How Much Protein Should I Eat?

Why you need protein!

Protein is the ammunition you need for arming your guns. It’s built from amino acids stitched together into long chains, some of which your body can make naturally – known as ‘non-essential’ – and some of which it can’t. These are called ‘essential’ amino acids and you need to source them from food. When you chow down on a chicken breast your body breaks proteins down into their constituent amino acids, which it then uses to build everything from new muscle to organs and hair.

Are you getting enough?

In all likelihood, probably not. The current guidelines recommend you eat 0.8g of protein daily per kg of bodyweight, but that won’t get you Arnie arms. “Elite athletes eat around 2g per kg every day,” says Dr Karen Reid, a sports science nutritionist who’s worked with the Wales rugby team, and the founder of Performance Food. She recommends getting near that level for the first 12 weeks of a new workout programme. “That’s when you’re sore, when you’re breaking down muscle fibres and creating new structures.” And damage plus fuel equals growth. After 12 weeks, if your wallet requires it, you can scale back to between 1.2g and 1.6g per kilo.

But don’t eat too much

Upping your protein intake won’t automatically lead to muscle gain. If you’re not putting the work in at the gym then it’s wasted, and will either be burnt off as fuel or laid down as fat. That’s an expensive way to gain unwanted weight, and could be harmful in the long term. “Nitrogen from the amino acids has to be cleared,” says Reid. “That puts extra strain on your liver and kidneys, which have to filter it all out.” If you notice dark, concentrated urine, up your hydration and feast on bananas and spinach. They’re high in magnesium and potassium and help to reduce protein-associated kidney stones, according to research from the University of Granada.

 

Watch the clock

Timing your protein hits is vital to optimise your gains. Your body can’t process more than 30g of protein per serving, according to research from the University of Texas, so scoffing six steaks at dinner is a waste. “It’s not about having shedloads all at once,” say Reid. Instead, plan five or six small meals throughout the day, stagger your protein hits from morning to night.

Eat around your workout

The most important protein hit is the one after your gym session. “You want that immediate stimulus,” says Reid. “Within the 30-minute window post-workout you’re looking to optimise the repair and regeneration process.” That’s when you want rapidly-absorbed whey protein, either by chugging a shake or a pint of milk. Reid also recommends a skinny latte for a pre-gym boost: “You’ve got the caffeine kick, the protein in the milk and if you try a banana with it, a bit of carbohydrate.” Pairing your protein with carbs is good sense. After exercise your body produces the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol, which break down proteins, fats and sugars. When they’re coursing through you, you’re not building muscle. “When you get some recovery nutrition in it counters those stress hormones,” says Reid, switching your body back into repair mode and kick starting growth.

Protein for everyone

If you’re looking to pack on muscle then, obviously, you need protein to build it. But if you’re trying to lose weight then upping your intake is equally important. Your body only burns protein after it’s exhausted fat stores, so swapping carbs for meat ensures it’s your spare tyre that gets targeted for energy when you work out. What’s more, simply having muscle (which is, remember, built from protein) increases your calorie burn at rest. Plus there’s the handy fact that protein boosts satiety.

This post is from Macro Man's Main Blog!

Fact or Fiction: A Sugary Post-Workout Snack Can Be Beneficial

You’ve been told for years to stay away from sugar, that it causes energy crashes, stimulates hunger and in the long run can contribute to weight gain. But numerous magazines and websites urge trainees to consume sugary snacks post workout – including sports drinks and Haribo.

First up, here’s what happens when you eat foods high in sugar. Typically you’ll receive a spike in your insulin level, which is a hormone that carries sugar around in your blood stream. Think of insulin as a taxi or transport system. Many times we eat too much sugar and too much insulin gets released, so your body, in an effort to not go into a dangerous hyperglycemic state, clears all sugar from your bloodstream. And guess what happens when the sugar clears – you end up in a low blood sugar state, get tired and hungry and often reach for more sugar in an effort to wake up. And so the sugar yo-yo cycle continues. I’m sure you’ve all been there!

Now keep in mind the above scenario generally fits with people who eat large amounts of sugar and then sit around, either at work, at home or in the car. However the post workout time frame is a very different story.

During exercise there’s two main things that happen. First, we use up a lot of muscle glycogen and blood sugar for fuel during the workout itself. I’m talking about fairly intense sessions here, you know, the kind I promote here at Angry Trainer Fitness – full body circuits of 30–60 minutes a time. Because you’re using up those precious sugar stores, your body becomes extra sensitive to sugar intake following an intense workout – it’s basically ready to start refueling and gas up the tanks. Remember those insulin ‘taxis’ that carry the sugar around your body? Well during the day and under normal conditions they’re driving around and abiding by the speed limit. But after a workout, they’re ready to go full throttle and race the sugar to the parts of your body that need replenishing. This phase is called ‘heightened insulin sensitivity’ and lasts for about 30–45 minutes max after you workout before returning back to normal levels.

What this essentially means is that you can indeed take in more than normal levels of sugar post workout AND benefit from them, without fear of gaining excess weight. In fact I tell people that if they want a chocolate chip cookie as a treat the best time to eat it is right after a workout! It’ll most likely be used to refuel muscle tissue and it’ll satisfy your cheat.

In fact the more simple the sugar the better! Typically you’ll hear experts urging you to only eat foods that elicit a slow rise in your blood sugar levels. However post workout, we want the exact opposite effect – simple sugars that digest ultra fast and fill the muscle stores up.

Now let me clarify. I’m not suggesting that all of you eat ice cream or cookies after a workout. And depending on your goals, whether they be fat loss or muscle gain, you may want to stay in a low blood sugar state and not consume a sugary post workout meal or drink. It’s all dependent upon your aims. I personally use the post workout shake as the only ‘meal’ in which I get simple sugars. The rest of your day should be made up of fibrous veggies, lean proteins and healthy fats.

Of course if you suffer from any form of diabetes or sugar related issues, you must consult your doctor before you make any changes to your diet. But for those of you that are healthy and looking to get a jump start on the recovery process, some simple sugars right after a workout combined with a scoop of quality whey protein can be just what the doctor ordered!

Fitness Fact Or Fiction… this one’s FACT!