How To Use Protein When Working Out

In the first part of this article we addressed the theory behind protein, now we look at the practical application of protein when working out:

Are Protein Powders Better Than Protein In Food?

No, because food is more than just a source for a specific nutrient, no matter if it is carbohydrates or protein – you also need vitamins and minerals among other things. Some protein powders have them added, but this can be inferior to vitamins and minerals that naturally occur in your food.

How Much Protein Do I Need To Build Muscle?

The numbers you get here vary from 0.5 g up to 3 g per lb (1 g – 6 g / kg) of body weight, with the higher numbers being what you usually hear at gyms, where some people subject themselves to as much as 600 g per day.

Now, let’s throw some science at it. A study at the McMaster University of Ontario found that beginners with a balanced diet don’t need any supplemented protein, simply because their bodies learn to use the protein that is already there better.  Older studies went as far as estimating 1.5 g per lb (3 g / kg) of body weight are necessary to increase muscle mass, while the International Society of Sports Nutrition in its 2007 stand advises those that undergo “rigorous” resistance training to aim for 0.8 g per lb (1.5 g /kg) of body weight.

You Have Individual Needs

Where does all that leave you? It’s actually quite simple: No single number is right for you, because the amount of protein needed depends on your age, sex, type of exercise and exercise intensity. The safest bet is to get at least the amount that the USDA considers necessary in a healthy nutrition, 0.4 g per lb ( 0.8 / kg) of body weight, and to not go beyond 1 g per lb (2 g/ kg), which most recent studies see as the threshold beyond which no positive effects are measurable.

This is because if you have a pre-existing condition – and they can go undetected for a long time – high amounts of protein can affect your kidneys and liver – a risk you shouldn’t take when most likely nothing can be gained from it, anyway. In that regard I’d also say that you should get a checkup by your doctor, so that when you add protein to your diet you may not make the problem worse without you knowing.

When Should You Have Your Protein?

Pre-workout or post-workout? In six meals a day? I’d love to give you a simple, conclusive answer to this, but there is none. Some studies suggest pre- and / or post-workout protein supplementation is more beneficial than having protein in the morning and evening. Another said that smaller but more frequent doses of protein are better, but nobody ever compared having six doses of protein a day to having one or two before or after workouts.

It may all work and we still lack research about what works best. So all in all I can only give you a recommendation that is based on my own conclusions:

• The number one thing that makes muscles perform is carbohydrates, so in my opinion having carbohydrates 30 to 60 minutes before a workout should be of more importance than having protein.
• Protein synthesis, the process of building muscle, doesn’t just happen 30 minutes to four hours after a workout. It is a process that can be detected up to 24 hours after a workout and therefore having enough protein on the days when you don’t work out should be of comparable importance to having it on workout days.
• Because the process of building muscle happens over such comparatively long stretches of time and we don’t exactly know when the body needs the protein, smaller doses spread over the day may be a good idea. That way it has protein during the time some studies showed that muscles are more receptive to protein – right after a workout – but also during any other time. In this regard it is interesting to note that the reasons for Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness are still unclear and that it may well be a sign of your muscles rebuilding – and DOMS happen 12 to 48 h after a workout.

Casein Or Whey?

The question about what protein is preferrable is as old as the question when to have it. Casein is the protein that makes up most of the protein in milk, whey is the protein that results as leftover liquid when milk is drained  to make cheese.

The biggest difference between the two is that one is absorbed faster than the other. Casein with a rate of 6-8 g per hour, whey with a rate of 8-10 g per hour. This is why in fitness circles they also are called “slow” and “fast” proteins. Some now argue that whey protein goes faster to the muscles and must therefore be better. However, casein is slower, but on the other hand will then be available to your body longer. So, what to do? Studies have shown that whey protein may increase muscle mass slightly better than casein, but it is dependent on timing.

Another thing you will see thrown is around is that whey protein has a higher “biological value”. The biological value, “BV” for short, indicates how much of the absorbed protein the body can use for protein synthesis – the process of building its own proteins. As muscles are made from proteins, especially many bodybuilders believe that a high BV shows how much of the protein you eat the body can use to build muscle.

The BV of whey protein is 92, for casein it’s 76 (PDF). While this makes whey look much more preferrable, keep in mind that the BV number is a value that is calculated under very strict and unnatural conditions – usually a laboratory. Your individual age, body composition, training experience, sex, current nutrition etc. can all have a huge influence how beneficial either casein or whey are for you as a person.

BCAAs?

BCAA stands for “branch-chained amino acids”, which are three amino acids that play an especially important role in the building of muscle: valine, leucine and iso-leucine. Special BCAA supplements are completely useless, as any protein powder will deliver you with more than your fair share of BCAA.

Although often claimed, pure whey protein powders also do not necessarily contain more of them than other powders. A look at the tub of whey protein I have around here reveals that 1 serving (~30 g) comes with 1.4 g of valine, 2.5 g of leucine and 1.6 g of iso-leucine. The pure casein powder by the same manufacturer has 1.6 g, 2.1 g and 1.3 – already a small difference. A cheap powder, that in Europe is available at just about every supermarket and a mixture of 60% casein, 15% soy protein isolate and 13% whey isolate, makes the expensive whey actually look worse: It has 1.9 g, 2.8 g and 1.6 g.

What To Do?

My recommendation is: If you get your protein naturally through your nutrition all this is of minor importance for you, as the rate at which protein is absorbed from food is lower than with protein you get from powders. Casein and whey proteins from powders are both absorbed faster than from food, but, as said above, lack the other advantages that regular foods have. No study has ever shown that getting your protein from powders is superior to getting it from food.

If you manage a rather strict eating schedule, eg. six meals per day, during the day use a whey protein powder if you want to substitute a regular meal. If you want to substitute your last and final meal of the day before you go to bed, use casein, as it will stay with your body longer. If your timing is not as strict or more irregular then go for powders that are mainly based on casein or are a mixture of both whenever replacing a meal.

Pictures courtesy of United States Department of Agriculture and “Adrem68“.

Tags: bodybuilding, casein, fitness, food, nutrition, protein, protein powder, protein supplements, supplements, whey protein