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<\/p>\nThanks to the rise of social media nutrition experts, a swathe of best-selling cookbooks and an influx of gym-focussed foods in the supermarket, protein has become something of a diet obsession in recent years.<\/p>\n
And with good reason too: protein is the building blocks of our muscles. Getting enough of this vital macronutrient can not only help to maintain muscle strength as you age, but also boost metabolism, improve bone density and support heart health too.<\/p>\n
Government guidelines suggest that women should aim for roughly 45g of protein per day and men should eat around 55.5g, but if you\u2019re currently working out with the goal of getting stronger, adding extra protein into your diet is often a necessary step to seeing results.<\/p>\n
But when it comes to protein, how much is too much? Is it possible that your body can only absorb a certain amount, meaning all those extra grams you\u2019re carefully consuming through high-protein snack bars and gym yoghurts are essentially wasted money?<\/p>\n
As always, we asked our Head of Nutrition, Dr Adam, to clue us in on the facts\u2026<\/p>\n
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Studies have shown that once you hit around 20 to 25g of protein in one sitting, your body doesn\u2019t continue to increase protein synthesis (the process where your muscles use protein to repair and grow) any further, even if you\u2019ve just exercised. Instead, any excess amino acids are either used for energy or excreted in your pee.<\/p>\n
This effect is especially true if you\u2019re consuming protein without following it up with exercise. After eating protein, your muscles can only process so much before they\u2019re \u2018full,\u2019 meaning they hit their maximum absorption capacity. Typically, this happens around two hours \u2018 post-consumption – a phenomenon that\u2019s known as the \u2018muscle full\u2019 effect.<\/p>\n
For individuals with more muscle mass or higher body weight, the threshold for protein absorption might be slightly higher, around 30 to 35g per sitting. But there\u2019s still a limit: likely between 0.25g to 0.35g per kg of body weight.<\/p>\n
Yes, it does. When you do resistance training, your body becomes much better at using protein to build muscle. In fact, exercise can nearly double the amount of muscle-building that happens compared to just eating protein alone.<\/p>\n
That means eating a bit more than 20 to 25g of protein after a workout might be helpful, but the benefits don\u2019t keep increasing at the same rate. For example, going from 10g to 20g of protein gives you a big boost, but jumping from 20g to 40g only gives you a small extra gain (roughly 20 to 30% more).<\/p>\n
This info comes mostly from studies using protein supplements like whey and looking at muscle growth over the first four hours after eating.<\/p>\n
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A 2023 study found that eating a large amount of protein, up to 100g in one go, can still boost muscle-building, as long as you take it over a longer time period; in this case, 12 hours.<\/p>\n
So, having a big serving of protein might still be useful, especially if it\u2019s spread out slowly in your body. You even see this in nature, with predators feasting on huge amounts of protein after a kill, with their bodies making use of the protein hit over time.<\/p>\n
Another consideration is the form of protein you\u2019re eating. How digestible it is, and whether you\u2019re eating it in a meal that contains fat and fibre, will dictate how readily amino acids are delivered into the blood.<\/p>\n
Supplements may max out at 20 to 25g per dose over a couple of hours, but you\u2019ll likely cope with higher amounts in a mixed meal because it\u2019s delivered more slowly.<\/p>\n
Finally, age and training status are also important to think about. Most protein-feeding studies use young, healthy, untrained people. Therefore, you may well need higher amounts to overcome anabolic resistance as you age, or to trigger additional gains if you\u2019re already trained.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
How much protein do you really need? Our Head of Nutrition shares insights on intake, absorption limits, and fuelling your workouts effectively.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20503,"featured_media":437199,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[40,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-437197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-body","category-nutrition"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n