Supplement Saturday - Casein Protein

Welcome to my second installment of Supplement Saturday!

Previously, we talked about the benefits of using whey protein to help build and maintain muscle.

Today we'll talk about casein protein. As stated before, we need protein to build muscle, and supplementing your protein intake goes a long way toward achieving your goals.

Casein protein is a very slow digesting protein, and is therefore not as well suited as a recovery aid. Stick with whey protein in your post-workout shake. Casein is best consumed at bedtime. The protein is digested slowly while you sleep, keeping your body in an anabolic (muscle building) state.

My personal feeling is that casein isn't an absolute necessity for those whose goal is to maintain a high level of fitness. It's a little pricey, and unless you have unlimited money supplies, you need to make choices.

If you choose to use it, take about 25 grams at bedtime.

SS

Breakfast Protein

Once I decided that I was doing this (getting in shape), I realized that I needed to pay close attention to when, what, and how much I ate. I think the biggest problem I had with my diet.

The 'when' and 'how much' were easy. I would split my meals up such that I was eating 6 times a day. This, by itself, dictated that the portions would be smaller. I'll be honest, 6 times a day isn't always practical, and I wish I could be more religious about it...but I live in the real world!

'What' was a bit more challenging. You are probably aware of the generally accepted fact that if you want to build muscle, your body needs protein. No problem, I eat lots of protein for snacks, meals, and supplements. Breakfast presents a challenge, however.

If you eat eggs every day, then there's no problem. For me, however, a little variety is always nice. Plus, I don't always have time to prepare a cooked breakfast. Check the breakfast aisle in your grocery store, and look for high protein options. There aren't many.

Enter Kashi! Their 'GOLEAN' line of cold cereals offers a ton of protein, while keeping it healthy with whole grains, low fat, and relatively low sugar content. Add milk, and you have a VERY high protein breakfast.

My personal opinion...'GOLEAN' is the healthiest option, 'GOLEAN Crisp' is the best tasting, and I never much cared for 'GOLEAN Crunch'. Try them, I think you'll discover a tasty, healthy breakfast alternative!

SS

Supplement Saturday - Whey Protein

I'm going to try to write a review of different supplements each Saturday, giving my take on their effectiveness, as well as the generally accepted truth about them. We'll start with the granddaddy of them all, Whey Protein.

Whey protein is the cornerstone of any weightlifter's supplement plan, and I'm no different. The bottom line is that we need protein to build muscle, and supplementing your protein intake goes a long way toward achieving your goals.

Why whey? It digests very quickly, especially in liquid form. Consume a whey protein drink upon waking, and you're helping your body go from a catabolic state to an anabolic state. It helps keep your body muscle-building, rather than muscle-consuming.

Have some whey prior to a workout to keep your body prepared for the muscle breakdown to come, and after your workout to aid in the muscle repair process.

I can't stress enough how important the post-workout whey protein is! It will help stop muscle breakdown, and start the repair process. That means less soreness, faster recovery, and a stronger you.

If I had to get rid of all supplements except for one, whey protein is the one I'd keep.

But it's never that simple, is it? There are so many different whey protein products out there, it's virtually impossible to try them all. Many have all sorts of added ingredients intended to improve your fitness. My recommendation to the newbie: Start with pure whey protein. There are lots of products in this category, and they're all similar. Most contain 23-26 grams of protein per scoop (we're talking powdered mix here).

My personal preference is one scoop upon waking, one pre-workout, and one post-workout. I get about 75 grams of extremely fast digesting protein into my system at critical parts of the day.

Don't stop learning here. There are more factors involved...too many to get into here. Maybe in the future, but for today, I'll leave it at this: Eat (and drink) your protein!

SS