There is a lot of conflicting information out there about protein. From how much should you be getting, what type is "best", how to source it if you have dietary concerns all the way to when should you be consuming protein to get the best results. Its super easy to get overwhelmed and so this primer breaks these questions down into simple tips anybody can implement into their eating plan to optimize muscle health, live an active lifestyle, and have enough muscle to stay independent into our 70s, 80s, and beyond.
Benefits of protein
First off, protein is required to run our bodies. Everything from hormone health, brain health, organ, and heart health to healthy skin, bones, joints, and muscles relies on protein. For our purposes, we want to understand that when we consume protein, our body actually gets triggered to start something called muscle protein synthesis(because as we'll cover below, we're more talking about amino acids and our body builds everything from those amino acids). Basically our muscles act as a giant bank of amino acids. When times are lean, our body draws from that bank to make other things and to keep things running(just like our bones are a bank for several minerals and if we're not getting enough of those minerals, osteoporosis results). When we're eating enough protein, we can actually lay down muscle(provided we're being active), and avoid things like age-related muscle loss and frailty called sarcopenia. (Learn how BFR helps with age related muscle loss). Next, protein is actually a nutrient that helps fill you up and triggers satiety or satisfaction and makes you feel full. And as an added benefit, it takes calories to process protein so you get an extra calorie burn just from eating it.
Next we've got to answer the question...
what is protein? Seems like a simple answer but it's not.
What is protein
Protein is a simplified term for amino acids when they are combined with each other. In fact, 75% of the body's "dry weight" is made up of amino acids(basically take away the water, and that's what's left). There are some amino acids that you need, some that you don't, and some that are more important to muscle health than others. Which amino acids do you need(and don't worry about their chemical sounding names)? There are 8 that your body absolutely has to get from food, these are Leucine, Isoleucine, Valine, Lysine, Threonine, Tryptophan, Methionine, and Phenylalanine. One called Histidine is considered "conditionally" essential i.e. your body doesn't always need it but at certain times it has to get it from your diet. The rest, your body can make from the essential amino acids, they are Asparagine, Alanine, Arginine, Aspartic acid, Cysteine, Glutamic acid, Glutamine, Proline, Glycine, Tyrosine, and Serine. Now, supplementing with the individual amino acids won't be the focus of this post, we will dive a bit more into a couple that are helpful for muscle health later on in the post.
What are the sources of protein
There are some foods that have all the amino acids in them including all the essential, conditional, and non-essential. Generally, animal proteins will have them all. Those include all types of meat, fish, dairy, and eggs. Vegetarian sources of complete proteins also include tofu, quinoa, and chia seeds. The remainder of your vegetable sources are going to be incomplete, lacking in 1 or more of the essential amino acids. These include your nuts, seeds, beans, lentils, grains, and leafy vegetables. Generally to follow a vegan or vegetarian diet and get all the amino acids you need, you have to combine your grains and your beans/lentils in order to get enough of your essentials to meet your body's needs.
How much protein do I need?
This is where many in the nutrition field move away from the FDA guidance on protein requirements, which was set for sedentary people. Those are 0.8 grams or protein per kilogram body weight of protein. So, for the 150 pound person, they'd weigh 68kg. Going based on the FDA guidance(again, which was set for sedentary people) they'd get 54g of protein per day or roughly 216 calories of their nutrition from protein. Now, if you're on a 1600 calorie a day nutrition plan...you've got 1400 calories to fill. And very few of those calories are as filling as protein(and remember, protein requires calories to process so you burn calories just by eating them). Consistently, the guidance by people researching in this field is actually a much higher amount of protein per kg of body weight. Actually, it is double at 1.6 g/kg body weight. So, that same 150 pound person is now aiming for 108 grams of protein coming in at roughly 432 calories of your nutrition. So, why would you shoot for the higher amount? This is an amount that when studied, actually stimulates your body to make muscle protein(provided you're being active). Plus, it also still contributes to a calorie burn so if you're looking to drop some pounds, protein both makes you feel full and takes calories to process(called the thermic effect of food).
Do I need to eat protein all day?
So, when we look at timing of protein and specifically muscle protein, it seems like we have roughly 4 windows throughout the day. We want those windows separated by about at least 4 hours(so no, you don't have to be sipping on a protein shake all day). For that 150 pound person, they'd need about 26 g of protein at each feeding. What should they have with it? Well, depending on your macro goals i.e. what percentage of protein to carbs to fats you're shooting for, you're going to meal plan accordingly. But a good rule of thumb is to just eat the rainbow meaning your plate should be very colorful(and I don't mean like my 6 year old who needs ketchup on everything). If you're getting lots of leafy veg, high fiber, and unsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, you're going to be fueling your body for performance.
Are there amino acids specifically for muscle optimizing?
There are 4 overall amino acids that contribute a bit more to muscle health and growth. Those are your branch chain amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine along with glutamine. Of those 4, it would appear that leucine can trigger an increase in muscle protein synthesis. Now, the big question is do you need to supplement with them. Generally, if you're mainly focused on being active, strong, and independent, supplementing with those independently isn't needed. If you happen to look at a protein supplement, you'll see that there's tons of all 4 on the amino acid profile.
Now-we've just scratched the surface of all things protein and some of you probably have questions as to how protein might impact your recovery or exercise. That's one of the things we cover in our Gym Readiness Assessment, a head to toe test to discover where future injuries may lie lurking.
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About the author
Dr. Brandon is the owner and a Physio at Body Mechanix Physiotherapy and Fitness. Four of his favorite people call him daddy while he's been married to his other favorite person for over 20 years. He holds degress in Nutrition and Exercise Science and is by training a Doctor of Physical Therapy. He enjoys teaching martial arts and is a Mestrando in Capoeira while in the mornings, he can be found working out with the guys in F3 around town. He's the author of 4 pain relief guides for sciatica, low back, shoulder, and knees and the lead contributor to the Active Tallahassee Blog.
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