I am a 19-year-old cricketer. My weight is 72 kgs, ht 180cm. My trainer advised me to consume about 90-1OOgms of protein daily. Can you tell me which foods would give me protein and how much protein is found in 1 glass milk or 2 pieces chicken etc? What is "difference in the quality of protein"? Can you please explain this?

Protein is an important part of an athletes diet as there is a lot of wear and tear of the muscles in training, and rebuilding and maintenance of the muscles is important. However it has been researched and proved that a huge excess intake of protein and protein supplements is not going to make you any stronger. So sports people need to be careful not to just consume protein or supplements without guidance and supervision of a trainer and dietitian. Large excesses of protein only tax the kidneys and can even result in waste products like urea and uric acid accumulating in the blood and joints.

The recommended protein intake is 1.2gms to 1.5gms per kg ideal body weight. So 90-100 gms protein is ok for you. If however you do not consume enough carbohydrate food i.e. bread, rice, chapatti, vegetables and fruits along with the proteins then the protein will be diverted from muscle and tissue building to be used as energy where carbs are lacking. Secondly please make sure you are measuring and drinking atleast 3-4 ltr water to remove waste products of protein digestion. We do not recommend the intake of supplements except for very heavy training body builders and weight lifters.

Food proteins are qualified as good quality or first class proteins on the basis of their amino acid composition. There are some essential amino acids and if all these are present in that food it is called first class. Egg white is one of the best quality proteins, milk is also first class and so are all other non-veg protein like chicken, fish, meat etc.Protein got from vegetable sources, like that from wheat, pulses (channa, rajma, moong) and dhal are called second-class protein. Here all the essential amino acids are not present but while eating wheat and dhal if we add some milk or curd to the meal the essential amino acids are supplied and the protein quality is improved. E.g. bread and milk/paratha with curd/rice and dhal with curds or buttermilk etc.

In our daily diet about at least 15gms of protein will come from all the bread, rice, chapati that we eat. Each glass of milk 200ml gives us 6gms protein. We recommend that players should take 1-liter milk or curd in a day. (4-5glasses) 30gms protein comes from this. 1-cup dhal or pulses cooked gives 8gms protein. Therefore a minimum of 1-cup dhal at lunch and dinner are essential. This will add up to 60gms protein.

1 egg will give 6gms protein. This 6gms is present only in the white. If you want to increase egg protein, do additional whites alone. 2-3 egg whites may be safely eaten in a day. Egg yolk should not exceed 1 number daily. It is high in fat and cholesterol. Raw egg is not digested and absorbed therefore egg or egg white should be fully cooked. 2 pieces of chicken, 1OOgms i.e. 1 leg piece plus thigh or a full breast piece will give about 25gms of protein. 1OOgms fish 18-20gms, beef, mutton and pork about 20gms. Therefore it is not necessary to eat huge amounts of meat to build muscle. Also meats are high in fat so be very careful about eating them.

Cream of milk must be removed to avoid fat. Those who are purely vegetarian may increase milk and dhal intake and could add a protein based flavour to their milk.