

Cardio is not the most efficient way to lose weight, because your body adapts to steady-state cardio (like jogging) quickly, burning fewer calories over time.

Plus, excessive cardio and reduced calories can lead to muscle loss, slowing your metabolism and making fat loss harder.