The Protein Review

… Protein, Weight Loss and Training

Posts Tagged How Much Protein

Buy These eBooks

Jan 20

Posted by Ty in Reviews | No Comments

I’m such an impulse buyer that I bought these ebooks IMMEDIATELY after seeing the websites:

How Much Protein?
Eat Stop Eat

These are the COOLEST ebooks I’ve read in a while. That’s why I posted all those excerpts about them.

I’ll quit yapping about it …you can read about them here:

How Much Protein?
Eat Stop Eat

——————————————–
HERE’S WHY I’M  A WEIRDO
——————————————–

So, the guy who owns these products is an entrepreneur as well as a health & fitness freak and he gave me a review copy of each of these books for free so that I could promote them as an affiliate… but I bought them anyway.

And the reason why???

I didn’t want to have to email him and ask for it… and then wait on his response…

I wanted them NOW.

So I bought the ebooks immediately. 

(It’s cheap anyway).

Whatever.

Here’s the deal – this is GOOD. I highly recommend these ebooks because they WILL HELP YOU.

I’m already implementing what I’ve learned.  Check it out:

How Much Protein?
Eat Stop Eat

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On Protein

Jan 18

Posted by Ty in Articles | No Comments

Final thoughts on Protein

The Protein ReviewFor the purpose of building muscle mass I think the goal should be a general recommendation of 70-120 grams of protein per day, and this should be an average intake. As long as you average around 70-120 grams per day you could be lower on some days and slightly higher on others, but muscle growth will still occur.

There is no magic to the strict time period of 24 hours. We live our lives in 24 hour chunks out of convenience with the sun’s schedule, but we tend to assume our nutritional and metabolic needs work this way as well, but this isn’t the case. There is no reason to stress over the amount of protein you have eaten over a 24 hour period, some days you’ll be a bit higher, some days you’ll be a bit lower, it’s the average over weeks and months that matters not hours and days.

Finally, since the average protein intake in North America is roughly 90 grams per day the vast majority of us are already eating enough protein to support muscle growth. Therefore, we don’t need to obsess over our protein intake the way fitness magazines and nutrition experts suggest we should.

Based on all of this research it seems clear to me that there is a very good chance that you don’t need to change anything in your diet and can enjoy the foods you like knowing that you are not hindering your muscle growth.

You don’t need to worry about eating a certain proportion of your diet as protein, or use special protein sources every couple of hours. In fact, I would even argue that you do not have to think of foods as protein containing and non-protein containing foods. Eggs contain an average of 6 grams of protein and are largely considered to be a protein food. A piece of bread contains roughly 5 grams of protein and is NOT considered a protein food.

This type of obsessive compulsive eating and extreme focus on the individual nutrients contained within foods is simply not required in order to increase your muscle mass.

This post is an excerpt from the ebook written by Brad Pilon titled How Much Protein?

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Recommendations for How Much Protein

Jan 13

Posted by Ty in Articles | No Comments

My Best Recommendation

Probably the very best recommendations I can give you are to eat a variety of protein containing foods. As long as you are eating meals with a wide variety of foods you should be able to reach the 70-120 gram target very easily (the average intake in North America is already around 90 grams).

What I DO NOT Recommend

Please note that I have not given recommendations as a percentage of your daily calories or as a percentage of your body weight. This is because neither of these equations have ever made any sense to me.

Take for instance, the idea of eating 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. If a man weighs 180 pounds at 15% body fat when you exclude the weight of his fat he actually has 153 pounds of lean mass. If he eats 180 grams of protein, then he is actually eating 1.17 grams per pound lean body mass assuming your fat cells do not need any measurable amounts of protein. Now if over the next year or two this particular man happens to gain weight at a rate of 20 pounds per year (difficult, but not impossible to do) then after two years he would weigh 220 pounds. So now he should be eating 220 grams of protein per day by this logic.

