Is Lamb Good For Weight Loss Or Fattening?

Find out whether lamb is good for weight loss or fattening so you can make your diet plan more effective.

Something to note is that the nutritional values of meat can vary from animal to animal and the types of cuts.

That being said, the example lamb in this article offers some helpful information too.

Lamb is somewhat higher in calories, high in protein, and high in vitamins and minerals.

In turn, lamb is relatively filling up to the point where it likely helps you eat less of foods that are worse for weight loss.

Add to this the muscle preserving/building results of eating enough protein and it is fair to say that lamb is generally good for weight loss.

At the same time, you still have to make these other diet changes to see results too.

If you just add more lamb on top of what you already eat, it could even be slightly fattening.

Additionally, there are also better meats for weight loss.

Calories in lamb

The first detail you want to look at to figure out whether lamb is good for weight loss or fattening is the number of calories in it.

This does not say everything but is a helpful start.

100 grams of one example of ground lamb contain around 283 calories (1).

Similar to basically all meats, zero of these calories come from carbohydrates which makes lamb keto-friendly.

The number of calories in lamb is on the higher side when it comes to whole foods.

At the same time, there are definitely foods higher in calories too. Especially if you include processed foods.

So lamb is somewhat higher in calories which is generally not good for weight loss.

That being said, where these calories come from will influence things a lot.

Protein in lamb for weight loss

How much protein there is in lamb influence how good it is for weight loss a lot.

Before going into the benefits, cooked ground lamb contains around 24.8 grams of protein per 100 grams (1).

To compare, another good protein source, cooked salmon, contains around 25.4 grams of protein per 100 grams (2).

So while there are meats higher in protein, lamb contains relatively high amounts of this macronutrient.

The first reason this is generally a good thing while losing weight is that protein is very filling.

Many people find it hard to lose weight because of hunger and cravings so this can be a valuable aspect of lamb.

Additionally, eating enough protein is important for preserving and building muscle.

In turn, this muscle helps you burn more energy throughout the day which is beneficial for weight loss.

So a relatively high amount of the calories in lamb come from protein. This is generally helpful when trying to lose weight.

Vitamins and minerals in lamb

It is hard to put into exact numbers how much certain vitamins and minerals influence weight loss.

That being said, since it is generally a good idea to consume enough of these, it is worth quickly checking what lamb offers in this area.

100 grams of cooked ground lamb contain some of the following vitamins and minerals:

• Vitamin B12: 44% of the DV (Daily Value)
• Selenium: 40% of the DV
• Niacin: 34% of the DV
• Zinc: 31% of the DV
• Phosphorus: 20% of the DV

And many other vitamins and minerals in smaller amounts.

It is fair to say that lamb is impressive when it comes to its vitamin and mineral content.

This is often at least slightly positive for weight loss and more importantly, general health.

Will lamb help you lose weight?

At this point, you know that lamb is somewhat higher in calories, high in protein, and high in vitamins and minerals.

The result of this is that lamb is a relatively filling food that can help you reach important daily nutrition goals.

This should help you eat less of foods that are less optimal and in turn, lamb can definitely help you lose weight.

You do want to keep in mind that you have to make these other nutrition changes too.

If you just add lamb on top of your regular diet, you will likely not see that many positive results.

Additionally, lamb could theoretically be fattening although you will likely feel too full before you get to this point.

Lamb vs other popular meats for weight loss

Another important question is how good lamb is for weight loss compared to other popular meats.

You can find how it compares to beef and chicken so you can put together an optimal weight loss diet.

Lamb vs beef

Ground beef contains around 261 calories which is slightly less than the 283 calories from lamb (3).

Next, there are about 25.6 grams of protein in 100 grams of ground beef which is slightly more than lamb.

In terms of vitamins and minerals, these foods are about similar.

The result is that beef will generally be slightly better than lamb for weight loss.

However, the differences are not that big so your personal preference matters too.

Lamb vs chicken

This next option is a popular choice in the fitness world.

Ground chicken contains about 201 calories per 100 grams (4). This is a nice amount less than lamb.

Next, 100 grams of ground chicken contain around 27.1 grams of protein which is more than lamb.

One thing lamb does have is that it is slightly higher in vitamins and minerals.

That being said, chicken is somewhat better for weight loss than lamb.

Chart of lamb vs beef vs chicken

So chicken is the best of these three types of meat when trying to lose weight by a nice margin.

When it comes to lamb vs beef, your personal preference will influence your choice a lot.

You can also check the more in-depth amounts of vitamins and minerals for lamb (1), beef (3), and chicken (4) if you want.

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