PROTEIN REQUIREMENT/INTAKE Question

[rickhussey]

I have a question about protein intake.

How many people truly pay attention to protein intake?

Second question: How many people probably do not get the recommended amount of protein for a lifter but continue to make progress in powerlifting???

I find myself not getting consistent amounts of protein, but still making progress. Most of my training is not geared for Size/Hypertrophy gains, but for strength/power. Hopefully my training methods elicit mostly neural gains, as I am not so interested in bulking up.

I am just wondering how important it is to monitor this aspect of my diet, if I am NOT concerned with muscle size...only strong muscle contractions which I train for. How much protein is required for muscle repair?

**please note - I do eat protein at every available opportunity, however day-to-day it is not consistent.

[3speed]

Same here Rick. I monitor my intake of everything I eat/drink and the timing thereof. The only benefit I have noticed from protein supplementation is reduced levels of soreness when I consume it right after a hard, heavy workout.

I have read all of the theories about positive nitrogen balance and muscle repair but you have to find out what works for you and the only way to do that is thru experience and keeping a careful log of what you do.

[donaldmannion]

I have tried adjusting my protein to higher amounts but it really did not seem to help me withmy strength but I did gain weight, no necessarily the good kind either. I also gave up on watching the amount of protein I take in because of the cost. So needless to say I pay more attention of making sure I am properly hydrated verse the amount of protein I am intaking.

[rickhussey]

Interesting Don. Thanks for the feedback. I do the same...I try to stay well hydrated as well as eat balanced meals.

[rickhussey]

3speed- I think I have found what works for me. Eat everything in sight!

[3speed]

rickhussey said:

3speed- I think I have found what works for me. Eat everything in sight!

I think we might be related. ;D

[Jim B.]

Rick,

It's called the see-food diet. If you see it - eat it.

I do believe that you can get too little protein. I added a second scoop of supplemental protein at night and seems to have helped my strength lately - think my carbs. were to high. Once I balanced them out some - bench has gone up 20 lbs.

Diet is huge at this point - got to feed the machine.

Jim

[rickhussey]

Last Feb when I started lifting, I weighed 170. I've gained 30lbs this year, so the see-food diet is working.

[mts]

There are many variable that goes into how much protein you should take in. Timing, insulin/carbs, bodies natural usage, does your body use it more for energy or repair, body type, absorption (type of protein). The list goes on and on

I personally do pay attention to protein intake, but not counting every single gram. I try to use fast acting proteins before a workout and after. Many studies point to that his is the best method. Leucine works very well when taken with protein and the newest studies point to this. Usually about 5 grams before and after a workout.

I believe that everyone should get at least one gram per pound of weight.

The actual amount of protein used to repair muscle is very little, but the body uses it for many other things, energy, organs, storage, so on. Thats why steroids work well, they switch using the protein for energy and what not and use it mostly for muscle repair.

just remember this it takes about 3500 calories to equal a pound of muscle or fat, so if you gain a pound of muscle that's roughly 875 grams of protein that wasn't used for anything else except for muscle repair/building!

add in just an extra scoop of protein after a workout (25g) and after a month (if it was used for muscle repair) you just gained a pound of muscle.

[Jim B.]

I agree with the minimum 1 gram of protein per pound intake. At the beginning of the year I increased my protein intake by adding a shake at night - 1 in the morning and 1 in the evening.

One reason is that I get tired of eating that much food all of the time. It is an easy way to have an extra meal without much work involved. Also I do believe that it helps my recovery.

I do believe that you can get too little protein - and that can hamper your progress. After I started adding the protein shake - I did see an increase in my strength and also helped my recovery. I am a carb junky - so i have to watch that. ;D

I am also a firm believer in smaller portions per meal. I eat 6 or 7 times per day. 500 to 600 calories a serving. I believe that I can keep my energy levels throughout the day.

I feel bogged down if I eat 3 big meals and just feel tired and run out of energy as the day goes on.

It is not hard to eat like this either. Example would be a protein shake, banana, and maybe cottage cheese for a snack or something similar. I am big on breads also. I also eat my 3 meals that I normally get also (breakfast, lunch and supper).

Breakfast to me is the most important meal to get you started in the day.

I have a pretty structured eating plan. 7 am (breakfast), 9:30 to 10:00 am (snack), 12:30 pm (lunch), 3:30 pm (snack), 6:00 to 6:30 pm (supper), 9:00 pm (snack), 11:00 pm (snack) right before bed. Then I might even eat once in the middle of the night around 3:00am (something lite).

I am big on milk also - I drink a gallon a day to help get plenty of calories. If I start to gain to much I just cut back on portion size.

I also am a big beilever in drinking plenty of water throughout the day to flush the system out.

Now that you know my life story - I will step down from the podium.

God Bless.

Jim