Was told today in one of my classes that protein doesn't help

We had a different guy teaching our course today for a wellness concepts class and we talked about proteins, vitamins, and fats.

Basically, what he said is that taking protein for lifting doesn't actually help for building more muscle because protein is not storagable inside our bodies. As long as you eat the normal amount of protein that your body needs that taking any additional protein is just a waste and you end up pissing it all in the toilet.

Anybody know much about this? I take protein after a workout because I always thought it helped rebuild and create more lean muscle. I know you're supposed to take it within 30 minutes of a workout, so it would make sense to take some protein then, but taking in tons of protein all day or increasing your normal amount would be a waste then, right?

I don't get much protein so I take supplements. =)

I would probably call that dude a moron and be on my way.

I would probably call that dude a moron and be on my way.

Serraph105

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

[QUOTE="Serraph105"]

I would probably call that dude a moron and be on my way.

WreckEm711

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

[QUOTE="WreckEm711"]

[QUOTE="Serraph105"]

I would probably call that dude a moron and be on my way.

Fightingfan

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

For the purpose of building muscle, it's wasted, which is the topic of the thread, splitting hairs doesn't change that :P

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"][QUOTE="WreckEm711"]

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

WreckEm711

For the purpose of building muscle, it's wasted, which is the topic of the thread, splitting hairs doesn't change that :P

[QUOTE="WreckEm711"]

[QUOTE="Serraph105"]

I would probably call that dude a moron and be on my way.

Fightingfan

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

OK, here's the thing. Your teacher is pretty much right in one respect. I think what he meant to say is that if you intake too much protein AT ONE TIME, it will be a waste since the body can only "absorb" around 30-50 g of protein at one shot (55 kg MAX for very few people based on body build and size). So, after your exercise, the most your body will "keep" is probably about 50 g. You are right that after exercise is a good time to consume protein - your muscles are short on amino acids and other nutrients due to the intense physical activity.

Basically, it is a waste to consume vast amounts of protein in one shot - in that case you will piss it all out. However, if you have a high daily protein intake, and you spread out your periods of protein consumption (instead of taking 100g at one sitting, take approx 33 g across 6-7 hrs), then the efficiency will increase regarding how much protein your body utilizes. Your teacher is right that protein is not stored - as a protein. If too much protein (protein is 4 kcal per gram - same as a carb) is taken in, the amino acids and functional groups that make it a protein in the first place will be excreted, while a lot of the energy storing parts of the macromolecule will be stored as adipose tissue (fat). So all the energy will be stored, but it just will be stored as fat rather than muscle. It's like eating chicken all day (lean white meat chicken breast) - if you continuously eat it your muscles wont become larger and you will just become fat.

Protein is basically used in muscle building since sarcomeres, the functional unit of muscle fibers, are very large and therefore require a lot of building blocks and what not, and one of protein's physiological functions is to serve as the "building blocks" of cellular components. That's why, when you exercise, you heavily exert your muscles and in response, your muscles try to adapt by becoming larger - and to become larger they need protein "building blocks".

Edit - I have something to add. Your teacher said that eating normal protein will be sufficient. This depends - if you go to the gym and work out, but stick with a "normal" protein intake, your gains will most likely be less than if you increased your protein diet. Like I said, protein serves as the building blocks for cellular structures, and some of the biggest cellular structures are sarcomeres of the muscles. So, while your teacher is wrong about eating more protein not helping for muscles, it DOES depend on whether or not you eat it in one shot (the body can only "process" so much protein at one time").

[QUOTE="WreckEm711"]

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"] It's not wasted. Your body stores it as fat for energy.Fightingfan

For the purpose of building muscle, it's wasted, which is the topic of the thread, splitting hairs doesn't change that :P

You dont NEED it though, your body gets more than enough energy from the diet to work out as it is, adding more potential energy only makes people fat

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"][QUOTE="WreckEm711"]

For the purpose of building muscle, it's wasted, which is the topic of the thread, splitting hairs doesn't change that :P

WreckEm711

You dont NEED it though, your body gets more than enough energy from the diet to work out as it is, adding more potential energy only makes people fat

Most Personal trainers, physios and doctors will tell you the same thing, for most people, if you eat a stable and balanced diet, then additional protein supplements aren't really beneficial and won't give any significant gain in muscle development.

however

If you are a body builder who goes to the gym twice a day, 7 days a week and lifts godly amounts of weights and eat a whole christmas turkey blended up with raw eggs for breakfast, then they do have a purpose (look at the diets of a lot of 'strong men' competitors or professional body builders).

The majority of people who go to the gym and lift weights aren't these people.

I don't think you can urinate protein.

Protein turns into carbohydrates when carbohydrates are not used they turn into lipids, lipids turn into fat.Fightingfan

The discussion headline "Was told today in one of my classes that protein doesn't help" but what doesnt it help?

