How much important is Protein to build muscles?

• What is protein?

Proteins are large complex molecules that play a maximum role in the growth, function, and regulation of cells. They are made up of long chains of amino acids which are smaller units. It takes nearly 20 different types of amino acids to make a protein. More than 10,000 types of protein are required to make what we are. Our body needs nine different types of amino acids named lysine, leucine, isoleucine, valine, histidine, threonine, tryptophan, methionine, and phenylalanine. In simple words, proteins are complex elements that contain amino acid residues joined by peptide bonds.

• Scientific research on eating protein

Thousands of studies suggest that eating more protein is good for fat loss, building muscles, and good for metabolic health

Three macronutrients affect your body in different ways Protein, carbs, and fats. From them, protein is the only macronutrient that makes you feel more full even after consuming less amount. So bodybuilders increase their intake of protein to build muscles. It reduces hunger levels and boosts the level of peptides YY(a hormone that makes you feel full)

The building block of muscles is protein so eating it in an adequate amount maintains your muscle mass and helps you build muscles if you do strength training.

Our body uses calories of food to digest by using nutrients of the food and this procedure is termed the thermic effect of food and it is high in protein. Consuming more protein will give you a result of burning 100–150 calories every day which can go as high as 250 calories per day.

As they are building blocks of muscles it helps in faster recovery.

Protein Synthesis in body

* How much protein can a body absorb from different foods?

The people who do strength training their body can absorb up to 20–25 grams of protein in a single meal only if it is a high-quality protein, also called protein powder. If we consume more protein then it gets oxidized for energy or becomes urea as well as other organic acids. No doubt that protein powder can be one of the best sources of proteins as their absorption rate is the highest. Absorption timing of protein varies as per food

* Time for absorption of protein from different food

Eggs: 3–4 hrs (absorption rate grams per hr-2.9 gm)

Soy: 3–4 hrs (absorption rate grams per hr- 3.8 gm)

Casein: 3–3.5 hrs (absorption rate grams per hr- 6.2 gm)

Whey Concentrate: 2–3 hrs (absorption rate grams per hr-6.5 gm)

Whey Isolate: 70–100 minutes (absorption rate grams per hr-9–11gm)

Egg protein is one of the best ways if you are looking for an alternative to protein powder. There are many other protein-rich foods such as soya chunks, chicken, tuna fish, tofu, and many others. These protein-rich foods work as high-quality protein but they don’t give results like protein powder.

* Conclusion

Protein macronutrients are comparatively better than carbs or fats as it has high thermic effect than carbs or fats. No chances of feeling bloated and you get maximum muscle mass by consuming it in less amount. Also consuming it in excess will not give any benefits as maximum an average body who does strength training can only consume 20–25 gms of protein from a meal. So focus on increasing the number of meals and do not increase the quantity.

Keywords: Protein, Protein powder, Egg protein, Bodybuilding