As a woman, I love my carbs. I thrive on bread, pasta, and rice, and often fill up on those while ignoring protein. But for someone who’s also trying to lose weight, eating so many carbs on a daily basis and eating insufficient amounts of protein may actually be hindering my weight loss efforts. Here’s why:

Your body doesn’t heal as quickly, so your muscles can’t repair themselves after a workout as effectively. The amino acids that protein provides are vital in repairing tissue, so you need to eat protein if you’re toning or increasing muscle mass through strength training.

Eating insufficient amounts of protein can cause health problems in the long term. These problems include decreased immunity, kwashiorokor and even death. When it comes to weight loss, insufficient protein consumption will make you lose muscle mass, which is a huge problem if you’re on a diet. Muscle tends to burn more calories, even when resting, and loss of muscle mass means that you may find it harder to lose weight.

The body processes protein at a slower rate than carbs. Protein goes through the stomach and intestine slowly, allowing you to feel satiated for a longer period of time, preventing that spike in blood sugar levels so you don’t rise and crash and, finally, makes your body use up more energy to process the protein.

The results of clinical trials have proven that low-carb and high-protein diets were more successful than high-carb and low-fat diets.

So if you’re trying to lose weight, you may want to find a happy balance between carbs and protein. Consider limiting your carb intake to a healthy amount and boost protein consumption to about .8 grams per every kilo you weigh (this is recommended by the Institute of Medicine). Meat, fish, dairy, beans and nuts are great sources of protein while whole grains are a great source of carbs.