There’s a lot of online advice out there for an aspiring gym buff looking to build muscle, not always produced by reputable dieticians.
While protein is the macronutrient on everyone’s minds at the Birdcoop, misconceptions in the fitness community may be overstating its importance. According to UBC experts, overemphasising any nutrient can actually hinder progress in the gym and even harm health.
Protein 101
Proteins are made up of amino acids. There are 20 amino acids that the human body needs, 11 of which our bodies make. Our diets provide the remaining 9. About 20 per cent of muscle is made of protein.
Current daily protein intake recommendations estimate about 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. For example, someone who weighs 80 kg (176 pounds) would need about 64 g of protein per day — equivalent to just over 200 g of chicken breast or about 1.5 cups of chickpeas.
This guideline doesn't take into account actively increasing muscle mass.
“If you exercise but you don’t have amino acids abundantly present, you will repair what is needed but you won’t build new muscles,” said Dr. Barbara Stefanska, a professor of food, nutrition and health.
The Ubyssey sat down with Gerry Kasten, professor of dietetics and food, nutrition and health, to talk about how much protein he would recommend for someone looking to bulk up. He pulled out a calculator.
Kasten explained that if an individual wanted to gain 10 pounds of muscle over 3 months (a tricky feat), they would need an extra 2 pounds of protein in their diet overall (remember, muscle is 20 per cent protein). Spread over 3 months, they would only have to eat approximately “an extra 10 grams of protein” a day, which is a little more than what’s in a glass of milk.
The actual amount would vary based on factors like how efficient their body is at making muscle and their activity level.
So what’s up with TikTok recipes that recommend making peanut butter-protein-powder-chia-seed smoothies with a whopping 81 grams of protein?
Debunking and unpacking
What some fitness advice gets wrong is that the body can’t store protein. Excess protein gets used for energy and then excreted as nitrogenous waste. In short, overdoing it on supplements might just be making really expensive urine.
According to Stefanska, a high protein diet isn’t a problem for most people — but some studies suggest that it could make some preexisting health issues worse.
“The problem appears when a high protein diet co-exists with some malfunctions in the body, like for example, kidney malfunction.”
As always, consult your healthcare provider before making any major diet changes. Those living in residence have access to dieticians who can help you plan for your specific nutrition needs.
Some fitness professionals tout the benefits of tracking nutrients. This can take some of the stress out of planning what to eat.
However, spending too much time tracking all of your nutrients can become “symptomatic of disordered eating,” Kasten said. This could be a sign to chat with a dietician.
Kasten emphasized that it’s important to consider why you want to build muscle, and for who. Beauty standards can warp people’s perceptions of what an ideal or strong body looks like in ways that aren’t always mentally or physically healthy.
There’s also the question of where you get your protein from. People often underestimate plant-based protein, in particular due to misconceptions about soy.
“When I’m teaching,” said Kasten, “I often encourage students to Google the phrase ‘soy makes you gay,’” because you got a lot of entries ... and it’s absolutely ludicrous.”
Kasten said this misconception comes from soy supposedly mimicking estrogens, the class of hormones associated with female sexual characteristics. Soy does have relatively high concentrations of isoflavones (a type of plant estrogen), but these do not have the same structures as human estrogens. Isoflavones have been shown to have minimal “feminising” effects and actually some beneficial effects, such as hormone balancing and regulating blood sugar.
Protein eaten also does not directly correlate with muscle mass. Other factors like sleeping enough, eating enough in general and chronic stress levels are often equally important.
As with many things, balance is key. Protein is important but so are all of the other macronutrients, vitamins and minerals.
Both Kalsten and Stefanska said that fitness and health are just about diet — they’re also psychological and personal.
Next time you see a trendy fitness regimen, it’s worth checking in with yourself about how it would fit in with other healthy habits and if it is based in sound science