You may have heard your friends say that you have to get your protein in right after your workout otherwise the workout was completely wasted.
Is this anabolic window actually true?
Do you really only have 30 minutes to an hour to get protein in after your workout otherwise it is lost.
Let’s see what science has to say.
There was a study done in Canada that showed four hours after a workout there is a 50 percent increase in protein synthesis.
After 24 hours there was a 104% increase in protein synthesis.
This shows that it doesn’t matter when you take your protein in after your workout, but how much you get in throughout the entire day.
There was another study done that took three different groups.
All of these groups did the same resistance workout program for 10 weeks.
One group took protein immediately before and after their workout. One group took in protein in the morning and in the evening.
One group just tried to have an overall healthy somewhat protein-rich diet.
At the end of the study, every group had an increase in strength and in power.
However, there was no significant difference in the three groups in fat loss, protein synthesis, and in muscle.
What this demonstrates is that all that mattered was that they all were taking in protein and training hard.
Don’t overcomplicate it.
Just train hard, and try to get a good amount of protein in throughout the day.
There is no need to race home after your workout to get your protein in!