The Role of Protein in Your Muscle Building Diet
Protein may be the most important part of your bodybuilding diet, as it is the only macronutrient that's directly responsible for building muscle tissue. It is found in all types of meats, as well as nuts, legumes and dairy products. Starchy vegetables (yams for example) also contain proteins, but in much smaller quantities.
When we consume protein, it's broken down by the body and converted in to amino acids which are commonly referred to as "the building blocks of muscle tissue". These amino acids are then used by our bodies for many purposes, including building muscle tissue.
Some amino acids can be manufactured by the bodies, while other can't. Those that the body cannot are called essential amino acids, and are found in all animal sources of proteins. These are in important part of your muscle building diet. The amino acids that the body can make are called nonessential amino acids, and are found in plant sources such as vegetables. Although your body can produce these nonessential amino acids, your muscle building diet should consist of quality muscle building foods from both plant and animal sources.
The Muscle Building Roles of Protein
Protein is probably the most talked about macronutrient in the bodybuilding world--and for good reason. Protein is the only macronutrient directly responsible for building muscle tissue. Although carbohydrates and fat are both essential parts of your muscle building diet, protein is the most important of the three macronutrients when it comes to muscle tissue repair and growth. Without enough protein, you can't build muscle.
Here are the primary roles protein plays in the bodybuilders diet:
- Building and repairing muscle and connective tissue - Building muscle and repairing connective tissue is one of the most important roles protein plays in the body. As you now know, weight training breaks down the muscle tissue in our bodies. This muscle tissue breakdown stimulates a process called protein synthesis, which helps rebuild muscle tissue.
- Aiding immune system function - The bodies immune system relies on certain proteins to function
properly. Adequate protein intake ensures that our immune systems will
be as strong as possible, and will be able to fight off viruses and
other illnesses when necessary.
Having a strong immune system is very important when it comes to
building muscle and gaining weight. In order to maximize our bodies
ability to build muscle, we need to be healthy. If your immune system
is weak, you are more likely to get sick more often. This will affect
the progress of your muscle building program in two ways:
- Preserving muscle mass - Although the body prefers to use fat and carbohydrates as primary
energy sources, it may at times be forced to use protein as fuel. Of
course this is not an ideal situation at all, and you have designed the
right muscle building diet this should never
happen. However, you may find that at some point in your muscle
building program you want to lose some body fat, and focus on muscle
definition. In the bodybuilding world this is know as the "cutting
phase". During the cuttting phase, your training methods and diet will
change radically. Since losing body fat requires restricting the number
of calories you eat (particularly carbohydrates and fats), your body
may have to rely on using protein as a source of energy. It is
important to make sure that you are consuming enough protein in your
diet at this time to minimize muscle tissue loss.
- Building enzymes, and making hormones - The body requires enzymes and hormones to function properly. It also needs certain enzymes and hormones build muscle tissue. In
order to maximize your bodies muscle building ability, it is important
to make sure that the correct levels of enzymes and hormones exist.
Withoutthe correct levels of enzymes and hormones within our body,
building muscle and gaining weight will become more difficult.
What are the Best Sources of Protein for a Bodybuilder?
The best sources of protein for a bodybuilder are those that are relatively low in saturated fat, contain a large selection of amino acids, and have a high biological value. Remember that quality is more important then quantity when it comes to protein consumption, so make sure you include the best sources of protein in your weight gain diet.
Below is a list of some of the best whole food sources of protein (whey protein is also an excellent source of protein):
Best sources of protein
| Protein | Carbs | Fat | Biological Value
| Beans, Kidney (2 Cups)
| 23g | 38g | 0g | 50 | Beef (3 Oz steak)
| 23g | 0g | 15g | 70 | Chicken (1 breast)
| 24g | 0g | 3g | 80 | Cottage cheese 1% (1 Cup)
| 28g | 6g | 2g | 80 - 90
| Milk 1% (3 Cups)
| 24g | 39g | 5g | 90
| Salmon (1 fillet)
| 41g | 0g | 12g | 70 | Turkey (1 breast)
| 26g | 3g | 0g | 80 | Venison (93g)
| 25g | 0g | 8g | 70 | Yogurt 1% (12 Oz)
| 21g | 28g | 2g | 80 - 90
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When and How Much Protein Should a Bodybuilder Consume?
When - A serving of protein should
accompany every meal you eat. Try to consume your largest portion of protein after your weight training workout to promote faster recovery. The meal you consume closest to your bed time should consume a large amount of protein as well.
How much - Most experts recommend that 20 - 50%
of you daily caloric intake comes from protein. If you are not
sure what percentage is right for you, check out the article: "How Much of What to Eat". Again, as with other aspects of your weight gain diet, you
will have to experiment to find out what percentage of protein works best in your diet.
One common formula that many people use to determine protein intake is to consume one gram of protein for every pound of their body weight. This would mean that a 180 pound man would aim for a total of 180 grams of protein each day.
If you decide to calculate your protein intake based on a percentage of daily caloric intake, here is an example of how to determine how much protein you should consume each day:
Step 1. Determine the percentage of your daily caloric intake of protein.
Step 2. Determine how many protein calories you will consume daily using this formula:
(Total Daily Calories) X (Percentage of daily Protein intake) = Total Protein calories
Step 3. Determine how many grams of Protien to consume daily by using this formula:
(Daily protein calories) / 4 = Total grams of protein per day
Step 4. The final step is to use the following formula to determine how many grams of protein you should consume each meal:
(Total daily protein intake in grams) / (Number of daily meals ) = Number of grams of protein per meal
*Here is a real life example using 3000 calories as the
total daily caloric intake with a goal of 30% of those coming from
carbohydrates:
3000 x .30(or 30%) = 900 daily calories from protein
900 / 4 = 225 grams per day
375 / 6 = 37.5 grams per meal
Putting it All Together
Consuming enough quality protein will ensure that your body has all of
the amino acids that it needs to help your muscles grow.
When designing your weight gain meal plan, be sure to keep the following points in mind:
- Aim for a total of 20 - 50% of your total daily caloric intake to come from protein.
- Consume quality proteins that are rich in amino acids, and have a high biological value.
- Avoid consuming too much protein at one time. Excess protein intake places stress on the liver.
- Try to consume about 1 gram of protein for each pound of body weight. For example, a 180 pound person should aim for 180 grams of protein daily.
Don't forget to learn about the roles that carbohydrates and fat play in your weight gain diet, so that you can design the most effective meal plan.
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