High Protein Diet
A high protein diet is often recommended for athletes and bodybuilders and all those training for rigorous sporting events. A high protein diet is a way of building up muscle mass while also losing fat. For that reason then a high protein diet is also a diet low in fat. A high protein diet is not the same as a low carb diet such as the Atkins Diet, which to the contrary involves eating large amounts of fat and has nothing to do with controlling the calories one consumes.

Some athletes subscribe to a high protein low carb diet while others simply go for the protein power diet or even the liquid protein diet in order to lose weight and “beef up” their muscles. A certain amount of protein is needed for everyone in order to build the muscles that support the skeletal system and a multitude of the body’s tissues but some people question whether an excess of protein as is evidenced with a high protein diet is even necessary for bodybuilders and those who are heavily into weight training. Many athletes are encouraged to take in anywhere from 0.6 to 1.5 grams of protein according to their amount of body weight on a daily basis but many members of the medical community do not see that this really has any benefits in the long term.

For the average person following the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) for protein consumption is adequate as many doctors believe that consuming too much protein will simply see it excreted from the body without doing any other good. Protein diets do serve a purpose if a physician feels that a patient is not receiving enough protein on a consistent basis but most people do take in the proper amounts of protein daily and therefore do not need to even consider beginning a high protein diet.

Some studies have pointed to the fact that high protein diets may increase an individual’s risk of suffering from renal failure but further studies have shown that kidney problems for those eating high protein diets only occur in individuals who had kidney disease because they began the low fat, high protein diet.