*ureum

typo, GS dont let me edit posts :P

Unless you're a workout warrior and are constantly in the gym, then you should be getting all the protein you need from your diet. I had the same thing happen to me. I had a workout program going and was going to start taking protein shakes after my workouts, but when I asked my Nutrition professor, he said it wasn't needed. Americans eat too much protein as it is. He pointed out that it can actually lead to the opposite effect. Protein provides calories that you have to burn off, so you can actually gain weight if you're not exercising enough to cover the added calories. strope

OK, here's the thing. Your teacher is pretty much right in one respect. I think what he meant to say is that if you intake too much protein AT ONE TIME, it will be a waste since the body can only "absorb" around 30-50 g of protein at one shot (55 kg MAX for very few people based on body build and size). So, after your exercise, the most your body will "keep" is probably about 50 g. You are right that after exercise is a good time to consume protein - your muscles are short on amino acids and other nutrients due to the intense physical activity.

Basically, it is a waste to consume vast amounts of protein in one shot - in that case you will piss it all out. However, if you have a high daily protein intake, and you spread out your periods of protein consumption (instead of taking 100g at one sitting, take approx 33 g across 6-7 hrs), then the efficiency will increase regarding how much protein your body utilizes. Your teacher is right that protein is not stored - as a protein. If too much protein (protein is 4 kcal per gram - same as a carb) is taken in, the amino acids and functional groups that make it a protein in the first place will be excreted, while a lot of the energy storing parts of the macromolecule will be stored as adipose tissue (fat). So all the energy will be stored, but it just will be stored as fat rather than muscle. It's like eating chicken all day (lean white meat chicken breast) - if you continuously eat it your muscles wont become larger and you will just become fat.

Protein is basically used in muscle building since sarcomeres, the functional unit of muscle fibers, are very large and therefore require a lot of building blocks and what not, and one of protein's physiological functions is to serve as the "building blocks" of cellular components. That's why, when you exercise, you heavily exert your muscles and in response, your muscles try to adapt by becoming larger - and to become larger they need protein "building blocks".

Edit - I have something to add. Your teacher said that eating normal protein will be sufficient. This depends - if you go to the gym and work out, but stick with a "normal" protein intake, your gains will most likely be less than if you increased your protein diet. Like I said, protein serves as the building blocks for cellular structures, and some of the biggest cellular structures are sarcomeres of the muscles. So, while your teacher is wrong about eating more protein not helping for muscles, it DOES depend on whether or not you eat it in one shot (the body can only "process" so much protein at one time").

amigo767

Thank you, very informational. I lift religiously so this was kind of new to hear since I had always heard to stock up on the protein. Seems ridiculous how much protein I wasted a couple months ago (like 50 mg after a workout). I've recently been taking 24 mg after a workout so I'll decrease and try to space it out during the day.

[QUOTE="amigo767"]

OK, here's the thing. Your teacher is pretty much right in one respect. I think what he meant to say is that if you intake too much protein AT ONE TIME, it will be a waste since the body can only "absorb" around 30-50 g of protein at one shot (55 kg MAX for very few people based on body build and size). So, after your exercise, the most your body will "keep" is probably about 50 g. You are right that after exercise is a good time to consume protein - your muscles are short on amino acids and other nutrients due to the intense physical activity.

Basically, it is a waste to consume vast amounts of protein in one shot - in that case you will piss it all out. However, if you have a high daily protein intake, and you spread out your periods of protein consumption (instead of taking 100g at one sitting, take approx 33 g across 6-7 hrs), then the efficiency will increase regarding how much protein your body utilizes. Your teacher is right that protein is not stored - as a protein. If too much protein (protein is 4 kcal per gram - same as a carb) is taken in, the amino acids and functional groups that make it a protein in the first place will be excreted, while a lot of the energy storing parts of the macromolecule will be stored as adipose tissue (fat). So all the energy will be stored, but it just will be stored as fat rather than muscle. It's like eating chicken all day (lean white meat chicken breast) - if you continuously eat it your muscles wont become larger and you will just become fat.

Protein is basically used in muscle building since sarcomeres, the functional unit of muscle fibers, are very large and therefore require a lot of building blocks and what not, and one of protein's physiological functions is to serve as the "building blocks" of cellular components. That's why, when you exercise, you heavily exert your muscles and in response, your muscles try to adapt by becoming larger - and to become larger they need protein "building blocks".

Edit - I have something to add. Your teacher said that eating normal protein will be sufficient. This depends - if you go to the gym and work out, but stick with a "normal" protein intake, your gains will most likely be less than if you increased your protein diet. Like I said, protein serves as the building blocks for cellular structures, and some of the biggest cellular structures are sarcomeres of the muscles. So, while your teacher is wrong about eating more protein not helping for muscles, it DOES depend on whether or not you eat it in one shot (the body can only "process" so much protein at one time").

Optical_Order

Thank you, very informational. I lift religiously so this was kind of new to hear since I had always heard to stock up on the protein. Seems ridiculous how much protein I wasted a couple months ago (like 50 mg after a workout). I've recently been taking 24 mg after a workout so I'll decrease and try to space it out during the day.

