i will be taking a 45 gram shake...should i take it before, during of after the workout and if so how long?
I was always told your body can't handle more than 30g at a time, so try for that directly after your workout. If you can get your hands on a casein based protein, that would be best for taking sometime before bed so it is slowly released during the night.
Sorry, but I haven't heard that the body's max is 30g or that 45g is too much for one sitting, so I tend not to believe those assertions. However, that 45g shake definitely should be a small portion of your protein during the day. You should look to get 1g of protein per lbs of body weight every single day. Also, you should try to spread those grams out over the course of the day, with the exception that you want to take in more after your workouts than during other portions of the day.
mmagic, even though I kind of gave your post the eyebrow, I did a quick search and found out you're right. I've been told SO many times not to go too much over 30 grams or protein per serving and that is what I've been doing for a long time. Heck, when I was about 170 lbs, I hired a personal trainer/nutritionist and he said the same thing. It's more of a myth, and I guess this guy will be fine, especially if he's a hard gainer. http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/hst3.htm
Yeah, grams depend on weight. But 1g/lb is way overboard. 1g/kg is much better- yes, even for athletes.
Yeah, I keep hearing the 1g/lb but it's from people who heard it from sites w/ a stake ie sites that sell protein. I forget his name but there's this very respected bodybuilder w/ a PHD who doesn't BS, he says the 1 g/lb is overboard, it's a # that those selling protein like to push. The 1g/lb has almost become fact, because so many have read it from an interested site & repeat it.
Its not so much protein but overall calories... more protein does not equal more muscle or strength. Excess protein will be passed or converted to carbs as the body needs. .8 gms/lb is sufficient for Athletes. When I'm bulking if my protien intake falls below 1.25g/lb I end up just maintaining and not gaining muscle. It all depends on what your trying to do.
its pretty good to take one in the morning after you wake up since a lot of people don't eat a good breakfast and some don't eat it at all. Then take one about a hour to a hour n half before your workout, and one immediately after. this is hard to do for most people who are not too serious, but you can always substitute a little bit. maybe have a protein bar before the workout since they usually taste better than that chunky protein shake. just play with it man, and have fun.
drink 1/3 before lifting drink rest immediately after lifting (before shower for example) this is all assuming its whey protein