Muscle for Life with Mike Matthews - What's the Best Protein for Building Muscle? A Simple Science-Based Answer

Episode Date: October 31, 2017

Are all types of protein equally good for building muscle? It depends on whom you ask. Many vegans and vegetarians will tell you that plant proteins are just as good as animal sources, if not better. And most hard-shell bodybuilders will laugh that at the idea that you can get big on a plant-based diet. “How many jacked vegans do you know?” they’ll ask. “Exactly. You gotta eat meat to gain mass, bro.” Well, who’s right? Is there something about animal proteins that makes them especially anabolic? Are plant proteins inherently deficient in some way and unsuitable to muscle building? And, bottom line, what types of protein should we be eating to gain muscle as efficiently as possible? Let’s find out. Want to get my best advice on how to gain muscle and strength and lose fat faster? Sign up for my free newsletter! Click here: https://www.muscleforlife.com/signup/

Hey, this is Mike and welcome to another installment in my in five minutes or less series where I answer one common question quickly and simply because while long form content is great, sometimes it is also nice when someone just gets right to the point and tells you what to do and how to do it in five minutes or less. And that's what I do in these episodes. A question I get all the time is what are the best types of protein for building muscle? And the short answer is the best types of protein for building muscle are those that are well digested, well absorbed, and that contain an abundance of essential amino acids and of leucine in particular. Now, this last point is very important because essential amino acids are the building blocks of muscle and the essential amino acid leucine directly stimulates muscle growth this is why

studies have shown that the leucine content of a meal directly affects how much protein synthesis results from in other words the muscle building potential or the muscle building power of a meal is largely determined by the amount of leucine in it. So keeping those criteria in mind, then your best sources of protein for building muscle are generally going to be animal products, stuff like lean meats, beef, chicken, pork, turkey, fish, dairy, eggs, and then plant proteins, which on the whole aren't quite as good as animal proteins for building muscle but can work and your best choices there are going to be soy, tempeh, rice, quinoa, almonds, and beans. Now you're probably not surprised that animal proteins came out on top here however I do want to reiterate the point

that you can gain plenty of muscle and strength eating no meat or even no animal products whatsoever. You just have to make good protein choices. You see, many people think that most plant proteins are incomplete, meaning that they are lacking certain essential amino acids altogether and therefore are incapable of being used to build muscle tissue. And research has shown that this is not true. Plant proteins are complete, but some are not digested very well, some are not absorbed very well, and some are too low in essential amino acids and in leucine in particular to make them viable options for building muscle. For example, 275 calories of broccoli, which is about 18 cups to be specific, provides you with about one gram of leucine,

whereas 275 calories of steak, which is, I mean, if it's just 50 grams of protein in steak, that's 200 calories right there. So add in some fat and you're probably in your average steak is going to be about 275 to 300 calories, excluding butter and other yummy stuff you might put on it. So 275 calories of steak gives you about two and a half grams of leucine. Studies have also shown that on the whole plant proteins aren't absorbed quite as well as animal proteins. But again, if you're smart with your meal planning, you can do just fine without meats or animal products altogether. Hey, quickly, before we carry on, if you are liking my podcast, would you please help spread the word about it?

Because no amount of marketing or advertising gimmicks can match the power of word of mouth. So if you are enjoying this episode and you think of someone else who might enjoy it as well, please do tell them about it. It really helps me. And if you are going to post about it on social media, definitely tag me so I can say thank you. You can find me on Instagram at Muscle for Life Fitness, Twitter at Muscle for Life, and Facebook at Muscle for Life Fitness. Now, as far as protein supplements go, which you don't need to build muscle, but which are also convenient and just help you hit your daily protein targets easier. Your best options are whey, casein, egg, pea, and rice. And my personal favorite amongst those

is whey and whey isolate in particular, because it's almost pure protein, very little carbs and fats. So you get to eat those, which is more enjoyable. Whey isolate is also digested and absorbed very well. And it's extremely abundant in essential amino acids and in leucine in particular. Now, in terms of specific products, I use my own. I created a 100% whey isolate protein supplement that is also naturally sweetened, naturally flavored, and it contains no artificial food dyes, no unnecessary fillers, no chemical junk, and it's sourced from small dairy farms in Ireland, which are known for their exceptionally high quality milk. If you want to learn more about it, simply click on the link in the description and check it out. And if you like

what you see, you can also save 10% on your first order. then please leave a quick review of it on iTunes or wherever you're listening from. This not only convinces people that they should check the show out, it also increases its search visibility and thus helps more people find their way to me and learn how to build their best bodies ever too. And of course, if you want to be notified when the next episode goes live, then just subscribe to the podcast and you won't miss out on any of the new goodies. Lastly, if you didn't like something about the show, then definitely shoot me an email at mike at muscleforlife.com and share your thoughts on how you think it could be better. I read everything myself and I'm always looking for constructive feedback, so please do reach out. All right, that's it. Thanks again for listening to this episode and I hope to hear from you soon. And lastly, this episode is brought to you by me. Seriously though, I'm not big on

promoting stuff that I don't personally use and believe in. So instead I'm going to just quickly tell you about something of mine, specifically my fitness book for men, bigger, leaner, stronger. my fitness book for men, Bigger, Leaner, Stronger. Now this book has sold over 350,000 copies in the last several years and helped thousands and thousands of guys build their best bodies ever, which is why it currently has over 3,100 reviews on Amazon with a four and a half star average. So if you want to know the biggest lies and myths that are keeping you from achieving the lean, muscular, strong, and healthy body that you truly desire, and if you want to learn the simple science of building the ultimate male body, then you want to read Bigger, Leaner, Stronger, which you can find on all major online retailers like Amazon, Audible, iTunes, Kobo, and Google Play. Now, speaking of Audible, I should also mention that you can get the audiobook 100% free when you sign up for an Audible account, which I highly recommend that you do if you're not currently listening to audiobooks. I love them myself because they let me make the time that I spend doing stuff like

commuting, prepping food, walking my dog, and so forth so much more valuable and productive. So if you want to take Audible up on this offer and get my book for free, then simply go to www.bitly.com slash free BLS. And that will take you to Audible. And then you just click the sign up today and save button, create your account and voila, you get to listen to bigger, leaner, stronger for free.