The Amount of Protein Intake Needed After Workouts

Have you ever asked yourself how much protein do you really need after your workouts? You might find the answer here!

You already know that protein is essential for building muscle and it’s also very important for a fast recovery, but many of you are asking how much it’s really needed after workouts. A new research from the University of Stirling presents some very interesting informations about protein and changes many opinions about its consumption. First, take a look at some facts we already know about protein:

Most personal trainers and nutritionists agree that, if you want to bulk up, you should provide your body about 1.2 to 1.7g of protein per kilogram of bodyweight daily, divided into four separate meals that you’ll eat four hours apart. Of course, they also agree that your needs can fluctuate based on many factors like your weight, your lifestyle, your goals or how hard you’re training.

In this research, published in Physiological Reports, scientists recruited 30 young, resistance exercise-trained males and divided them into 2 groups: one group had males with lower lean body mass of less than 143 pounds (65 kilograms) and one with higher lean body mass of more than 154 pounds (70 kilograms).

The volunteers took part in two trials: they had to consume protein after a full-body workout. In the first trial, they consumed 20g of whey protein and in the second 40g. Afterwards, the scientists measured their muscle’s growing capacity at an increased rate via metabolic tracers and muscle biopsies. Look what they concluded!

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1. Bigger athletes don’t necessary need more protein. The researchers suggested that the amount of muscle worked in a specific training session has a bigger impact on the amount of protein needed afterwards, than the entire amount of muscle in the body. So the assumption that larger athletes need more protein may no longer be viable.

2. The amount of protein your muscles need after your training sessions may be dependent on the type of workout you’ve performed. Researchers found that volunteers muscles were able to grow and recover faster from exercise after consuming a higher quantity of protein, no matter how big the man was. They think that nutritionist should recommend the necessary amount of protein also based on some details about the type of training.