From: rrahn@emdeng.DaytonOH.NCR.COM (Russel.H.Rahn)
Newsgroups: misc.fitness
Subject: Re: Let's Talk Protein
Date: 7 Apr 92 15:04:20 GMT
Reply-To: rrahn@emdeng.UUCP (Russel.H.Rahn)
Organization: NCR, E&M Dayton

In article <00958AEB.66491160@Msu.oscs.montana.edu> uphrsrf@Msu.oscs.montana.edu writes:
>In article <1992Apr6.074452.19414@comp.vuw.ac.nz>, Maloaufaatasi.Wendt@comp.vuw.ac.nz (Maloaufaatasi Julius Wendt) writes:
>>
>>So, how much protein should I (a casual bodybuilder) have at each meal ?
>
>    The average person (NOT one intending to build muscle) needs about
>.8 grams of protein PER kilogram of body weight every day.
>

Did this come from Understanding Nutrition also, or did you
"read it somewhere"?  :-)

>Studies have shown that in order to build muscle optimally, you should have 
>about 1 gram of protein PER kilogram of body weight daily.
>

Same question as above.  Please let us know.  You see without a source,
we really can't take your word for any more than we can those who
really believe that you need protein supplements.  I really want to
believe you since it means saving money!!  :-)

>   If you are very active, you might want to calculate this requirement another
>way: as a percentage of your daily caloric intake.  For gaining muscle, 12-14%
>of your caloric intake should come from protein.
>

Same as above!  If all I need is 12-14% of my calories from protein, then
that would be good.  I do have a question about this though.  Wouldn't
the protein have to be destroyed/burned in order to get the caloric value
from it???  Is that what we want???  Don't we want the protein to be used
as a muscle building block rather than energy??  If it is used as a
building block, and it doesn't get burned, and it doesn't add to
our caloric intake, then shouldn't we subtract calories from protein
when we are trying to determine how much we can eat and still burn off
a pound of fat???  Have I lost a grip???? :-)

>   Some foods and their protein contents (taken from Understanding Nutrition,
>Whitney, Hamilton, and Rolfes, Fifth Ed.):
>

Is this where all of your information has come from, or just the food
contents?  If the other info came from here, I'll stop by the library
and look this book up.  If not, where did you learn these bits of
information??

>for a much cheaper alternative, take skim milk, egg whites, a banana, and some
>other flavoring if desired (cocoa, for example), and blend.  This is much more
>affordable and often better tasting, though it contains much less protein.
>

Are these egg whites raw?  If so, isn't this dangerous??  I thought 
someone posted that you shouldn't even eat raw cookie or cake batter
because of the risk of bacterial poisoning from raw eggs (salmonella)?
I thought that many of these supplements used soybean meal/powder?
I agree that they are probably very overpriced for what is in them.
I have been using a supplement from  Wal-Mart (Jacobsen's or
something like that).  It's about 50 cents a serving and each
serving provides 23g of protein.  It doesn't taste all that bad,
and I stir it up in a glass and I don't have to clean the blender.

Don't assume that all of us that want to know how much protein
to get are considering megadoses.  I just don't believe that I
get the 90g that your active person requires without supplementing.
I was told earlier that I should shoot for about 100g (not 66g that
one of your methods showed, but then again, I am a bit heavier).  I
just don't have time to prepare large meals or time consuming meals,
and I get tired of eating tuna all the time.  I'd rather supplement.

>   Meals:  The digestive system often works better if you eat 5-6 smaller meals
>daily, rather than 3 large meals, but this is more a matter of personal
>preference; it doesn't make a considerable difference in nutrient absorption.
>Having breakfast is a real plan.
>

I heard recently that breakfast might also reduce the risk of cancer.
Having breakfast is a good idea!

>Rodney Freier

Russ Rahn