But what if the weight he gained was entirely body fat? He would be 220 pounds with approx 30% body fat and would still have 153 pounds of LEAN mass. So now he is eating 1.43 grams of protein per pound of lean body mass.

It doesn’t make sense that his protein requirements increased by 40 grams per day if the only thing that changed was the amount of fat on his body. Another example of a confusing protein recommendation is eating a certain percentage of your calories as protein. If a person who eats 2000 calories follows the recommendation of eating 15% of their calories as protein this would mean they would eat 300 calories from protein, or about 75 grams of protein (each gram of protein contains approximately 4 calories).

Now if this same person starts to eat 4000 calories per day, and still follows the recommendation of eating 15% of calories from protein they are now eating 150 grams of protein per day. Again, I see no logical reason why doubling your calorie intake would cause a need for a doubling of protein intake.

How Much Protein by Brad Pilon

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All Sources Of Protein

Jan 10

Posted by Ty in Articles | No Comments

The bottom line is as long as you consistently consume an adequate amount of protein on a regular basis, whether its 1 large serving or 5 to 6 small servings per day, you will have all the protein you need for your muscles to grow. It’s important to note that I am not condemning protein supplements. I’m talking about ALL sources of protein. Whether it’s a chocolate flavoured whey protein shake or a skinless chicken breast, neither one seems to be overly effective at causing you to build massive amounts of muscle mass.

The super massive amounts of protein that bodybuilders eat might work in conjunction with steroid use, but no scientists have been able to prove it in a properly conducted research study. Safety concerns and ethical issues prohibit research on people taking mega-doses of illegal anabolic steroids, so no scientist on earth can actually tell you what is going on in the bodies of those 300 pound behemoths you see in bodybuilding contests and on the cover of ‘fitness’ magazines.

Furthermore, the research that supports the necessity of post-workout protein just isn’t there yet. Acute research tends to show an improvement in markers of protein synthesis, but this has not yet translated into measurable improvements in muscle mass.

Right now, I feel confident in saying ‘if you want to build muscle, workout and possibly take your creatine’, but that’s about it. I cannot find a scientifically valid reason to tell you to take protein after your workouts nor can I find a reason to eat any more than 70-120 grams of protein in a 24-hour period. The good news is that this means that if you are interested in gaining muscle, you can concentrate on the real hero behind your muscle gaining, and that is you and your workouts. The amount of protein you eat should not concern you any longer.

Outside of your height and genetics it is the quality of your workouts that will determine how much muscle you are able to add and keep on your body.

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Protein and Your Nutrition Plan

Jan 7

Posted by Ty in Articles | No Comments

When you look at all the available research, instead of one single study you begin to see the big picture. Realistically, you can expect to gain between 2 to 5 pounds of lean mass in 2 to 4 months by working out. There is evidence to suggest that you might be able to gain about 7 pounds of muscle by working out and upping your calorie intake by 2000 calories. Of course, you could get the exact same result by taking creatine, without any potential for gaining body fat.

These results lead me to say that protein still has a role in everyone’s nutrition plan, and is an essential nutrient that is obviously important for building and repairing muscles. In fact, from my understanding of the research I think it makes sense to try and consume SLIGHTLY ABOVE the recommended amounts, aiming for around 70-120 grams of protein per day, depending on your body weight and current calorie intake. I suggest bigger men aim for the upper end of this scale, and women aim for the lower end of this scale.

But despite all the hype I just don’t think we need to be paying good money for massive amounts of protein powder, jumbo-sized packages of chicken breasts or consuming 6 dozen eggs per week. Nor do I think we need to be obsessing over eating our protein right after our workouts, if the amount we get in our diets will serve our purposes just fine.

After all, gyms around the nations are full of young men who regularly consume thousands of dollars worth of protein supplements. Take a look at the ones who aren’t secretly on steroids (you probably know who they are) are they really any bigger than they were two months ago? For that matter even 2 years ago? Professional bodybuilders regularly consume massive amounts of protein and are on doses of steroids so high they would stop a horse’s heart, but they are extremely happy if they are able to put on 10 pounds of muscle over an entire year. This is a great reminder that even when using steroids muscle growth is a slow process.

