Protein: The Key to Unlocking Your Potential
Discover the power of protein and its impact on your overall health and fitness goals. From enhancing bone density to curbing hunger and promoting deep sleep, achieving an optimal protein intake offers a range of benefits that can optimize your well-being.
In this article, we will explore recommended protein intake and timing for Males and Females, workload, as well as how protein can boost muscle mass and fat loss.
Unleash the potential of protein and unlock your true capabilities.
Benefits
The benefits of protein encompass a wide range of advantages for the human body. Apart from being an essential Macro-nutrient, smart intake of protein can go a long way to optimizing your performance.
Along with playing a crucial role in providing the building blocks to new skeletal muscle tissue, Protein plays a crucial role in improving bone mineral density, which is essential for maintaining strong and healthy bones. Additionally, protein provides the building blocks for neurotransmitters that regulate mood, promoting a sense of well-being and mental clarity. It also blunts hunger, preventing overeating and fat gain, making it an invaluable tool for weight management. Protein is also known to improve deep sleep by balancing brain chemistry, leading to better rest and recovery. Moreover, it has been shown to lower blood pressure by improving the function of blood vessels.
Arguably even more important is proteins impact on proper immune and detoxification function. The immune system relies heavily on protein to produce immunoglobulins and T cells, where stage 2 of liver detoxification requires a hefty source of amino acids to bind to toxins for excretion. Failure to provide adequate protein will compromise these two systems, in turn making muscle growth and fat loss all the more difficult.
With all these benefits in mind, it is clear that protein is a key component in unlocking your full potential for a healthy and vibrant life. For those interested in becoming bigger and stronger, keep in mind – all these factors are a greater priority for the body than muscle growth, so when protein intake is down, muscle growth will take a hit before the body will allow health to.
Recommended Protein Intake
A minimum daily intake of 1.6 g protein/kg of bodyweight is generally recommended for optimal health and fitness – however, my recommendations tend to be a lot higher.
Given that body fat fluctuations are largely independent of protein needs, I find it much more appropriate to give a protein intake in grams per kilogram of lean bodyweight, which is the body mass minus fat mass.
For Females, my general recommendation is for around 2.4-2.6g/kg LBW.
For Males, my general recommendation is for around 2.4-2.6g/kg LBW.
For fat loss, these amounts can be higher, as protein has a beneficial impact on hunger levels, can help regulate blood sugar levels, and help spare muscle tissue in caloric deficits.
Now, for those in dedicated hypertrophy phases, where the volumes of training are higher, protein intake can and should be raised, sometimes by as much as 50%.
Protein Synthesis And Timing
Whilst total protein consumption across the day is important, arguably more so is the timing of protein doses.
Where carbohydrate and fat can be somewhat stored in the body for later use, protein does not interact in the same way. While there needs to be available protein for use, the amount and fluctuation in blood amino acid levels has a great impact on levels of protein synthesis, crucial for muscle building.
It has been shown that the rise in blood amino acid levels (rather than the actual blood amino level) is far more crucial for stimulating mTor, one of the key genes responsible for protein synthesis. We also know that this upregulation of protein synthesis lasts for approximately 2-4 hours. Therefore, it is advised to consume a dose of protein every 2-4 hours, allowing blood amino acid levels to fall before the next dose.
How much protein per dose? On non training days, I advise simply to divide the total daily protein intake evenly across all meals. For example, a 100kg man with 20% body fat with a total daily intake of 240g, may want 6 protein feedings across the day, necessitating 40g of protein per dose.
For example, this may look like the following
7AM Wake
7.30AM Whey Protein Shake – 40g
9AM Omelet, 6 whole eggs – 40g
12 Noon 225g Chicken, Green Salad, Avocado – 40g
3PM Lamb Wrap – 40g
6.30PM – 250g Beef, Curry & Rice, Salad – 40g
9PM – Greek Yogurt, Protein powder – 40g
On Training Days, Peri workout nutrition, which may include Pre and Intra workout Amino Acids, and Post workout Protein, can be deducted from the total Intake.
Keep in mind that the protein requirements of the body precedes that of renewing skeletal muscle. If protein intake, even in acute settings, is low, the functioning of the body of a whole will suffer, even to the point of stealing amino acids from muscle tissue.
Protein Sources
Whilst total protein amount per serve is important, so is the protein source. Animal Proteins, which contain all the essential amino acids, are preferred. Plant proteins, tend to not contain all essential amino acids, and have been shown to be less effective in regards to muscle growth. However, plant based proteins such as Pea and Rice can be useful in that they are hypo-allergenic, one of the reasons why they are used in some of the functional detoxification foods stocked in our online store.
Whey and Free Form Amino Acids are preferred immediately post workout, as food sources are unlikely to digest properly. How much protein should be consumed post workout? My recommendation is .5 to .8g per kg LBM, which would equate to 40-64g for our 100kg male. If using Amino Acids, that amount can be halved.
Conclusion
In conclusion, protein is a vital nutrient that offers a multitude of benefits for overall health and well-being. From building muscle tissue and regulating mood to curbing hunger and promoting deep sleep, protein plays a crucial role in various physiological processes within the body.
Understanding how the body utilizes protein and incorporating it into our diets can help optimize its benefits. Whether for muscle growth, strength training, or weight loss, protein is the key to unlocking our potential and achieving our goals.