2. Eat plenty of protein at every meal

A good amount of protein is essential for a healthy, balanced diet, but it becomes even more important when weight loss and muscle building are at stake. Eating lots of lean protein will help boost your metabolic rate, (more calories are used to digest the grams of protein in food than they contain); help your muscles repair after a workout and give you the energy you need. Traditional thinking was that large amounts of energy giving carbs were the fuel for exercise, but unless you’re taking your exercise to extreme endurance levels, stick with the protein and stay away from processed carbs.

Good sources of protein include eggs, dairy products, fish & meat, seeds and soya products. Try to include one with every meal, from a variety of sources. Eating protein before and after you work out will give you the amino acids you need to build and repair muscle tissue. Eating (a small amount) of protein before bed can help with a restful night’s sleep.

In terms of volume, aim to consume a gram of protein for every pound of body weight in total throughout the day. So if you’re around 150lbs, that’s about 25g with each meal.