#004 What you need to know about protein

What is protein?

The word protein comes from the Greek word “proteios” which means something like “primary”. And that’s all the motivation you should need to keep reading. If even the ancient Greeks knew about protein's importance, you should, too.

Protein is one of the three macronutrients (next to carbohydrates and fats) and the most important one for building muscle. At the highest level, protein and calories are the only two diet-related metrics you need to track every day to build muscle.

For now, you should know that proteins are a chain of different amino acids, which, in turn, are the building blocks for muscles. Keep that in mind, as it is important later on.

One of the main tasks of protein is building and repairing muscle tissues. But even besides building muscle, protein is essential for your body. It is needed for nearly all tasks in your body to function. Protein is also a building block for organs, blood, enzymes, and hormones.

What does protein have to do with muscle growth?

Protein is responsible for two key processes in your body: Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS) and Muscle Protein Breakdown (MPB). Simply put, MPS is the process of your body breaking down protein into amino acids to repair and build new muscle tissues, while Muscle Protein Breakdown breaks down your muscle proteins.

Both processes are taking place continuously. Consequently, to grow muscle, your body needs to create more muscle tissues through MPS than it breaks down via MPB.

And luckily, we can directly impact the level of MPS. Our main levers here are training, protein quantity, protein timing, and protein quality. As I have discussed training in other posts, I will not dive deeper into it. Just remember, triggering an adaptive response through your workout is important, so MPS not only repairs your muscle tissues but also builds new ones in response to the new stimulus.

How much per day

As Muscle Protein Synthesis is the process of the body breaking down protein into amino acids, the crucial component for MPS is -of course- protein. Without protein, there would be no amino acids that could be used to repair and build new muscle tissues. And as laid out before, you need to have a net positive protein balance to grow muscle.

Put into practice, this means that you need to supply your body with enough protein to not only compensate for Muscle Protein Breakdown but to build more muscle tissue through Muscle Protein Synthesis than is broken down. Therefore, it’s crucial that you get enough protein for building muscle. But how much protein do you need per day?

Most studies suggest that your daily protein intake should be in the range of 0.7-1.0g per lb of body weight (or 1.6-2.2g per kg) to build muscle. To give you a quick overview, your protein intake should look something like this:

If you are heavily obese, the formula above doesn’t apply to you. In that case, your daily protein intake should be around 0.5-0.7g per lb of body weight (or 1.2-1.5g per kg). Of course, there is nothing wrong with being above this range, as it can also help you with fat loss since at least 25% of calories associated with protein intake are burned during digestion.

When to consume protein?

An often-discussed topic is how much protein we should eat at once and if there is a maximum. The short answer is that how you divide your protein throughout the day doesn't matter much. As long as you reach your daily protein goal, you have secured most of the gains.

However, consuming all the protein at once wouldn’t be the optimal way to gain muscle. By taking advantage of MPS, we can optimize our muscle growth by spreading protein intake throughout the day.

To properly spike MPS, most need to consume 20-30g of protein. This suggests that you should always try to consume at least 20-30g of protein when you are eating.

Breakfast is especially important as you had just a fast of (hopefully) at least 7 hours and need to spike MPS again. Studies have also shown that your body responds best to MPS in the morning, putting additional importance on breakfast.

Also, consuming protein before you sleep is beneficial, as it allows your body to spike MPS throughout the night when you are recovering. Slow-digesting proteins, such as casein, are best suited for that.

A practical approach for you could be to have 3 main meals (breakfast, dinner, lunch) at around 40g of protein each and 3 snacks at 20g of protein each. This would result in 180g of protein and a continuous spiking of MPS throughout the day. Realistically, you should be able to consume more than 40g of protein per meal if your body needs more protein.

Are all protein sources equal?

Not only is it important how much protein you consume for muscle protein synthesis and how you split it, but also what kind of protein you consume. This is where we come back to the fact that each protein consists of a chain of different amino acids, as I mentioned in the beginning.

There are 20 different amino acids (AA), out of which our body can produce 9 itself - so-called nonessential amino acids (NEAA). As our bodies can’t produce the other 11 amino acids, we need to consume them through our food. Making them essential amino acids (EAA).

It is important to know that not all proteins are created equal. They have different AA profiles and bioavailability (how much of the protein your body can use). Animal-based protein sources usually have a quite complete AA profile, while many vegan protein sources lack or have low amounts of crucial EAAs, such as Leucine, which is the driver behind MPS. Additionally, animal-based protein sources usually have a higher bioavailability, allowing your body to use more of the protein's amino acids than plant-based protein sources.

To counter these shortcomings, vegans should try to hit the higher end of the daily protein range with their protein consumption and also mix different plant-based protein sources to reach a complete AA profile.

FAQ

1. How much protein do I need?

   When building muscle, you should aim to consume 0.7-1.0g of protein per lb of body weight (or 1.6-2.2g per kg). If you are heavily obese, your daily protein intake should be around 0.5-0.7g per lb of body weight (or 1.2-1.5g per kg). If your protein intake is mainly plant-based, try to be at the higher end of this range to compensate for a worse bioavailability and amino acid profile.

2. Is protein bad for my liver?

   One of the most common fitness myths is that excess protein intake is bad for your liver. However, this has been subject to many studies that haven’t found any risks in a high-protein diet for healthy individuals.

3. Can I eat more than 30g of protein per meal?

   Yes, you can consume more than 30g of protein per meal. The most important part is to hit your daily protein goals. How you split it is of lesser importance. However, splitting your protein intake throughout the day makes sense to spike Muscle Protein Synthesis multiple times per day and optimize muscle growth.

4. Do I need protein shakes?

   Protein shakes are nothing more than a tool to reach your daily protein goal. Therefore, you do not need protein shakes at all to grow muscle. But there are some use cases where it makes sense to use protein shakes:
   1. Reaching your daily protein goal
   2. Quickly consuming protein during the day to spike MPS
   3. Increasing EAA intake when you are lacking them in your diet

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Disclaimer

This is not Legal, Medical, or Financial advice. Before starting any workout program, diet plan, or supplement protocol, please consult a medical professional. These are the opinions from an AI voice.