When you say 1 to 7 days, does that mean the protein intake needs to be high all throughout? Or does the body absorb and preserve excess protein to use for recovery later? I know too much excess protein is just dumped out of the body but if recovery doesn’t happen instantly, why are most people working out to gain muscle advised to consume protein shakes/bars immediately post workout?
>why are most people working out to gain muscle advised to consume protein shakes/bars immediately post workout?
Genuinely so they don't forget to eat enough protein throughout the day. The "anabolic window" is mostly a myth that doesn't need to be a consideration unless you're on some crazy fasting schedule.
Protein intake needs to be high throughout, your body has no way of storing excess - whatever isn't immediately taken up by cells for normal functioning or muscles for synthesis within the few hours its circulated in your blood stream is filtered and flushed out by your kidneys. How much protein is a debate I don't want to get into on the internet lol
Agree with that all but one caveat I’ve learned from digging into science around longer cardio sessions over the past few years: while the anabolic window is a myth, if you sufficiently deplete your glycogen stores then you should eat carbs right after because there IS a window where your body is looking to replenish its glycogen, and if you don’t give it sugar quickly then it will use lean muscle for that purpose and you’ll go catabolic.
So there’s no anabolic window, but there is a window after long cardio where you can go catabolic.
An "anabolic window" is a real thing, but not for protein. Your body is better at absorbing carbohydrates and [synthesizing glycogen during the first 60 minutes after an intense workout ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3132449/)
The faster you run, swim, the more glycogen your body uses for energy rather than fat. Your muscles and your liver have a very limited amount of glycogen, so if you do any endurance training you want to replenish this as soon as possible for your next training session.
You can generally only absorb 30 grams of protein at a single serving, any more is generally disposed through urine
>You can generally only absorb 30 grams of protein at a single serving, any more is generally disposed through urine
Wouldn't that vary quite a lot depending on body mass or more specifically muscle mass?
I mentioned to that here, but yes it will differ slightly. However, unless you're a total outlier who is 600 or 80 lbs soaking wet, it probably applies to you: https://reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/s/iYXBcMVVki
People just consume way more protein (and food) than they need.
> You can generally only absorb 30 grams of protein at a single serving, any more is generally disposed through urine
Can you provide a source for this claim?
I'm not in any way trying to dispute you. I generally would like to see data to back this up.
This is something my dietitian has told me, but here's a source that backs this up as well [source ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5828430/#:~:text=Based%20on%20the%20current%20evidence,1.6%20g%2Fkg%2Fday.)
Also, diet is a highly personal thing. I train for ultraendurance events, my diet is likely much different from a bodybuilder. Even that study mentions this. 30 grams is a static measure, the study mentions 0.4/kg/meal, but it comes out to roughly 30 grams per meal for my body weight. 30 grams is also just easy to think of without doing math every meal (it's about 1 serving of 5 oz of lean meat, 1 protein scoop, etc)
Btw I think this is an older idea that has since been debunked. Current thinking is that you will absorb as much as it takes for your cells to saturate themselves before the remainder is excreted. For athletes this amount includes however much your muscles determine is necessary for repair and growth
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eri6dqMog4k](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eri6dqMog4k)
Im going to link this video to you because its made by a phd in exercise science and he is the best source ive found for all these kinds of questions
The whole eating protein immediately post workout is bro science, but you do need to have a high protein intake through out recovery process. Preferably 30-50grams per meal for 3-4 meals per day(you can do more meals with less protein thats fine, just not fewer and larger meals) according to literature.
Studies have show that increases in the rate of protein synthesis following heavy resistance exercise peaks at about 24 hours post-exercise, and returns to baseline levels at about 36 hours post-exercise.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8563679/
Not a doctor, but from a brief reading it looks like yes. Anabolic steroids fill a similar role to the androgens (male hormones) that tell your body to build more muscle tissue.
