Our new paper:
Pre-sleep Protein Ingestion Increases Mitochondrial Protein Synthesis Rates During Overnight Recovery from Endurance Exercise: A Randomized Controlled Trial
We have previously shown that pre-sleep protein ingestion improves overnight myofibrillar protein synthesis.
In addition, we have shown that long-term pre-sleep protein supplementation improves muscle mass and strength gains.
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Our new study had several study novelties:
- endurance exercise was performed
- mitochondrial protein synthesis was assessed
- whey and casein protein were compared
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The ingestion of the slowly digesting casein protein resulted in AA response that was still elevated upon waking the next morning.
However, the rapidly digesting whey protein also increased AA availability during most of the night. Likely because of the large 45 g dose.
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In line with our earlier work, protein ingestion stimulated overnight myofibrillar protein synthesis rates.
There was no significant difference between casein and whey.
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Protein ingestion stimulated overnight mitochondrial protein synthesis rates.
Again, there was no significant difference between casein and whey.
It's important to point out here….
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…that this is the first study to show that postexercise mitochondrial protein synthesis can be stimulated by protein ingestion (day or night)!
So how can we possibly explain this discrepancy?
In short: timing of the protein and the measurement period.
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Conclusions:
- pre-sleep protein is also a good strategy for endurance athletes
- protein ingestion can stimulate mitochondrial protein synthesis rates
- no difference between whey and casein protein
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Protein distribution: beneficial, detrimental, or inconsequential?
Our response to commentary.
❌Not eating =/= fasted state
🥩Protein amount vs protein distribution
✅Practical recommendations
A 9-part thread. 🧵👇
The concept of protein distribution suggests that how you distribute your meals throughout 24 hours strongly impacts your overall anabolism.
There are contrasting lines of thought of what meal frequency is preferred for various health or athletic outcomes.
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In intermittent fasting or time-restricted feeding, food is consumed in a relatively short feeding window.
The goal is to be in a fasted/catabolic state, which is believed to be healthy. For example, it is thought to speed up the removal of damaged proteins (autophagy).
The ketogenic diet restricts carbohydrates with the purpose of lowering insulin levels. Insulin is a hormone that is involved in fat metabolism. Therefore, some suggest that a ketogenic diet is very effective for fat loss.
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This study investigated whether a ketogenic diet increases fat loss compared to a high-carbohydrate diet in overweight and obese men.
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Prostate cancer is one of the most common types of cancer. An effective treatment is androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), which lowers testosterone levels to castration levels. However, such low testosterone levels tend to result in a loss of muscle mass and strength.
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Our study investigated the effect of resistance training with or without protein supplementation on muscle mass and strength in prostate cancer patients undergoing ADT.
Exercise and protein ingestion are the main factors that stimulate muscle protein synthesis (the main process driving muscle adaptations such as growth).
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It has been reported that athletes are more likely to consume excessive amounts of alcohol, especially as part of binge-drinking practices in team sports. Can these practices affect muscle protein synthesis?
Muscle growth occurs when muscle protein synthesis exceeds muscle protein breakdown. Resistance exercise stimulates both muscle protein synthesis and breakdown. Ingestion of protein further increases muscle protein synthesis and is needed to achieve positive protein net balance.
In young adults, 20 g of high-quality protein seems optimal to stimulate post-exercise muscle protein synthesis. However, is this also true for older adults?