Well, I’m interested in hearing the rest of the story, naturally.
Research is good and research is bad.
Research is good because it can teach us a LOT.
Research is bad because most people don’t understand how to take the results of a study and analyze beyond the study to see how it fits in the big picture.
Fortunately, I will help do both with regards to the below study.
So, a team of researchers sought out to discover some stuff about protein:
J Am Diet Assoc. 2009 Sep;109(9):1582-6.
A moderate serving of high-quality protein maximally stimulates skeletal muscle protein synthesis in young and elderly subjects.
Basically, they wanted to see if a 90 gram serving of protein (about the equivalent of 12 oz of grilled chicken breast) would elicit a greater muscle building response when compared to a 30 gram serving (approximately 4 oz of grilled chicken, beef, etc).
The answer: No.
The conclusion: Your body can utilize approximately 30 grams of protein for muscle building purposes at a time. Elite athletes and bodybuilders, perhaps a bit more.
So, does this mean that you should only eat 30 grams of protein per meal regardless of your calorie needs?
No.
There are other factors that should be considered when determining your protein intake, independent of how much of that protein is able to fuel the muscle building process.
What we can, however, learn from this study is a very general rule:
It’s best to spread your protein intake out throughout the day, ala 6 meals with smaller protein portions than 3 meals with larger portions, because yes, there seems to be an upper limit to the amount of protein that the body can use toward rebuilding or building muscle at any one time.
Now, that number could certainly change based on whether the group was participating in regular, intense resistance training — I’m betting the amount would go up. Perhaps 40 grams on average…maybe more.
Either way, you’re probably going to get better results by splitting it up over the course of the day.
Later this week, I’ll be back to answer the question “How much protein do I actually need anyway?”
And I think you’ll be surprised by the answer.
If you’d like to see that article, do two things for me:
1) Hit the Facebook “Like” button below, then…
2) Leave a comment in the comments section
At least 100 comments and I’ll be back later in the week with the “How much protein do I really need?” article.
Talk to you in the comments section!
Joel
Related Posts
143 comments - add yours
I will be very interested in this as there seems to be alot of confusion about how much protein you actually need. I would also be interested to know if ‘too much’ protein is actually bad for you.
hi, round 40 to 50gram each serve. i gues
Joel, what is meant by *at a time* anyway? I have always wondered about this. Yes, I am sure that trying to absorb 90g of whey isolate in one go would be wasteful (and expensive), but if you ate 90g of protein from a large steak it would take so long to digest, would you still consider it to have been taken in at one time? With some protein sources could you still be digesting the protein from the previous meal when you have your next meal? I am interested in your thoughts on this.
Is how much you weigh a factor, or is that the general rule?
Can’t wait for part 2….
I have always been aware that there is some maximum level of protein that can be used utilized by the body & as you mentioned perhaps slightly more than the 30 grms if training hard. With this in mind, why do so many brands of protein shake supply higer levels than this?
Awaiting the official comment.
As a vegetarian, I’m certainly interested to know how much protein I really need.
What happened to the rest of the protein if it’s not digested? Stored as fat too?
This is very interesting…..as I vacillate a lot about protein. I really don’t enjoy meat (although I do eat it), so am always struggling with this. I am curious to read more!
That’s a really good question, and I’d like to know the answer. How much protein do I really need per meal, or per day?
i would say in regards to that study that it was focused on young and elderly who are probably not the target group for this blog and it did not include any exercise component.
If you have been training itensely with weights the limits will go up.
6x 30g a day would be a goog maintainence level for the average person but heavier more muscular people should perhaps move up to the 40g per serve you mentioned.
very useful info..
Thanks for the info. I’ve often wondered this when browsing for a good post workout shake. Some say 52gms other are between 21 and 35. I figured more was better. I had heard that when taking a daily multi-vitamin, you only absorb a small amount regardless of the amounts it contains and I figured this was the same.
Protein seems to be my jet fuel. I don’t work well without it (unfortunately good protein is expensive, so I’ve had ample time to study this particular effect on me. Bralgh… ) But when I’ve got enough? Whoo boy! I look back and wonder how it’s physically possible to do all that I just did.
I love learning more about it! Huzzah!
I am a 69 year old man very interested in getting fit. I exercise strenuously 2 days out of every three and do not understand why my protein uptake should be any different from anyone else following a similar program.What happens to the excess protein? I really need someone to sift through the technical/medical jargon and give me some straight talk. I am looking forward to your article on this subject Joel.
Thanks,
Karl
interesting article looking forward to the results of how much I actually need. Thanks again Joel
If you eat too much protein, does the excess turn into fat storage??? I have heard that it does…
It’s nice to know someone is actually putting this information out there. People seem to hung up on the whole “protein is king” mindset that they go out of their way to get more protein in the form of food or shakes that they increase they caloric intake, gain fat and see minimal muscle gains…
Joel – NO matter the study – They all prove 1 thing – any amount of protein is better than no protein.
Good stuff!
Interesting theory, although you cannot elicit that answer from only one study. Are there more? What about women and other ethnic groups? We still have so much to learn about nutrition, that’s why I like being a dietitian. :)
Maximum protein intake is always a hot topic of conversation. I have received wildly varying advice on this one from many members and training professionals at the various gyms I’ve attended over the years.
Although we can probably arrive at a ballpark figure for the average person, surely the actual amount for each individual will vary anyway according to one’s unique physiological factors?
Either way, food for thought…
At 156lbs lean body mass & 32% body fat how much protein do I consume to loose the fat. I’m just getting started and I’ve read on some sites that you should consume protein for just the lean body mass and on some sites I’ve read that you are to consume for total body weight. It is confusing. Which is the best way lean body mass or total body weight?
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Hey, it’s Joel! So you want to know a little more about me, huh? Well, I’d be happy to oblige :-)
I guess it all started back in 2001 (my freshman year of college) when I was just a “skinny fat” 19-year old kid. At the time, I was spending close to 2 hours a day in the gym (now my workouts last about 30 minutes), and despite my efforts, you’d probably never guess I worked out a day in my life by looking at me...