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How Effective Are Nightly Protein Shakes
This question gets asked a lot: how effective are nightly protein shakes? The answer is a simple one, if you understand how muscles respond to protein.
Worried about whey protein shakes affecting your sleep? Well, worry no more because we have news for you. It is actually GOOD to drink whey protein shakes at night, before you go to bed. Here is why.
Muscles grow when you are out of the gym. That is, when you are at rest. The more well rested you are, the stronger your muscles will grow. Of course, you have to give your muscles the essential building blocks - amino acids. And amino acids can come from various protein sources such as milk, eggs, and protein powder.
Fitness experts spend about 1 hour a day at the gym, and they have a couple of off days per week. So every week, they spend about 5 hours working out. The rest of time, they are out of the gym doing something else. In other words, your muscles are actually growing during the time when you are outside of the gym.
Your muscle is growing while you are going about doing your work, eating your muscles, and even while you are sleeping. So do you think it's a good idea to drink protein shakes on a nightly basis? The answer is definitely yes!
There is only one catch - you have to be careful of the calories you consume before you go to bed. When you are at rest, your body doesn't burn as much calories as it does in the day time. So bodybuilders and athletes drink protein shakes with cold plain water before they go to bed. The idea is to fuel muscle growth and recovery while they sleep without putting on fat.
Many people trying to lose weight are advised to skip their supper. There is some wisdom and truth in this piece of advice.
Does skipping supper really help one to lose weight? Of course it does! First of all, you have a direct calorie reduction (perhaps 300 to 400?). Secondly, your body doesn't have to convert the extra calories to fat if it can't burn them off at night.
If you eat a meal before bedtime, your sleep will most likely be affected. Your heart rate will be slightly raised as the body is still trying to digest the food that you have consumed. At night, your heart is supposed to be relaxing but when it is working harder, you may find it more difficult to fall asleep. And when you do fall asleep, all that extra calories can't be burned off due to the body's low level of activity. So excess calories are converted to fat and stored in the body.
Protein shakes work in a similar manner, except that protein cannot be easily converted into fat. When you consume an optimal amount (what you need for the day), the protein will be used for muscle growth and recovery. Remember, you are spending 8 hours every night in bed. That is a lot of time for muscle to grow. So don't skip your nightly protein shakes!
Here is the answer to a similar question: Is it good to drink a protein shake at night?
