100 Grams of Protein in One Meal: Effective or Excessive?
May 17, 2024When it comes to building muscle, losing weight, or simply maintaining overall health, protein is often hailed as a nutritional powerhouse. Yet, there’s a recurring question that many fitness enthusiasts and nutrition experts debate: Is consuming 100 grams of protein in a single meal effective, or is it excessive? To answer this question, we need to delve into the latest scientific findings and practical dietary considerations.
The Role of Protein in the Body
Protein is essential for various bodily functions, including muscle repair, enzyme production, and immune system support. The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for protein is about 0.8 grams to 1.2 grams per pound of lean or goal body weight for the average adult, but this number can increase significantly for athletes or those engaged in heavy physical activity.
Absorption and Utilization of Protein
A key point of debate is the body's capacity to absorb and utilize protein from a single meal. A recent study published in the Journal of Nutrition explored this very issue, examining how much protein the body can effectively use at once. The study, titled "Protein Absorption and Utilization in Healthy Individuals" (PubMed ID: 38118410).
For many years the consensus within the scientific literature is that ingestion of 20-25 grams of protein after resistance training is sufficient for the maximal stimulation of muscle protein synthesis. However, for many who study protein metabolism for its role in maximizing muscle hypertrophy, this is a low recommendation.
I’m going to dig into this science so that you can have a complete understanding of the research that has been done on this topic. After this, I’ll review the latest protein intake and muscle protein synthesis study and discuss how this changes our current thinking on this critical topic.
Where should we start? With the basics!
You must consume protein to build muscle. If you lifted weights and followed the perfect program for years but did not consume any protein, you would not gain any muscle!
Resistance training provides the stimulus to build new muscle, but the protein builds it!
Two muscle-protein-related processes occur inside a muscle cell that govern its ability to increase (or decrease) size.The two processes are:
Muscle Protein Synthesis – the building up of muscle protein
Muscle Protein Breakdown – the breaking down of muscle protein
If muscle protein synthesis (the rate of building up muscle tissue) occurs faster than muscle protein breakdown, then we have the prerequisite for building additional muscle. This is known as a Positive Net Muscle Protein Balance.
On the other hand, if muscle protein breakdown (the rate of muscle tissue degradation) occurs faster than muscle protein synthesis, then we will lose muscle mass. This is known as a Negative Net Muscle Protein Balance.
One of the first studies to investigate increasing protein intakes and the effects on muscle protein synthesis was conducted about 15 years ago at McMaster University in Canada. In this study, researchers gave healthy young males with recreational resistance training experience five different protein amounts to consume immediately after an intense lower-body workout.
After the leg workout, the subjects consumed a drink containing 0, 5, 10, 20, or 40 grams of egg protein in a randomized order (they kept coming back to the laboratory each week for five weeks until they had completed all protein doses). After the protein was consumed, the researchers measured the subject’s muscle protein synthesis rates over the next four hours.
Five years later, a follow-up study was conducted with whey protein instead of egg protein. In this study, researchers gave 48 resistance-trained males four different amounts of whey protein immediately after an intense lower-body workout.
Four hours after consuming the whey protein, the researchers took another muscle biopsy to determine the effects of the different amounts of protein intake on muscle protein synthesis rates.
Both of these studies concluded that between 20-25g of protein was the most effective amount of protein to take in post-workout to maximize muscle protein synthesis. finding that there was no statistically significant difference in consuming 20 and 40g of protein to increase MPS. And this information stood pat for many years.
We began by stating that the general consensus in the scientific community was that ingesting 20-25 grams of protein after resistance training is sufficient for maximally stimulating muscle protein synthesis. But now we get to talk about the most recent study published (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38118410/)
The researchers had the subjects perform a whole-body resistance exercise workout and then had the subjects consume (randomly) one of three protein supplements containing: 0 grams of milk protein, 25 grams of milk protein, or 100 grams of milk protein.
Immediately after the workout, the researchers took the first of four muscle biopsies and gave the subjects their protein supplement.The final three muscle biopsies were taken four, eight, and 12 hours later.
During their tests the researchers found that amino acids available in the blood stream for utilization were elevated (above baseline levels) for about five hours after consuming the 25-gram protein drink. Stated differently, no more amino acids were being delivered to the circulation for their potential utility in increasing muscle protein synthesis after five hours. In contrast, consuming the 100-gram protein drink resulted in a greater rise in blood stream amino acids, and they remained above baseline levels throughout the entire 12-hour post-workout assessment period.
The researchers estimated that 16 grams were peripherally available after consuming the 25-gram protein drink over the 12-hour assessment period.This means that about one-third of the amino acids were consumed by the digestive system, and 66% of the amino acid content of the drink made it past the digestive system and into the bloodstream, where it was available to the muscles for uptake.
53 grams were peripherally available after consuming the 100-gram protein drink.This means that approximately half of the amino acids were consumed by the digestive system, and 50% of the amino acid content of the drink made it past the digestive system and into the bloodstream, where it was available to the muscles for uptake.
Since the 100-gram dose increased muscle amino acid concentrations more than the 25-gram dose, did this increase in muscle amino acids translate to greater muscle protein synthesis rates in the hours following a resistance exercise workout?
Yes!
There was a clear protein dose-dependent pattern in muscle protein synthesis rates, with the 100-gram protein dose increasing muscle protein synthesis significantly more than the 25-gram protein dose and the 25- gram protein dose increasing muscle protein synthesis significantly more than the 0-gram protein dose.
Over the entire 12-hour assessment period, the 25-gram dose of milk protein increased muscle protein synthesis by about 25% more than not taking any protein post-workout.The 100-gram dose of milk protein increased muscle protein synthesis by about 30% more than the 25-gram dose.
The takeaway lesson from this study is the larger the protein feeding post-workout, the greater the muscle protein synthesis response over the next 12 hours. So while no, greater 100g vs. 25g of protein may not be any better immediately post-workout, it most certainly will be better for muscle growth over the long term!
Practical Considerations
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Muscle Protein Synthesis: To maximize MPS, it's effective to spread protein intake across multiple meals. However, don’t base your protein intake data on a per-meal basis. Base your protein intake on your total daily needs and then reverse engineer that into how much protein you should ingest at each meal.
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Satiety and Digestion: Eating 100 grams of protein in one meal can lead to feelings of fullness and potential digestive discomfort. High protein intake can slow down the digestion process, causing bloating or gastrointestinal distress in some individuals. So, if you want to utilize this to maximize MPS, I would suggest not just jumping right into trying to hit 100g of protein per meal ease your way into it.
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Nutrient Balance: A diet excessively focused on protein may neglect other essential nutrients. A well-rounded meal containing a balance of macronutrients (carbohydrates, fats, and proteins) and micronutrients is crucial for overall health.
References:
The anabolic response to protein ingestion during recovery from exercise has no upper limit in magnitude and duration in vivo in humans. (Trommelon, et. al., 2023)
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38118410/
Body by Science, Optimizing Your Physique Within A Maintainable Lifestyle. February Issue 2024. Dr. Bill Campbell.
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