Changes Began Happening Fast

If you’re a breakfast skipper or you just have toast or a sweet roll with coffee, you never get the protein in the morning that you need during the time of the day you are probably most active. It is important to distribute protein well at each meal. Many Americans eat enough protein daily, but they do so in a way that makes a large portion of the protein they eat unavailable for muscle growth and repair. A bowl of oatmeal with milk might have 10 grams of protein in it. But 10 grams of protein, for an older adult, doesn’t do much to build and repair muscle. If lunch is heavy in carbohydrates and fats and does not have the 20 grams of protein needed to feed your muscles, they continue to starve and waste away as the hours pass. If later in the day you eat more than 30–35 grams of protein in a single meal, your body does not then catch up nutritionally and use it all to repair and grow muscle. Your blood will have all the protein it can use at one time toward muscle repair and growth once you have consumed 30–35 grams of protein. The chemical signal will be given that it is full of protein, at which point your body will work to burn off the excess and convert the remaining protein into fat and store it. You may have eaten in one meal as much or more than the daily Recommended Dietary Allowance for protein, but your muscles could only take advantage of 30–35 grams, and you have missed your daily nutritional need for protein by a long shot. We asked if 4 ounces of beef gives you a 50% increase, would 12 ounces, containing 90 grams of protein, give you a further increase? The Recommended Dietary Allowance for protein is 0.8 grams of protein per kilo of body weight per day, but in recent years there has been a move to target intakes between 1 gram and 1.5

No Expectations

grams per kilo of body weight per day, especially as we age. A study published in the American Journal of Physiology–Endocrinology and Metabolism revealed how dramatically different outcomes can be when there is ample protein in the diet. The protein was unevenly distributed throughout a day, but given that there was much more of it, the amount consumed at different meals more often was enough to trigger muscle synthesis. After just 4 days, researchers found that those members of the study, ages 52–75, who ate double the Recommended Dietary Allowance of protein increased their rate of protein synthesis. Perhaps lunch was a salad with plenty of dressing, a generous serving of french fries, and a soft drink. How does your body respond? Neither resting energy expenditure, nor lean body mass increased in the low protein group. In contrast, the accretion of lean body mass in the normal and high protein groups was the principal contributor to the increase in resting energy expenditure. Good nutrition providing ample protein powerfully affects metabolism and body composition. How Much Protein Is Too Much? There is always a tendency to think that if something is good for you then more must be better. Concerns about excessive protein are valid. Processing excessive amounts of protein can produce ammonia. Ammonia is toxic, particularly to the central nervous system.

Start By Starting

We excrete the excess ammonia as urea in our urine but there are limits to our ability to do so. It is possible to consume more protein than our body can deal with. Of course, if you have a medical condition that has compromised your ability to excrete urea, then you must consult with your doctor for individual advice. Our bodies can produce some but not every kind of amino acid. The amino acids we cannot produce are called essential amino acids, and we rely on our diet to provide them. So, it is important to not just look at the protein content but to also keep an eye on what else comes in the package. For example, eating small amounts of processed meats regularly is linked to increased risk of heart disease. Vegetarians need to be aware of this and should make an extra effort to see that they create meals that deliver all of the amino acids they need daily. Keep an eye on leucine content. These are a quick and simple way to make a drink with 25–30 grams of protein. But don’t get the idea that good nutrition is only about protein and that you can live on protein shakes. Your basic plan for a proper diet should be composed of meals with whole foods.

Still Missing Someone

This makes them very useful if your workout cannot be timed well in relation to a meal. When Steven emerged from his sudden heart surgery, detailed bloodwork was done. The results were awful. His cardiologist began questioning him in detail about his diet. His wife, Gayle, is a vegetarian. To make things simple when meals were made at home, he had been eating what she prepared for herself. What was finally determined was that the high proportion of carbohydrate calories he was eating were a problem for him. So, he changed and began consuming more poultry and fish primarily and over several months his bloodwork improved significantly. Then it occurred to him that Gayle’s bloodwork should be checked too, since they had been eating the same things. She got the full battery of tests, but her results were great. This was a real eye opener for me. She began strength training about 3 years ago and is careful to get the protein she needs each day. Her strength increased rapidly as she participated in the test group, and her bloodwork continues to be excellent. In addition to physical assessments and medical exams and tests, Fred has developed a simple way to follow and reflect on his diet and how different ways of eating affect him. And Steven finds it an interesting way to bring enough focused attention to the process to yield a lot of personal aha moments.