Get enough protein at the right times to change your body composition for the better!
Athletes spend years striving for the right body composition for their sport. They often do additional agility or speed or mobility work, they lift weights, and then… something happens. Their diet isn’t optimal or they get injured or they move into a sport that is aesthetic or that has weight classes. Suddenly they need to lose some weight! Specifically, they want body fat loss, not muscle mass loss.
So then what’s the best way to lose weight but retain all that muscle that took years to build? Keep lifting and training, have a moderate to high protein intake and cut calories – all at the same time. How does this work??
Protein functions during weight loss
Protein is required for a wide variety of body functions. It’s used to build muscle mass, but also bone and connective tissue. Protein is a key part of the immune system, cellular function, hormonal regulation (many hormones are proteins!), and signaling within and between cells and tissues.
Baseline needs for protein, the RDA, are 0.8g/kg per day. Athletes often have higher needs due to the increased muscle mass needing support, the increased wear and tear on bone and connective tissue, the possible increase in immune responses during travel or after very intense exercise. Guidelines for athletes, depending on the type of athlete and where they are in their training cycle, is 1.2 – 2.0g/kg/day.
When an athlete consumes some protein, ~0.2 – 0.4g/kg of protein at a meal, the body undergoes muscle protein synthesis (MPS). That process has a discrete time frame, so when it’s done, it stops. It runs 3-5 times a day, depending on an athlete’s training schedule and the number of times they eat a meal or snack with at least 20g of protein. MPS is also triggered by exercise. When the process stops, a little bit of muscle is broken down in a process called muscle protein breakdown (MPB). This happens because it’s part of regular cellular maintenance to keep the cells in good working order or because the body needs protein to use for a different purpose.
Weight loss requires either a significant increase in exercise, a caloric deficit, or both. Since most athletes have a training schedule in place, a significant increase in exercise could completely throw off their annual training plan and jeopardize their goals. This leaves a caloric deficit, or cutting calories, for weight loss.
Cutting calories is tricky for athletes who want to be the best they can be. Don’t cut enough and it takes forever to lose weight. Cut too much and you lose weight – and your performance! Cut and don’t get enough protein and – worst case scenario!! – you lose muscle mass as well as fat mass!
Therefore, athletes need 3-5 eating opportunities PLUS a high intake of quality protein PLUS a training stimulus PLUS a caloric deficit to lose weight and retain muscle mass.
Satiety effects of protein
One benefit of eating higher protein is reduced hunger. Protein causes us to feel full more than the other macronutrients, and the effects can last for hours. This is satiety and it can help reduce snacking and high levels of hunger between meals when cutting calories.
Each protein has a different satiety effect. It helps to pay attention to different food and supplement choices to see what works best. Eggs might have a different result than whey protein, which might again be different than a mix of beans and brown rice.
Protein needs and fitting the protein into your daily routine
The general guidelines are 1.6-2.4g/kg pro/day (2.4-3.1g/kg FFM) for athletes trying to lose weight. Athletes with more body fat to lose or should start at the low end, while lean athletes might need to go as high as 3.0g/kg/day to retain muscle mass! Each meal should have a fairly equal and consistent level of protein to spread it across the day.
How to consume this much protein
- Eat breakfast! I don’t care if you have an early morning workout or you’re not hungry in the morning. If you want to meet your goals, breakfast is critical. Not only is it a chance to get protein but it’s a chance to get other nutrients like vitamins and minerals that can increase your chances of staying healthy and exceling during the weight loss program. Eat meat, eat tofu, have a protein shake, have a bean or legume and some grains – it all counts! ~0.2 – 0.4g/kg of protein is a good starting point for per meal needs.
- Lunch and dinner should also contain protein. These tend to be easier to achieve. One thing to guard against is having all of your protein at dinner. This is called end loading or back loading your day. Protein should be evenly split in the dosages shown above, not eating all at one time near the end of the day. The effects are NOT the same, even if you are getting the same total amount of protein.
- Pre-sleep protein is the final option for maximizing muscle protein synthesis. It’s a great way to fit in a final dose of protein that can be used while you sleep. Many athletes opt for casein, either as a supplement or in cottage cheese, because it functions as an extended release protein.
When is the best time to lose weight?
- The off season: this is good for those who have an off season, because the training load is often lighter and a lot of the in-season demands of travel and tournaments aren’t stressors.
- When making weight: During a fight camp or while training for a martial arts competition, athletes try to drop a couple of weight classes. While losing body fat is part of this, manipulating body water and muscle glycogen are also part of the process. The key thing is to fuel appropriately during the entire process to survive to fight well, not just make the weigh in!
- After an injury: This is person specific and part of getting back up to competition shape. A key part of this is retaining as much muscle mass as possible during the recovery process while not gaining body fat. It’s hard to do, but at least the effects can be mitigated with appropriate diet planning.
Protein sources
Whole food sources of protein include meat, fish, poultry, dairy, eggs and combinations of grains and beans.
Supplements include whey, casein, and soy, as well as blends of other plant proteins like rice, pea, cranberry and pumpkin seed protein. When choosing a supplement, be sure to pick one with third party testing!! Don’t lose eligibility, scholarships, contracts or awards/medals already earned because of a positive test for a banned substance.
Summary
Athletes, not sedentary people, should consider taking in 1.6-2.4g/kg protein, split between 3-5 meals or snacks/day and planned around workouts and sleep. Already lean athletes who need to lose body fat could increase the protein to up to 3.0g/kg/day. Sedentary people should consider maxing out their protein at 1.6g/kg/day and taking up muscle building exercise.
Contact Dr. Schubert to determine how much protein you’re getting, now much you need and how best to add more – even while on a budget! If you’re in the off season and need weight loss/body composition change and are in the off-season, now is the time to start!
This is one of a series of articles on weight loss. See more here: the Pros and Cons of Weight Loss of Athletic Performance, general information on Weight Loss In Athletes, Top 9 Tips for Teen Weight Loss, Behavior Change to Support Your Goals (including weight loss), Choice Architecture for Weight Loss (what you see is what you eat, so set up your environment to support your goals), work on your Habits, or learn about Third Party Testing for supplements so you can pick the safest options. Learn about Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport, which happens if you diet too much, too long or without appropriate diet changes (like getting enough protein!). If you’re concerned about your athlete’s body image, there are a ton of resources available!
References
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2. Kerksick CM, Arent S, Schoenfeld BJ, et al. International society of sports nutrition position stand: Nutrient timing. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2017;14(1):1-21. doi:10.1186/s12970-017-0189-4
3. Hector AJ, Phillips SM. Protein recommendations for weight loss in elite athletes: A focus on body composition and performance. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2018;28(2):170-177. doi:10.1123/ijsnem.2017-0273
4. Stokes T, Hector AJ, Morton RW, McGlory C, Phillips SM. Recent perspectives regarding the role of dietary protein for the promotion of muscle hypertrophy with resistance exercise training. Nutrients. 2018;10(2). doi:10.3390/nu10020180
5. Antonio J, Candow DG, Forbes SC, Ormsbee MJ, Saracino PG, Roberts J. Effects of Dietary Protein on Body Composition in Exercising Individuals. Nutrients. 2020;12:1-11.