Protein and Recovery

To get the most out of training we all know the importance of consuming carbohydrates (whole grains) and staying well hydrated.  In addition, there is a large body of research that supports consuming protein before, during and after exercise (resistance training and/or endurance training) in order to maximize protein synthesis and muscle adaptation.  The most important workouts to consume protein prior to, during and after would be:

·        Resistance training

·        High intensity interval training (i.e. 3 x 10 mins at LT HR)

·        Overdistance training (i.e. > 1.5 hours)

Nutritional Recommendations

·        Ingest 20-25 g protein immediately after exercise to maximize protein synthesis and promote adaptation – Ingest within 1 hour of resistance training or endurance training to get the most benefit for muscle protein synthesis.

·        Co-ingest some protein with carbohydrate before and during prolonged exercise.

·        Liquid forms of protein are best due to their rapid digestion rate.

·        Rapidly digested proteins are best with isolated proteins such as whey, milk proteins, or soy appearing to be most efficient.

·        Whey protein, due to its leucine content, represents, on a per gram basis, the best protein source to stimulate new muscle protein synthesis.

·        Consume protein throughout the day at regularly spaced intervals to maximize the anabolic response (20-25 g per meal).

·        Excessive quantities of protein are not necessary for performance; however, levels of protein intake in the range of 1.2-1.6 grams of protein/ kg of body weight/day would be adequate and more than required by most athletes even during heavy training.

Summary of Research

·        Exercise increases muscle protein synthesis rates, allowing skeletal muscle tissue to adapt to the various types of exercise training.

·        Protein ingestion following exercise augments muscle protein accretion (growth) by further increasing muscle protein synthesis rates over an extended period of time.

·        The ingestion of dietary protein prior to and/or during exercise stimulates skeletal muscle protein synthesis rates during resistance or endurance type exercise.

·        Allowing muscle protein synthesis rates to increase during exercise training may facilitate the skeletal muscle adaptive response to exercise training and improve training efficiency.

·        The ingestion of protein with carbohydrate during exercise does not acutely improve exercise performance above carbohydrate ingestion alone, when ample carbohydrate is ingested.

“It is, therefore, not surprising that a strong synergy exists between exercise and nutrition.  When protein is ingested following exercise (resistance training or endurance training), muscle protein synthesis rates are increased to a much higher level and for a more prolonged period of time when compared with a normal post-meal response.” --- Luc J.C. van Loon, PhD