Finally, look at your own progress. Have your muscle gains exploded since you started counting the grams of protein you eat? My guess is probably not. In fact, your greatest gains in muscle mass probably occurred when you first started lifting weights. When you didn’t even care about how much or type of protein went into your body. You probably ate when you were hungry, lifted when you needed to, and your muscles grew like a weed.

This exceprt is taken from the ebook “How Much Protein” by Brad Pilon.

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2010 onwards

Jan 3

Posted by Ty in Uncategorized | No Comments

Hey Everyone,

Do you like the new theme?  I hope so ’cause you’re stuck with it now :p

Well, first up I’m going to run a series of posts taken from the ebook How Much Protein? by Brad Pilon.  The post will give you an idea of what’s in the book and an insight into the discoveries that Brad Pilon has made while researching this topic.  It’s pretty interesting and you will learn something new about how to approach your diet and training…. without driving yourself nuts!

Secondly, I’m working on some writings of my own.  I already have one report prepared which I’ll probably give away as a bonus or something.  They’re all  about areas of exercise and training that no one ever talks about…. and I won’t spill the beans right now.  There is some good information out there but once you “get it” that all these ideas are guided by the same principles you will be empowered to control your own training from thereon.

I guess this is the stuff that the so-called gurus don’t want you to know about… he he.  I’ve been training for 20 years now and always actively searching for information on how to train right.  I really feel like I’m starting to reach a zenith of knowledge and I’m ready to share it with you.

It should be fun.

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Is Protein Anabolic?

Dec 6

Posted by Ty in Podcasts/Vidcasts | No Comments

“That guy” I was talking about is Brad Pilon and his ebook “How Much Protein” will challenge everything you thought you knew about protein supplements.  Brad shows that there is no evidence to suggest that protein powder is anabolic.

I should warn you that you may be emotionally challenged by “How Much Protein”, sometimes it can be hard to let go of what we thought was “the truth”…

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How Much Protein?

Sep 15

Posted by Ty in Reviews | 1 Comment

The Real Truth About Protein

adaptation from the ebook How Much Protein…

Protein is one of the most popular and controversial topics in all of nutrition. It has become the ‘nutritional golden child’ of muscle building and fat loss. Some people may try to avoid eating carbohydrates, and others may avoid fat, but nobody avoids protein.

Over the last 50 years ‘protein’ has become synonymous with ‘muscle’. When people think of bodybuilders, they think of protein shakes – lots of them.

This has led to the rise of a massive protein supplement industry with projected sales of over 6 billion dollars by 2011 [Packaged Facts, 2008].

The popular theory is simple: by eating more protein you can force your body to an improved level of function, including larger muscles, less fat, and a host of other health benefits. The question is whether or not the scientific research
actually supports these theories.

Protein has been given so many benefits by the media that it is hard to find a health benefit that protein does NOT have. From preventing diabetes to building muscle, protein seems to be able to do it all. These are some pretty big claims, and it would be amazing if even half of these claims were true.

Of all the claims about protein, the one that almost everyone simply accepts as fact is that eating protein builds more muscle. It is this one simple assumption that leads to so many of the additional benefits of protein. Surprisingly, this assumption has never been fully proven.

Purpose Of The Book

The purpose the book “How Much Protein?” is to review the current body of scientific research and find out if there is any truth to the alleged muscle building benefits of protein. Specifically, the book examines the benefits of eating high protein diets (In excess of the 90 grams per day that is the average intake in North America [Fulgoni VL, 2008]), and it will also examine the muscle building benefits of post-workout protein intake.

The book “How Much Protein?” will share with you the exact amount of protein, or range of protein intakes that an adult human needs to eat to allow for measurable increases in skeletal muscle mass.

The book will also reveal where the fitness industry gets its information about the effects of protein and how this information can be and usually is misinterpreted.

