Chicken V.S Beef

If you’re doing an overall comparison, chicken is the healthiest (skinless of course). Red meat tends to be higher in saturated fat. The bottom line with chicken…ditch the skin and stay away from the wings. If you’re paying close attention to your fat intake, choose the leaner breast.

The only real difference is that red meat contains a high amount of iron. But you can get iron from many sources such as spinach and lentils. Does this mean you should avoid red meat altogether if you’re trying to lean out relatively quick? Nope, you don’t need to take that route if your only concern is fat loss. Just opt for the leaner sources like top sirloin. Buffalo and venison are great alternatives to either chicken or beef. However, when purchasing buffalo ( a.k.a bison) make sure it doesn’t contain any added fat. Anything containing more than 3 grams of saturated fat, has added fat.

Weather you decide on chicken or beef, don’t order it charred (black grill marks). Those grill marks are carcinogenic. Over grilling any protein source creates HCAs (heterocyclic amines) which have been found to cause cancer. If grilling at home, using a marinade will help protect your meat.

And on that note…here’s a chart I found that I thought you all might like to reference when choosing the right protein for your needs.

** THE CHART IS BASED ON A SERVING SIZE OF 4OZ.

TYPE & CUT OF MEAT CAL TOTAL FAT SAT. FAT CHOLESTEROL

Chicken breast 160 2g 1g 93mg

Turkey breast 160 1g 0g 74mg

Chicken wings 329 22g 6g 95mg

Chicken thigh 187 9g 3g 113mg

Ground turkey 120 1g 0g 55mg

Ground chicken 230 15g 5g 169mg

Top sirloin steak 280 16g 7g 100mg

Eye round steak 227 9g 4g 80mg

Brisket steak 387 28g 11g 107mg

Chuck steak 294 22g 11g 93mg

TIP: Careful when buying ground chicken, if it doesn’t say anything on the package, there is a big chance that it contains chicken skin, thighs and all other parts of the chicken that are NOT lean.