How Did This Protein Fuss Start?6 min read

In the 1930s, when televisions were introduced and commercialization grew, businesspeople saw an opportunity and created hype around eating meat and animal products. People were targeted with messages to consume more meat, eggs, fish, and milk.

By the 1970s, bodybuilding culture was on the rise, and protein was marketed as an essential component of nutrition. This led to the introduction of protein powders, which have since remained a marketing tactic benefiting only those at the top, earning money from this hype.

So, question everything happening around you. Like People say:

India is protein deficient?
No. India is malnourished. Half of our population doesn’t even get enough food—how will they get protein?

Can we only get protein from animals?
Really? Then where do Herbivorous animals like elephants, giraffes, hippos, and horses get it from? Plants. You need far less than what is propagated in the media.

Lysine is less in plant protein.
Only said by those consuming animal protein.

Understand the basics—everything you need is available from plants. People have been eating plant-based diets for thousands of years, and this does not need any validation.

What is Protein?

Protein is your body’s building block—responsible for growth, repair, energy, and the production of essential enzymes and hormones. It consists of 20 amino acids, 11 of which your body naturally produces. The remaining 9 must come from your diet. Eating well is just one part of the equation; there’s much more involved.

How Much Protein Do You Really Need?

You need far less than you think:

Sedentary lifestyle: ~0.8 g per kg (e.g., 48 g for a 60 kg person)

Moderately active: ~1.0 g per kg (e.g., 60 g for a 60 kg person)

Very active: ~1.2 g per kg (e.g., 72 g for a 60 kg person)

Don’t stress over exact numbers. A few grams up or down won’t make a huge difference as long as you’re consistent and eating clean.

Simple Daily Strategic Meal Plan for Your Protein Intake

10-Year-Old Kid

(Protein Requirement: 35-45g/day)

This meal plan gives 45g of protein daily, but kids get bored fast! Keep it fun by swapping in high-protein alternatives, as given below. It takes time to build a routine, but it’s worth it—we promise strong bones for your kiddo! 🙂

45-Year-Old Man

(Protein Requirement: ~60-70g/day)

66.4g of protein in this meal plan—but who wants to eat the same thing every day? Mix it up with easy high-protein swaps which we have given below and keep it exciting!

35-Year-Old Woman

(Protein Requirement: 50-60g/day)

This meal packs 62g of protein, but let’s keep it exciting! 

To stay on track, swap in the high-protein options given below and never get bored.

Fun Fact

A 500 kg horse doing light work needs just 0.6 kg (600 g) of protein a day.

Yet, it’s strong enough to inspire horsepower! 

So if these muscle-packed herbivores get their protein from plants, maybe you don’t need to drown in protein shakes either. 🙂

Now we have understood a basic diet plan for each category but it is very important to know which food has the highest protein content so that we can buy them whenever we go to market so that they are always on the top list wherever we go either on parties, vacation or purchasing your vegetables.

Easily Accessible Protein-Rich Foods

Please note: All the protein content listed below is based on a 100g serving, which is roughly equal to a medium-sized bowl. So, for easier understanding, just imagine a medium bowl of each product to get the mentioned protein amount.

Nuts

• Hazelnuts – 15g
• Pistachios –20g
• Cashews – 18g
• Walnuts – 15g
• Peanuts – 26g
• Almonds – 21g

You can easily have our Almond Spread KuKClean’s best-selling item, loved for its simplicity and the value it brings to our customers’ lives.

Oh yes, it’s gluten-free as well!

Seeds

• Pumpkin Seeds – 30g
• Sunflower Seeds – 21g
• Flaxseeds – 18g
• Chia Seeds – 17g
• Hemp Seeds – 32g
• Sesame Seeds – 18g

If you want to purchase all seeds from one place we are making your work easy. You can order them from here –

Legumes

• Chickpeas – 19g
• Peanuts – 25 g 
• Black Beans – 21g 
• Lentils – 25g
• Kidney Beans – 24g
• Mung Beans – 24g
• Soybeans – 36g

Vegetables

• Spinach – 3g
• Broccoli – 2.8g
• Kale leaves – 4.3g
• Mushrooms – 3g
• Asparagus (Satavari) – 2.2g

Grains

• Amaranth (Rajgira) – 14g
• Oats – 13g
• Buckwheat (Kuttu) – 13g
• Millets (Bajra, Ragi, Jowar, Foxtail, Little Millet, etc.) – 8-12g
• Brown Rice – 8g
• Whole Wheat – 13g
• Barley (Jau) – 12g
• Corn (Makka) – 9g
• Wild Rice – 15g

All the above-mentioned food items are real weapons which if used correctly then you kill the stress of protein intake in a day easily. This knowledge is important because if we know the above protein-rich foods then it will be easier for us to spot them wherever we go and include them in our diet.

This blog serves as a basic guide to your Protein Mantra. We will dive deeper into topics like lysine, how amino acids work, and which proteins serve what function in our next 

blog – “Breaking Down Protein: What Happens Inside You”

Stay tuned!