A Little About Protein

[FUZO]

TweetFor everyone out there looking for that one supplement that will give you an edge on the other people in your gym, look no further than the most used supplement in the world. PROTEIN. Now, many will say that they have supplemented with protein and saw little results. But the problem is not the kind of protein, it is the amount of protein that is being consumed.

Every bodybuilder out there knows that 1 gram per pound of body weight is required to build muscle. Have you ever thought that by taking in two or two and a half times that amount would be better? Well I am here to give you a perfect example of what this super supplement and nutrient can do for you with a well balanced diet and training program.

First off, a protein is a food component made of amino acids. Proteins contain the form of nitrogen used by the human body. Protein yields on an average of 4 kcal per gram. Protein is used in our bodies for blood clotting, fluid balance, visual process, hormone and enzyme production, and cell repair. As I mentioned up above, proteins are made up of amino acids.

Amino acids are formed by carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. But the key part of an amino acid is nitrogen. Notice up above I stated that proteins contain the form of nitrogen used by the human body. Our bodies need to use 20 different types of amino acids to function. 11 of them are nonessential Amino Acids:


L- Alanine
L-Arginine
L-Asparagine
L-Aspartic Acid
L-Cysteine
L-Cystine
L- Glutamic Acid
L-Glutamine
L-Glycine
L-Proline
L-Serine
L-Tyrosine

This means they can be synthesized by the body in sufficient amounts. The other 9 amino acids are essential Amino Acids:

L-Histidine
L-Isoleucine
L-Leucine
L- Lysine
L-Methionine
L-Phenylalanine
L-Threonine
L-Tryptophan
L-Valine

This means that we have to get them from a source of food. Now that we have that out of our way, we can talk about why you should up your intake of protein. First, if you expect to grow off of 1 gram of protein, you will be looking at a couple of years before you make any major gains. Who wants to wait years to make gains when you can do it in only months. Second, people are going to tell you that your kidneys are going to stop working or your body isn’t going to take in all that protein.

Eating a lot of protein can tax the kidneys because of the overdrive of trying to process and excrete the nitrogen in the protein. To compensate for this you must drink a lot of water. At least a gallon of water or more should be taken everyday. Drinking lots of water keeps the body hydrated and increases the body’s recuperative ability to recover quickly. Water makes up 55-65% of your body weight. It also aids in the transport of nutrients.

Now that we have answers to the doubters out there we can talk about some reasons to take in more protein. As stated above our bodies use protein to rebuild muscle that is broken down from resistance training. Our bodies need protein to rebuild the broken down muscle. So taking in the recommended amount of protein will get you results. But why not take more than recommended. We already got the extra mile by eating healthy foods, lifting weights, and watching our overall health. I can promise you that if you take 2-2 ½ grams per pound of body weight of protein you will see results with in two months.

Your muscles will feel fuller, you will have better pumps in the gym, and your weight poundage will go up. There are many ways to up you protein intake. First, of all you should be getting most of your protein from the foods that you eat. Not from a protein supplement. The supplement is a SUPPLEMENT to your daily nutrients that you should be getting already. One way is to add a little more protein sources to your 5-8 meals that you are already taking in. In the following meal plan I will show you where you can make improvements to have more proteins through your foods:

Meal 1

3 Whole Eggs (3 Whole Eggs 2 Egg Whites)
1 Cup Oatmeal (Make With Milk)
1 Banana

Meal 2 (Shake)

1 Scoop Casein Protein (Add 1 More Scoop)
1 Cup Oatmeal
1 Cup Mixed Berries
1 Tbsp Natural Peanut Butter
1 Cup Water (Make With Milk)

Meal 3

6 oz Chicken Breast (8-10 oz serving size)
1 Cup Brow Rice
½ Cup Mixed Vegetables

Pre-Workout

2 Scoops Whey Protein
1 Apple

Post-Workout

2 Scoops Whey Protein (4-5 Scoops)
1 20 oz Gatorade

Meal 4

1 Can Tuna (2 Cans of Tuna)
1 Cup Brown Rice
1 Cup Mixed Vegetables

Meal 5

1 Scoop Casein Protein (2 Scoops)
1 Cup Milk
1 Serving of Almonds

Bedtime Meal 6

1 Cup Cottage Cheese (1 Tbsp Peanut Butter, 1 Cup Milk with 1 Scoop Casein Protein)

This is a sample meal plan that you can look at and see the adjustments made. Adding these into your meal plan will bump up your protein intake.

There are four important times to consume the most protein. First upon waking up, pre and post workout, and before going to bed. You should consume a lot of protein when first awake because your body has been in a catabolic state from the nights rest. Taking some protein when waking up will put your body back into that anabolic state everyone strives for.

Taking a protein supplement before you lift is a good idea because it will be used as a source of energy for your workouts and also give you a head start on rebuilding that broken down muscle from training. Taking a protein supplement is also good for after training. It enters the body very quick and has been proven to be very effective.

Taking a casein protein such as cottage cheese or a casein protein before bed works in preventing catabolism from going on any longer for throughout the night. A casein protein digest slower than the whey supplement. So taking it before bed will allow itself to digest throughout the night, minimizing the chances of a catabolic state.

Throughout this article I hope that you have learned something new about protein and how it can effect your body and by making little changes in your meal plan you can see big changes in you body. Thank you.

[BIGMOFO]

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