05/11/2012
Extreme Protein Recommendations for Bodybuilding
A few bodybuilding and weight training coaches recommend protein intakes of 40 percent of energy; for example 40% protein, 40% carbohydrate; 20% fat. Let's take a look at this. In the 4000 calorie diet of our 100 kilogram bodybuilder, 40% protein would be 1600 calories, equivalent to 400 grams of protein at 4 calories per gram. That's 4 grams/protein/kilogram body weight/day; over four times the RDI and twice what's scientifically defensible. Not good.
Fast and Slow Proteins
How quickly amino acids get transported to blood and how quickly they then get assimilated into muscle and other tissue for repair and rebuilding is the basis of this idea. According to some enthusiasts, fast proteins such as whey are superior to slow proteins like casein. Both are derivatives of milk products. Here are some values (Bilsborough 2006):
Egg protein 1.3 grams/hour
Casein isolate - 6.1 grams/hour
Whey isolate - 8-10 grams/hour
There's not much evidence that these variations make a difference to muscle building over the longer term, although whey has shown some advantage in short-term studies.
Yet the other useful information that can be gleaned from the numbers above is that with an average protein absorption of, say, 7 grams/hour, a theoretical absorption is limited to around 168 grams each day (24x7). If accurate, it makes the 400 gram/day protein diets look entirely unnecessary at best.
Safety of High-Protein Diets
Very high-protein diets may not be safe over time for the following reasons:
High levels of nitrogen and amino acids can be toxic.
High-protein diets are not safe for those people suffering from chronic kidney disease. Up to 20 percent of the population may be undiagnosed.