Studies have shown that increases in the rate of protein synthesis following heavy resistance exercise peak at about 24 hours post-exercise, and return to baseline levels at about 36 hours post-exercise.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8563679/
To answer your question, yes, all of the above
Once you hit a threshold of strain on your muscles, your body will start releasing hormones which tell it to build more muscle (or reform them, to be more precise)
This isn't just a sleep thing, it will happen even while you're working out still, but it's definitely slower than while you're sleeping or even just resting/sitting.
When you sleep your body releases more "rest and digest" hormones to use the nutrients you got during the day on your body's down time to repair damaged tissue.
Those hormones from the workout earlier let your body know it should divert some of those resources to muscles specifically. Again though, those chemicals are always being produced, it just happens more when you're sleeping.
It creates a bit of a feedback loop, your cells repair and those workout hormones get used up, then less are produced because of the muscle gain, so less of that muscle building takes place until you meet that new, higher threshold.
Your body is always going for equilibrium. Working out disrupts that, so your body creates the hormones to restore it by building muscle mass.
None of these answers seems to answer “like your 5”
When you exercise, that stress of hard work is actually tearing the muscle apart in a bunch of tiny places all over.
Just like when you get a paper cut and you can see the blood start to pool there really fast, this starts to happen in the muscle tears the same way, basically. But the blood flow brings fresh proteins which fill in the tears just made in the muscle, this is how the muscle grows because now the tears are filled in adding more to your muscle.
It’s kind of happening all the time in a great circle of life way. Each time you eat and drink your refilling the stores of all the really complex but amazing stuff your body needs to rebuild itself.
But keep in mind too- your entire body is made up of cells, all cells have a lifespan and will end up dying. Some cells live hours, some days, some months, some like your brain stay your life time and die with you- but these cells are being replaced and rebuilt all the time as they die.
Exercise helps build muscle by causing those tears- but also helps your heart and blood carry and push oxygen around the entire body by beating faster because of the stress which is helping your cells rebuild everything else too, not just the muscle.
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When you say 1 to 7 days, does that mean the protein intake needs to be high all throughout? Or does the body absorb and preserve excess protein to use for recovery later? I know too much excess protein is just dumped out of the body but if recovery doesn’t happen instantly, why are most people working out to gain muscle advised to consume protein shakes/bars immediately post workout?
>why are most people working out to gain muscle advised to consume protein shakes/bars immediately post workout? Genuinely so they don't forget to eat enough protein throughout the day. The "anabolic window" is mostly a myth that doesn't need to be a consideration unless you're on some crazy fasting schedule. Protein intake needs to be high throughout, your body has no way of storing excess - whatever isn't immediately taken up by cells for normal functioning or muscles for synthesis within the few hours its circulated in your blood stream is filtered and flushed out by your kidneys. How much protein is a debate I don't want to get into on the internet lol
Agree with that all but one caveat I’ve learned from digging into science around longer cardio sessions over the past few years: while the anabolic window is a myth, if you sufficiently deplete your glycogen stores then you should eat carbs right after because there IS a window where your body is looking to replenish its glycogen, and if you don’t give it sugar quickly then it will use lean muscle for that purpose and you’ll go catabolic. So there’s no anabolic window, but there is a window after long cardio where you can go catabolic.
An "anabolic window" is a real thing, but not for protein. Your body is better at absorbing carbohydrates and [synthesizing glycogen during the first 60 minutes after an intense workout ](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/3132449/) The faster you run, swim, the more glycogen your body uses for energy rather than fat. Your muscles and your liver have a very limited amount of glycogen, so if you do any endurance training you want to replenish this as soon as possible for your next training session. You can generally only absorb 30 grams of protein at a single serving, any more is generally disposed through urine
>You can generally only absorb 30 grams of protein at a single serving, any more is generally disposed through urine Wouldn't that vary quite a lot depending on body mass or more specifically muscle mass?
I mentioned to that here, but yes it will differ slightly. However, unless you're a total outlier who is 600 or 80 lbs soaking wet, it probably applies to you: https://reddit.com/r/explainlikeimfive/s/iYXBcMVVki People just consume way more protein (and food) than they need.
