Sourcing Your Protein: Why It Matters

Day in, day out, you are making the right choices.

Macros, calories, and workouts are all carefully logged and you are super motivated to reach your fitness goals.

Did you know, even in the midst of all that work you could be missing something crucial? This goes double if any part of your goals revolves around gaining muscle.

The Short Answer: Proteins. They are not all made equal.

Where you get your proteins matters. A Lot.

We are all used to looking at the nutrition facts on the back of foods then adding them up to make sure we get enough protein, or stay away from too many carbs.

That’s helpful in one sense, but with protein specifically, this approach leaves out one huge issue. Human absorption.

For example: Our bodies only absorb and use 17% of the protein we get from whey. That means if you take 100 grams of it. Your body actually gets 17 grams of useable protein!

If you are trying to build muscle AT ALL then your body needs to absorb 1 gram of protein for 1 pound of body weight. Example: 200 lb man needs 200 grams of absorbable protein!

To get 200 grams of absorbable protein in whey you would have to consume over 2.6 pounds of whey protein powder. Every day!

Proteins from vegetables are a similar game. Sure, they have protein, but most veggies are around an 11% absorption rate. The amount you need to eat is massive! All the while, your carbs are adding up the more you eat.

If you are following a Ketogenic or Carnivore lifestyle then you already know most of this. Hence why you made the choice. Frankly, I did too!

Let’s Talk Meat

Most of you doing keto and carnivore most beef is 42% absorbable by the body. Eggs are higher, around 48%. Great absorption rates.

But are all beef and eggs the same? Does it matter if you eat hot dogs and spam everyday? It’s meat right?

I’m not trying to shame anyone for eating 6 hot dogs at a family gathering to keep from scarfing down junk food. I know I’ve done it a time or two.

Saying no to chocolate is hard!

Anyways, what I’m talking about are the daily habits we build that usher our journey into the health we have always dreamed about.

7 Unique Benefits of Going Grass Fed and Finished

1.) Healthy Fat Balance: Beef that has been grass fed & finished has up to 6 times more Omega 3 fats when compared to what you will find at your local grocery store. This brings the Omega 3 to Omega 6 balance into much better proportions. In short, eating our beef will allow your body to fight autoimmune diseases much better.

2.) CLA: This stands for conjugated linoleic acid. Many in the nutrition field feel like this is an essential in your diet due to their ability to fight and prevent cancers. Grass fed and finished beef has 16 different types it delivers to you in ample amounts.

3.) Lowered Blood Pressure: This is also due to CLA’s, but because the amount is so high in grass fed & finished beef you will notice your body does not have as much insulin sensitivity. A huge plus for anyone who is diabetic or prediabetic!

4.) Fewer Calories: Grass fed & finished is leaner by nature. Without all the GMO grains to fatten the cattle up they just don’t produce the quantity of fat a feedlot cow will. Even though it is better quality! One benefit of this is that grass fed & finished beef will give you the same amount of protein with fewer calories. On top of a higher vitamin count!

5.) Electrolyte Pump: Unlike feedlot beef grass fed & finished beef delivers a much higher rate of electrolytes. Namely, potassium, magnesium, and sodium. If you are on the keto or carnivore diet you KNOW how important getting your electrolytes can be! Having this included in your foods means you are less dependent on supplements.

6.) Less Bacteria Risk: Feedlot cattle are given huge doses of antibiotics to keep them healthy in grossly unsanitary surroundings. This does get more cattle through the system, but also leaves a lot of room for bacteria to be present. There is a huge risk for antibacterial resistant bugs to make their way into our food supply as well. Grass fed & finished is raised on a farm until it’s butchered. It takes longer, but is much safer!

7.) Superior Tenderness: Have you ever gone through a stressful week and your shoulders are super tense? Imagine what the cattle go through in terms of stress in the feedlot system. This stress ends up in tougher beef. The feedlots know this and try to use techniques like misters to counteract it. Our approach? We just let the cows have a peaceful life and use dry aging. If you’re curious about that we do have a blog about that as well here.

Personal Case Study:

We started eating grass fed beef when I started the carnivore lifestyle. Like many of you, I noticed the benefits we all talk about with this diet.

There have been a few times when I have gone off for a week or so. Not back to normal foods, mind you, but back to processed meats.

For a week I had mostly chicken thighs and ended up feeling sick due to lack of electrolytes. I had to take some shots of salt water and rest for the remainder of the evening to get better.

Another time, we got ALL the left over burgers from a family reunion. Pre-made patties of course. Most of the week, my gut was super bloated. It was puzzling because I wasn’t having bread or really cheating on my diet.

Until I realized I wasn’t eating my beef!

I constantly hear about people who score this cheap meat or that cheap meat on Facebook and other social channels. Sometimes I stop and think “Man what if you ditched the cheap and really went all out on quality? How much better would you feel?”

Lest you think this is just one long sales letter, let me say two things.

1.) There are so many local ranches that make suburb grass fed & finished beef. We can only serve people in Texas, anyways.

2.) I found this helpful in my own life and thought you would enjoy it as well. If you choose to buy from us, great! If not, there are tons of other places to get your beef!

3.) My mission is to show people how to have a life giving lifstyle from a holistic approach. If you are curious about that, this article goes into that idea in depth.