Her's Muscle and Fitness (Nov/Dec 07 issue) had an amazing article called Protein Power. This is a summary of the excellent points made regarding protein and why you need it. The following five points give you information on building lean muscle.
1. You are what you eat.
If you are a PNP follower, you want a lean, toned, muscular body. Those muscles are made of protein, so it's lean muscles you want, it's lean protein you should eat. Research shows that if you are focused on strength and working out five to six times a week that you need close to 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day. That means if you weight 145 pounds, you need a minimum of 145 grams of protein a day.
Tips: Eat at least 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight and up to 1.5 grams per pound per day if you're dieting and dropping carbs. Choose lean sources such as chicken breast, turkey breast, eggs, lean beef, low-fat dairy, and fish, as well as whey, soy, and casein protein powders.
Be sure to drink three liters of water daily and do not drop your carbs below 30% of your totally daily calorie intake.
2. You are what you don't eat.
If you want to be lean, you must avoid eating too much food. Research shows that eating protein can decrease hunger more than eating carbs or fat.
Tips: Keep each meal focused on protein to help blunt hunger all day. If fact, start your day off right by eating breakfast and be sure that breakfast has plenty of protein. Try oatmeal mixed with protein powder, a large egg white and veggie omelet cooked in the microwave, or a small sirloin steak and whole wheat toast.
3. Protein will boost your fat burning.
Protein boosts your metabolic rate, which leads to helping you burn more fat. Research shows that a high-protein meal raises your metabolic rate by 20-30% for several hours, whereas a high-carb meal may raise it by only 5-10% and a high fat meal by 3% or less. This means a higher protein diet can keep your metabolism revved after meals, helping you burn more of the calories and fat you just ate.
Eating protein and carbs together releases carbs as glucose into the bloodstream at a slow and steady pace, which in turn keeps insulin levels low and steady. This is important because when carbs are digested rapidly (you skipped the protein), it promotes large spikes in insulin, which means more fat is stored as bodyfat and less bodyfat is burned as fuel.
Tips: Eat 20-40 grams of protein with every meal, especially those that are a little heavy in carbs.
4. Pre-workout fuel.
One of the most critical times to ingest protein is right before workouts. Whey protein powder mixed in water is always a good preworkout choice (strength workout) because of the rapid digestion of whey. Your body will use the protein to prevent muscle breakdown as well as enhance recovery and growth.
Tips: Combine 20 grams of whey protein with water and drink along with 20-30 grams of slow-digesting carbs (1 cup cooked oatmeal, a medium apple, one slice of whole-wheat bread with 1 tablespoon of low-sugar preserves) within 30 minutes of workouts.
5. Post-workout fuel means less pain.
Drinking another protein shake immediately after workouts has been proven to be the best way to boost muscle-protein synthesis at the most critical time of your training day, optimizing the muscle-building and growth process. Conversely, if you don't use the postworkout window to feed the muscles properly, those fibers will actually BREAK DOWN rather than rebuild.
DOMS may also be offset by a post-workout shake.
Tips: Drink a 20-30 gram protein shake that contains whey immediately after workouts along with 30 grams of fast digesting carbs, such as a plain small bagel or a 20oz. sports drink. For your postworkout shake, mix 1 scoop (20 grams) of whey protein powder with juice or milk or blend in fresh fruit.
6. Eat protein before bed if you have an evening snack.
One of the best times of day outside the post-workout window to enjoy protein is right before bed. The more you strength train and focus on building lean muscle tissue to burn fat, the more you should enjoy protein before bed. Have some chicken, some greek style yogurt, or organic beef jerky before bed. Your body rebuilds muscle at rest and giving your body a shot of protein before bed keeps it revved up all night long.
Sample Daily Meal Schedule:
Breakfast - 1 cup of cooked oatmeal mixed with 1 scoop of protein powder and topped with berries (350 calories)
Mid-morning Snack - Protein Bar (15-25 grams of protein) or lowfat or fat free cottage cheese mixed with light miracle whip and served on celery sticks (200 calories)
Lunch - 6-8 oz. of Chicken and Black Bean Spinach Salad topped with Vinnegrette (350 calories)
Mid-afternoon Snack (before evening workout) - Protein shake with an apple (200 calories)
Post-workout Shake - Protein Powder mixed with juice or a low-carb EAS shake and small bagel (200 calories)
Dinner - 4 oz. of grilled salmon, 1/2 cup of asparagus, and beets or squash (300 calories)
Before Bed Snack - Plain yogurt mixed with whey protein powder (1/2 scoop) (200 calories)
This is an 1800 calorie diet and about 155 grams of protein. To change to a 1500 calorie diet, drop the mid-morning snack and have a 1 scoop protein shake before bed for 110 calories.