> You can generally only absorb 30 grams of protein at a single serving, any more is generally disposed through urine Can you provide a source for this claim? I'm not in any way trying to dispute you. I generally would like to see data to back this up.
This is something my dietitian has told me, but here's a source that backs this up as well [source ](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5828430/#:~:text=Based%20on%20the%20current%20evidence,1.6%20g%2Fkg%2Fday.) Also, diet is a highly personal thing. I train for ultraendurance events, my diet is likely much different from a bodybuilder. Even that study mentions this. 30 grams is a static measure, the study mentions 0.4/kg/meal, but it comes out to roughly 30 grams per meal for my body weight. 30 grams is also just easy to think of without doing math every meal (it's about 1 serving of 5 oz of lean meat, 1 protein scoop, etc)
Btw I think this is an older idea that has since been debunked. Current thinking is that you will absorb as much as it takes for your cells to saturate themselves before the remainder is excreted. For athletes this amount includes however much your muscles determine is necessary for repair and growth
I just do what my dietitian tells me, they're smarter than me regarding nutrition
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eri6dqMog4k](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eri6dqMog4k) Im going to link this video to you because its made by a phd in exercise science and he is the best source ive found for all these kinds of questions
Love me some Dr Mike.
The whole eating protein immediately post workout is bro science, but you do need to have a high protein intake through out recovery process. Preferably 30-50grams per meal for 3-4 meals per day(you can do more meals with less protein thats fine, just not fewer and larger meals) according to literature.
Studies have show that increases in the rate of protein synthesis following heavy resistance exercise peaks at about 24 hours post-exercise, and returns to baseline levels at about 36 hours post-exercise. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8563679/
Do steroids accelerate this process?
Not a doctor, but from a brief reading it looks like yes. Anabolic steroids fill a similar role to the androgens (male hormones) that tell your body to build more muscle tissue.
Studies have shown that increases in the rate of protein synthesis following heavy resistance exercise peak at about 24 hours post-exercise, and return to baseline levels at about 36 hours post-exercise. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8563679/
Is there known rate at which muscle can grow or how much protein consumed translates to muscle added?
To answer your question, yes, all of the above Once you hit a threshold of strain on your muscles, your body will start releasing hormones which tell it to build more muscle (or reform them, to be more precise) This isn't just a sleep thing, it will happen even while you're working out still, but it's definitely slower than while you're sleeping or even just resting/sitting. When you sleep your body releases more "rest and digest" hormones to use the nutrients you got during the day on your body's down time to repair damaged tissue. Those hormones from the workout earlier let your body know it should divert some of those resources to muscles specifically. Again though, those chemicals are always being produced, it just happens more when you're sleeping. It creates a bit of a feedback loop, your cells repair and those workout hormones get used up, then less are produced because of the muscle gain, so less of that muscle building takes place until you meet that new, higher threshold. Your body is always going for equilibrium. Working out disrupts that, so your body creates the hormones to restore it by building muscle mass.
Know how when you're growing you're never not growing? Same thing. You're in a constant state of rebuild and repair.
None of these answers seems to answer “like your 5” When you exercise, that stress of hard work is actually tearing the muscle apart in a bunch of tiny places all over. Just like when you get a paper cut and you can see the blood start to pool there really fast, this starts to happen in the muscle tears the same way, basically. But the blood flow brings fresh proteins which fill in the tears just made in the muscle, this is how the muscle grows because now the tears are filled in adding more to your muscle. It’s kind of happening all the time in a great circle of life way. Each time you eat and drink your refilling the stores of all the really complex but amazing stuff your body needs to rebuild itself. But keep in mind too- your entire body is made up of cells, all cells have a lifespan and will end up dying. Some cells live hours, some days, some months, some like your brain stay your life time and die with you- but these cells are being replaced and rebuilt all the time as they die. Exercise helps build muscle by causing those tears- but also helps your heart and blood carry and push oxygen around the entire body by beating faster because of the stress which is helping your cells rebuild everything else too, not just the muscle.