How Much Protein?

It is the definition of ‘sufficient amounts’ that is the center of the ‘protein builds muscle’ controversy. To date, we have never had a scientific consensus on the amount of protein we should eat that everyone would agree is sufficient.

From examining the protein intake of many different cultures around the world we are able to see that humans can survive on a wide range of protein intakes.

From levels as low as around 0.3 grams of protein per pound of body mass (about 50 grams per day for a 180 pound man) all the way up to ten times this amount in people who survive eating a diet that consists almost exclusively of meat.

Obviously, even though our protein intake can vary by a factor of ten times, our muscle mass cannot.  There is no culture of people on earth who have ten times more muscle than another culture.

Even a champion bodybuilder, with all the amazing genetic potential and anabolic steroid abuse, still does not have anywhere near ten times the muscle of an extremely skinny Olympic long distance runner.

So while people can chronically eat massively different amounts of protein, this drastic difference is not reflected in their muscle mass.

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Wading Through The Murky Waters

Sep 12

Posted by Ty in Articles | 1 Comment

I’ve been feeling good lately about the information I’ve been dealing with.  There’s so much crap thrown at you when you’re trying to learn about diet and exercise.  All you want to do is improve your health and body because you care about yourself but you just get bombarded with so much crap information.  It really drives me crazy.

Anyway, after 20 years of going to gyms and searching for information I feel like I’ve really hit on the real stuff in recent times.  It makes me feel good too.  It’s good knowing that when I’m at the gym I’m doing the most productive thing I possibly can for my body.  I don’t have to flog myself to death like some others in there.  I actually take my time, enjoy what I do and reap huge benefits from it.  I’ve felt that way about training for a couple of years now.

Lately it’s diet where I feel I’ve broken some new ground.  I’ve discovered so much real data about protein and food.  Its so exciting to plan out how I’m going to test this new info and what the results might be.  Authors like Lyle McDonald and Brad Pilon have really opened my eyes to new approaches to nutrition.

I’ve been talking about Brad’s book How Much Protein in previous posts, it’s eye opening stuff and worth reading.  Now I’ve just finished reading Eat Stop Eat.  That’s Brad Pilon’s first book, all about diet.  I’ve just started on testing this information and I’ll keep you posted about what I think.

Don’t worry…. I won’t pull any punches!  If I think it’s crap I’ll say so, but How Much Protein was a good read and I’m putting it to the test right now.  So far, so good.  Get the ebook and read it.

It’s such a murky industry, all this diet and exercise stuff.  Especially on the internet.  Every crackpot has some stupid idea or a variation on an old theme.  I really feel for people starting out not knowing who to trust or what to believe.

In the end all you can do is test and measure.  Try things out but make sure you keep a diary of what you do and what happens.  If it doesn’t work, don’t give up, just learn and move on.

That’s what I’ve been doing for the last 20 years.

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The Purpose of How Much Protein

Aug 28

Posted by Ty in Reviews | No Comments

These excerpts are taken directly from the ebook How Much Protein?

Of all the claims about protein, the one that almost everyone simply accepts as fact is that eating protein builds more muscle. It is this one simple assumption that leads to so many of the additional benefits of protein. Surprisingly, this assumption has never been fully proven (Pilon 2008, page 11).

The purpose then of this book is to review the current body of scientific research and find out if there is any truth to the alleged muscle building benefits of protein. Specifically, it will examine the benefits of eating high protein diets (In excess of the 90 grams per day that is the average intake in North America [Fulgoni VL, 2008]), and it will also examine the muscle building benefits of post-workout protein intake (Pilon 2008, page 14).

I also will share with you the exact amount of protein, or range of protein intakes that an adult human needs to eat to allow for measureable increases in skeletal muscle mass.  Finally I will explain where the fitness industry gets its information about the
effects of protein and how this information can be and usually is misinterpreted (Pilon 2008, page 15).

You Can Get The Ebook Here

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