In bodybuilding, lifters are recommended to consume between 1.6 and 2.2 grams of protein per pound of body weight to optimize muscle growth. For a college student, this means budgeting carefully to meet macronutrient goals and ensuring protein-filled products match value with price.
“The worst thing people do is (say), ‘I’m on a budget,’” Vedanth Srinidhi, finance senior and seasoned lifter, said. “‘I’m gonna make the most bland food humans have ever seen.’”
Knowing how to grocery shop as a lifter proves a learning curve in itself. With the increase in products advertising higher protein, buying to meet your goals and food that won’t collect dust in the pantry can be more expensive than expected. Srinidhi said he sees this trend among early lifters, where they deem splurging on foods claiming high protein levels as necessary.
“It’s okay if some days you don’t get your exact 140 grams of protein. … It’s fine if you have some off days,” Srinidhi said. “But don’t let that be a reason for you to significantly splurge on something or break all rules of your own diet plan.”
Products with protein labels slapped on the front, such as protein popcorn and Pop-Tarts, illustrate a recent trend designed to get customers to opt for “higher protein.” Isabelle Demengeon, business analytics senior and Austin Bodybuilding president, said these products have prices higher than the value of the nutrients they actually provide, and anyone would be more satiated by a whole food protein source, such as ground beef.
“I do try to focus on things that aren’t very hyped,” Demengeon said. “For example, things that just say, ‘oh, (this) has protein in it,’ and it’s the most regular thing ever, like popcorn.”
Laying out a game plan, visualizing meals and most importantly, staying consistent prove critical to avoiding wasted food and building discipline within meals. Demengeon said she learned this the hard way earlier this year, taking on the habit of grabbing grocery items with no set meal prep plan to follow.
“I would go to any grocery store and see things that I would like and just grab it with no idea (or) plan in place to use it,” Demengeon said. “I ended up stocking my pantry way too thick.”
Part of remaining cost-effective in a grocery store relies on consistent protein sources and sides. Srinidhi said that being on a budget does not mean that food needs to be unseasoned or monotonous. Madison Wright, Mexican American and Latina/o studies and race, indigeneity and migration senior and Austin Bodybuilding member, said by building a mix-and-match list of proteins and sides, she can diversify her meals without eating the same food week after week.
“I prioritize affordable, cheap meals,” Wright said. “You could (use) so many different sauces; there’s just different ways you could mix up these quote-unquote ‘boring meals’ (and) make them better for yourself.”
Fitting the right amount of protein, along with other critical nutrients, can be cost-friendly with the right research on product macronutrients and planning ahead of time. Srinidhi said his biggest piece of advice, beyond ensuring that no grocery item becomes waste, is to build consistency regardless of the days missed without hitting a protein goal or a day when lifting cannot fit in the schedule.
“(It’s) one of those things where you just have to live and learn,” Srinidhi said. “Go through it.”
