Protein: The endurance athlete's guide to
Protein: The endurance athletes guide to
As a carb nut I frequently ignore the amount of protein we need as endurance athletes. This should not be underestimated, however. While Carbs are the primary fuel source used during activities protein should be incorporated in some of your fuelling strategies for longer/intense sessions. The main reason for this is to combat muscle breakdown and post-workout muscle soreness as a result of Amino acids being oxidized within the mitochondria (“batteries”) of the muscle cells directly to provide fuel. This is more likely to happen with higher intensity or long duration sessions, particularly where muscle glycogen storage is low.
Why protein?
We are made of protein; muscle, skin, hair, bone, nails, and organs are all manufactured from different amino acids. These cells are constantly being replaced. Hormones and the chemicals of the nervous and immune systems are also protein-based. As an athlete, you have more lean muscle mass than the average sedentary person and your needs are different.
Protein is needed for the formation of hemoglobin, which carries oxygen to exercising muscles.
It’s critical for controlling fluid volume and maintaining water balance.
Proteins that are consumed are digested and broken down into amino acids that then go into an amino acid pool that can be drawn from if carbohydrate stores run low.
The Branch Chain Amino Acids (BCAA) found in protein are critical in repairing muscle damage that has occurred during exercise.
BCAA also helps to synthesize muscle production for building lean muscle.
Consuming Protein during exercise
While most of us reach for protein after exercise to aid recovery using it correctly during can have an even greater effect. Any activity over 2 hours would benefit from this. After the 2hr mark, even a well-trained endurance athlete's glycogen stores start to become depleted and your muscle tissue becomes a target for a process called gluconeogenesis, which is the synthesis of glucose from fatty and amino acids of lean muscle tissue. Adding protein to your fuelling plan provides amino acids and thus reduces muscle cannibalization. About 15% of total calorie burn is coming from protein at this stage and if some amount of protein is not introduced during the course of the activity, the body will continue to rob amino acids from muscle tissues for fuel. This will increase the feeling of “soreness” post-exercise, and make preparing for the next session more difficult.
Timing
While carbs are still the primary focus during fuelling for performance and training a portion of 15-20g of protein combined with 40g carbohydrate about an hour before exercise will have the best results. My go-to for this is a smoothie of coconut milk, blueberries, peanut butter, whey protein, oats, and banana. I’ll link the recipe here :
https://www.trainingpeaks.com/blog/how-to-properly-fuel-your-morning-workout/
How much?
When training intensity, volume, or both increase there is a greater demand for protein. Particularly for ultra-endurance athletes. I recommend 20 percent or more of your total calories. This intake is best based on the amount of muscle damage that’s incurred from hard training. Muscle soreness is one of the best indicators of this type of damage. Calculate your needs roughly from this but remember everyone is different in their individual needs.
Moderate training – 1.2 grams per Kg
Heavy training – 1.2-2 grams per Kg
Very heavy training – 2- 2.5grams per Kg
When might I need more protein than usual?
There are times when it might be appropriate for an endurance athlete to increase their normal protein intake beyond 1.6g/kg. Some examples are:
If you are trying to lose body fat while protecting muscle mass. Increasing protein as a proportion of your daily calorie intake, while aiming for an overall energy deficit, may help to maintain lean muscle. Protein can help you feel fuller for longer than carbohydrate and fat, helping you to reduce your overall calorie intake, and requires more energy to digest and absorb, which increases calorie usage.
If you are looking to increase muscle mass, for example during the off-season when you may put an increased focus on strength training.
If you are undertaking extreme endurance events, such as an ultra-marathon, iron-distance triathlon, or ultra-cycling events You are likely to be in an energy deficit as a result, and your body is likely to start to breakdown muscle protein to convert to glucose which it will use as fuel. To help prevent this, include some protein in your fuelling plan. See my blog on ultra-marathon nutrition for more on this.
If you are a masters endurance athlete, particularly aged over 50, you may benefit from a higher amount of protein in your main meals, eg 40g rather than 25-30g, to stimulate muscle protein synthesis and quicken recovery rates, eg glycogen resynthesis. Muscle remodeling processes become impaired with age so additional dietary protein may help to prevent this.
A greater amount of protein is also needed during training cycles with higher volume and intensity, to facilitate muscle recovery, so vary your intake in line with your training program and overall calorie intake.
Here are some examples of the amount of protein found in commonly consumed foods.
Medium size chicken breast: 25-30g
Medium size salmon fillet: 20-25g
Two eggs: 14g
Half a can of beans or lentils: 15-18g
Two tablespoons of almond butter: 8g
Small pot of yogurt: 8g
30g of cashew nuts: 6g
How about protein powders?
it is appropriate to use protein powders where these are more convenient than wholefoods, although perhaps not more than once a day. Combine a serving of protein powder with carbohydrates such as fruit, oats, honey, or maple syrup to make a homemade recovery drink after endurance training.
Whey and casein (sourced from milk) and soya (vegan) are considered the highest quality proteins, in terms of their effect on muscle protein synthesis, due to their branch chain amino acid content (BCAAs – leucine, isoleucine, and valine). But a combination of the plant proteins pea and rice is also appropriate as these provide all the essential amino acids between them.
Whey protein is digested more rapidly than other types so maybe best if seeking quick recovery before training again later in the day. Slower-releasing casein may be appropriate to take before bed if looking to increase MPS overnight.
So to summarise, we ALL need protein! Some of us need more than others. Think about where you are at in your training phase and determine what is right for you. There is no one-plan-for-all. These are merely my recommendations from years of trial and error which I hope can be of benefit to you in not doing the same.
The longer and harder you are training the higher the ratio of protein/carbs. Simples!
Be well,
Coach Zip
Ps. CARBS ARE STILL KING