[QUOTE="WreckEm711"]

[QUOTE="Serraph105"]

I would probably call that dude a moron and be on my way.

Fightingfan

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

It is wasted. Your intestinal epithelium is only capable of absorbing so much protein intake as it is an energy rich, but depleting process. In addition, most people make the mistake of drinking protein shakes filled with carbohydrates when they work out believing that they will lose weight. The human body is incapable of such a feet. It always burns through carbohydrates first before turning to fat and muscle. Thus, all those people that desire to get "cut" or "lean", but drink carbohydrate rich energy or protein shakes will never achieve such. It takesanywhere from a half hour to a full hourfor the human body to burn through enough carbohydrates to send it into a mode in which it will burn through the jelly rolls that most Americans have around their mid-section.

well almost everyone gets far more protein than they need, so he is right in that taking any protein supplement is useless.

[QUOTE="Fightingfan"][QUOTE="WreckEm711"]

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

drj077

It is wasted. Your intestinal epithelium is only capable of absorbing so much protein intake as it is an energy rich, but depleting process. In addition, most people make the mistake of drinking protein shakes filled with carbohydrates when they work out believing that they will lose weight. The human body is incapable of such a feet. It always burns through carbohydrates first before turning to fat and muscle. Thus, all those people that desire to get "cut" or "lean", but drink carbohydrate rich energy or protein shakes will never achieve such. It takesanywhere from a half hour to a full hourfor the human body to burn through enough carbohydrates to send it into a mode in which it will burn through the jelly rolls that most Americans have around their mid-section.

It's for those who can't get the amount of protein they need in food so they take supplements. Many working out supplements are actually beneficial (like creatine) but you can get enough of any supplement if you eat properly.

If you however can't get the nutrition you need then your results when working out will be lacking so that is why people take supplements in the first place.

[QUOTE="Serraph105"]

I would probably call that dude a moron and be on my way.

WreckEm711

Which is hilariously ironic, because he's right. The body can only naturally absorb so much protein for increasing muscle (Believe its 30-40g per day depending on the person), the rest is wasted.

[QUOTE="Optical_Order"]

[QUOTE="amigo767"]

OK, here's the thing. Your teacher is pretty much right in one respect. I think what he meant to say is that if you intake too much protein AT ONE TIME, it will be a waste since the body can only "absorb" around 30-50 g of protein at one shot (55 kg MAX for very few people based on body build and size). So, after your exercise, the most your body will "keep" is probably about 50 g. You are right that after exercise is a good time to consume protein - your muscles are short on amino acids and other nutrients due to the intense physical activity.

Basically, it is a waste to consume vast amounts of protein in one shot - in that case you will piss it all out. However, if you have a high daily protein intake, and you spread out your periods of protein consumption (instead of taking 100g at one sitting, take approx 33 g across 6-7 hrs), then the efficiency will increase regarding how much protein your body utilizes. Your teacher is right that protein is not stored - as a protein. If too much protein (protein is 4 kcal per gram - same as a carb) is taken in, the amino acids and functional groups that make it a protein in the first place will be excreted, while a lot of the energy storing parts of the macromolecule will be stored as adipose tissue (fat). So all the energy will be stored, but it just will be stored as fat rather than muscle. It's like eating chicken all day (lean white meat chicken breast) - if you continuously eat it your muscles wont become larger and you will just become fat.

Protein is basically used in muscle building since sarcomeres, the functional unit of muscle fibers, are very large and therefore require a lot of building blocks and what not, and one of protein's physiological functions is to serve as the "building blocks" of cellular components. That's why, when you exercise, you heavily exert your muscles and in response, your muscles try to adapt by becoming larger - and to become larger they need protein "building blocks".

Edit - I have something to add. Your teacher said that eating normal protein will be sufficient. This depends - if you go to the gym and work out, but stick with a "normal" protein intake, your gains will most likely be less than if you increased your protein diet. Like I said, protein serves as the building blocks for cellular structures, and some of the biggest cellular structures are sarcomeres of the muscles. So, while your teacher is wrong about eating more protein not helping for muscles, it DOES depend on whether or not you eat it in one shot (the body can only "process" so much protein at one time").

amigo767

Thank you, very informational. I lift religiously so this was kind of new to hear since I had always heard to stock up on the protein. Seems ridiculous how much protein I wasted a couple months ago (like 50 mg after a workout). I've recently been taking 24 mg after a workout so I'll decrease and try to space it out during the day.

amigo your good, you definitely know what your talking about. are you a nutritionist?

I read in Men's Health that once you reach 33g of protein, any extra is arbitrary. (I assume this is for average sized people)

Edit: I guess Amigo already answered the question...

You can only use so much protein a day. That is what I think he meant, because whey protein for example does help for lifting if you aren't reaching your maximum protein in your daily diet already.

I know that extra protein is converted to fat. According to Health class, anyway.rcignoni