Happy Sunday!

What a nice weekend up here in MA...get outside...be active...get some steps...you know the drill by now.

Let's talk about protein today. I'm going to cover 3 aspects. I like to try to keep these newsletter short but full of info!

1. How much protein do we need?
2. Types of protein.
3. Brands that I recommend. 

How much protein do we need?

Science tells us the sweet spot for building muscle is ingesting about .8-1.6 grams of protein per day per individual. If we break that out in male vs female, it looks like this:

• 150lb female: 120g - 240g of protein per day
• 200lb male: 160g - 320g of protein per day

Those are the ranges we want to be in. I weigh about 180lbs and ingest about 200g of protein per day. It works pretty well. I'm pretty strong and I like the way my body looks. You should aim for a gram of protein per body weight...thats the sweet spot in my opinion. Protein will keep you full, it will actually allow you to build muscle. If you're working out and not hitting close to a gram of protein per body weight, then your wasting your time, energy and money. You need protein to build muscle. End of story. Stop being lazy...track your protein...understand it...and be happy when you see the results.

There are several different TYPES of protein.

Not all protein goes right to our muscles. Just because something is slapped with PROTEIN on the label, doesn't mean its the type we are looking for.

• Whey protein: this is the most common form. The one that contributes to building muscle. Whey protein has specific amino acids geared toward muscle protein synthesis (the process of actually building muscle). 
• Whey protein isolate: this is a "cleaner" form of the above. An isolate is ultra processed and filtered for a more "pure protein". It's more expensive than regular whey because it contains more protein per serving. 
• Casein protein: just like whey protein, casein contains all of the amino acids we need in our body. The only difference is that casein is a slower digesting/absorbing protein. It breaks down a little slower in our GI tract, allowing us to stay full a little longer. If you are not going to eat for a while, casein is a better option. 
• Collagen protein: this is a type of protein that contributes to building all of our connective tissue. Hair, skin, nails, tendons, ligaments...basically everything that holds us together thats not muscle. Collagen does not help with building muscle at all...it does not contain the necessary amino acids. It's still great to add in for other health benefits in your body. 
• Any type of Vegan/ Vegetarian protein: these usually do not contain the necessary amino acids that whey protein contains. We need to make sure these essential amino acid are ADDED in to make these types of protein complete proteins. They will not aid in building muscle if the specific amino acids profiles are not added or combined to make it complete. 

Brands that I recommend:

• Legion Athletics
• Optimum Nutrition
• Seeq
• 1st Phorm

Hope you learned something today!

Much Love,

Nick Bolio, CSCS

Owner

B3 Strength & Conditioning

Bodybybolio.com