help me w/ protien

hi im starting to tone up  my body
and the instrctor said i need lots protein
any suggestions?

beans, nuts, peanut butter, and lots of tofu/soy products (its very versatile) ^_^

Unfortunately, most trainers that work in health clubs are rather ignorant about nutrition, getting much of their information from muscle magazines where the primary advertisers are promoters of protein powders and shakes. The need for extra protein tends to be highly overstated. Dr. Fuhrman puts it this way in his Disease Proof blog:

"Even a professional bodybuilder desiring to build a 1/2 pound of extra muscle per week only needs about seven extra grams of protein per day over normal intake. No complicated formulas or protein supplements are needed to get sufficient protein for growth, even in the serious athlete. Since exercise results in increased hunger, athletes consume more food (calories), which provides the extra protein naturally."

Here are some links discussing protein that I think you may find interesting and eye-opening. The downside to protein is that getting more than our bodies can use can be hazardous to our health:

Magical Mythical Protein

Protein, Protein, Protein

High Protein Diets and Cancer

Complimentary Protein Myth Won't Go Away

Dangers of High Protein, Low-Carb Diets

Dairy, Fast-Growing Kids, and Cancer

I couldn't figure out how to do a proper link, and there was a problem with spaces showing up in the middle of words in my link, so when you try to paste te URL in to your browser it doesn't work. When I preview, it doesn't show the extra spaces either. Can anyone fix my post? Thanks!

For vegetarians there is both soy and rice protein available (you usually need to go to a health food store to find rice protein though).  Other than that soy, seeds, beans, nuts, hemp protein, and quinoa are good sources.  You just need to watch the amount of calories you are taking in with nuts as it is easy to overindulge.   

The soy bean in all its forms is a great source of protein. Some people call it the "miracle" bean. There are many recipes that can be found in a google search or cook books. I found a couple that I use over and over again to satisfy my love of chili and cornbread. The chili recipe is from the back of a bag of raw soybeans that I buy regularly, and the cornbread recipe is from an old cookbook purchased in a used book store. Also, you can have a tofu smoothie for breakfast that will boost your protein intake, and instead of peanut butter, you can have soy butter, which also has much more protein.

Soybean Chili
1 large sweet onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
1-2 stalks celery, diced
2 Tblsp. olive oil
Chili powder and cumin, to taste
2 cans diced tomatoes (I use no-salt added for a low sodium diet)
1-2 cans soybeans, undrained 
TVP* (see below)

Saute the first three ingredients in the olive oil for a few minutes, then add the chili powder and cumin (you can add more later to suit your taste, so start out with maybe a tsp. of chili powder and 1/2 tsp. cumin). Add canned tomates and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to simmer. Add soybeans and TVP* if desired. Simmer all for about 30 minutes to 1 hour, until the tomatoes and vegetables are thoroughly cooked.
*TVP is defatted soy flour and can be found in bags in health food stores or in the natural food section of large supermarkets. When reconstituted with boiling water, it has the appearance of ground beef, and makes the chili much heartier, while adding more protein to the mix. The kind I buy tells you to reconstitute by adding 7/8 cup boiling water to 1 cup of TVP, and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Then just stir it into the pot of chili.

Soybean Cornbread
Here's how I make it. In a mason jar, put 2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of raw soybeans. Put the jar in the refrigerator and allow the beans to soak overnight. The next day pour the beans and water into your blender and liquefy them. Add 1 Tblsp. oil (I use virgin olive oil, but you can use whatever suits you), 2 Tblsp. sesame seeds, 1 Tblsp. honey or brown sugar (I use honey), 1 tsp. sea salt, and then blend until mixed in. Then, by half cups, add 1 1/2 cup cornmeal and after each half cup addition, blend until mixed. You may, at the end, have to stir it a little by hand if it's too thick. Then pour this into an oiled 8"x8" pan and bake in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes, or until the edges start to turn brown and the middle is set (test with a toothpick). The taste and texture of the final product will depend upon the type of cornmeal that you use. The coarse cut will produce a cornbread with a little crunch to it - very good! This is a great recipe because it is very high in protein, easy to take with you for a snack or brown bag lunch item, and it's relatively inexpensive as well. I store it in the refrigerator just because it has no artificial preservatives in it. Enjoy!

waw tnx for the recipe

Spirutein protein shakes.  A good source of spirulina, which is not only a complete protein but also builds cell walls to prevent against viral infections.  Pretty amazing stuff that you don't eat otherwise.  And it has lots of other nutrients.