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The Religion of Pre and Post Workout Nutrition By William D. Brink www.BrinkZone.com Pre- and post-workout nutrition is all the rage these days, and for good reason. For some, however, it’s become more than a science  —it’s become their religion, or perhaps just a place to focus their OCD-like tendencies. Regardless, people have taken the topic of  pre- and post-workout nutrition to a level that is not justified by the research, or at least not confirmed by the research that currently exists. Readers should realize I may have my membership card to the Bodybuilding Nutrition Guru Society torn up and thrown at me for what I am about to share in this article… As expected, supplement companies—and self–proclaimed ‘net guru types—have used what does exist for research to convince everyone that that if they don’t take in exactly 98.7 grams of carbohydrates and 37.2 grams of protein within 28 seconds after they leave the gym, their muscles will be attacked by every muscle-hating hormone they possess in their body by second 29; with the prior year of hard work in the gym totally wasted by second 30! People are fixated on this particular topic like nothing else, and when you throw in the other possible ingredients that can be added to the post-workout drink, such as creatine, glutamine, and many others, it’s taken to the level of psychosis! Of course supplement companies have come out with their own

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The Religion of Pre and Post Workout

Nutrition

By William D. Brink 

www.BrinkZone.com

Pre- and post-workout nutrition is all the rage these days, and for 

good reason. For some, however, it’s become more than a science

 —it’s become their religion, or perhaps just a place to focus their 

OCD-like tendencies. Regardless, people have taken the topic of 

 pre- and post-workout nutrition to a level that is not justified by the

research, or at least not confirmed by the research that currently

exists.

Readers should realize I may have my membership card to the

Bodybuilding Nutrition Guru Society torn up and thrown at me for 

what I am about to share in this article…

As expected, supplement companies—and self–proclaimed ‘netguru types—have used what does exist for research to convince

everyone that that if they don’t take in exactly 98.7 grams of 

carbohydrates and 37.2 grams of protein within 28 seconds after 

they leave the gym, their muscles will be attacked by every

muscle-hating hormone they possess in their body by second 29;

with the prior year of hard work in the gym totally wasted by

second 30!

People are fixated on this particular topic like nothing else, andwhen you throw in the other possible ingredients that can be added

to the post-workout drink, such as creatine, glutamine, and many

others, it’s taken to the level of psychosis!

Of course supplement companies have come out with their own

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“techno-functional ultra-repartitioning multi-dimensional”* post-

workout drink formulas that are claimed to be the latest

 breakthrough. Besides the carbs and protein in these formulas,

many of the additional compounds are either under dosed (ergo the

‘label decoration’ syndrome), have no particular justification for  being in the formula in the first place, or both (ergo, the ‘shot gun’

approach)…but I digress.

 Now I have to take at least some blame—or credit—for this

 predicament, depending on how you want to view it. I have written

extensively about the importance of post-workout nutrition in all

manner of articles, and give the topic extensive focus in my

Bodybuilding Revealed e-book.

Unlike many of the supplement companies and ‘net experts’ out

there, however, I never claimed you would shrivel up into Pee Wee

Herman in a matter of minutes if you didn’t get your ultra high-

tech post-workout drink 29 seconds after your last set of squats. I

have always taken a balanced view on the topic, by pointing out

that food is still more important in the overall equation of muscle

growth.

Thus, what I can say is that research—and common sense—tells us

it’s advantageous to get some fast-acting carbs and protein after a

hard workout to optimize the time we put in the gym. From there,

however, people have relied more on wishful thinking than science

for their pre- and post-workout nutrition. People who have poor 

diets and poorly thought-out training routines, but focus on the

latest magic pre- and post-workout elixirs are missing the point.

Their approach is like trying to hold up a three-legged stool with

one support leg and the other two missing.

General Considerations of Research vs. the “Real World”

As we all know, a great deal of research is performed that— 

although interesting—has very little “real world” application to

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 bodybuilders and other athletes.

This is because scientists do everything in their power to study

their chosen topic in isolation. In other words, they go to great

lengths and trouble to control variables that will impact theoutcomes of their studies. For example, in a study looking at the

effects of a drug or supplement, a placebo group is matched to the

“active” group. The scientists want to make sure the effect they get

 —or don’t get—is due to the drug/supplement and not the placebo

effect. Making the study double-blind is another way of attempting

to prevent the bias of the scientists from influencing the study.

The point is that, when they attempt to isolate an effect of 

something being tested, scientists often end up with results that

may not always be directly applicable to the “real world” of Joe

Schmoe gym goer.

When study designs don’t reflect “real world” conditions, they

need to be taken with a grain of salt. Were the study participants

fasted? What type of exercise did they perform? What effects did

the researchers actually look at and how does that apply to the

“real world” or athlete in question? Were the study participantsnew to the form of exercise being utilized in the study or were they

experienced athletes? How many people were in the study? Who

do the results apply to: endurance or strength athletes? Both?

 Neither?!

Those are just a few of the essential questions that have to be asked

and answered before you can even begin to draw any useful “real

world” conclusions from the studies that come out. Yet this doesn’t

stop people and supplement companies from jumping on the lateststudies as the last word in nutrition and start making

recommendations from them. They also tend to ignore the studies

that contradict or fail to replicate the advice they are giving out.

Let’s look at some examples…

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The Fast vs. Slow Protein Craze…

The use of fasted subjects in nutrition studies illustrates how

researchers can end up with results that may not apply well to the

real world. As the name implies, the study subjects are a group of  people who have not eaten for an extended period of time. In many

cases, they haven’t eaten for 8 – 10 hours or more, which of course

does not reflect how the average person eats, at let alone how the

average athlete eats—especially bodybuilders looking to add

muscle mass.

Enter stage right, the “fast vs. slow” protein craze. The study that

got this craze rolling was called “Slow and fast dietary proteins

differently modulate postprandial protein accretion” and was

responsible for causing a resurgence of interest in casein. The basic

 premise of this much-touted study was that the speed of absorption

of dietary amino acids (from ingested proteins) varies according to

the type of dietary protein a person eats.

The researchers wanted to see if the type of protein eaten would

affect postprandial (e.g., after a meal) protein synthesis,

 breakdown, and deposition. To test the hypothesis, they fed casein(CAS) and whey protein (WP) to a group of healthy adults, a

single meal of casein (CAS) or whey WP following an overnight

fast (10 h). Using this specific study design, they found:

•WP induced a dramatic but short increase of plasma amino acids.

•CAS induced a prolonged plateau of a moderate increase in amino

acids (hyperaminoacidemia)

•Whole body protein breakdown was inhibited by 34% after CAS

ingestion but not after WP ingestion.•Postprandial protein synthesis was stimulated by 68% with the

WP meal and to a lesser extent (+31%) with the CAS meal.

The basic non-science summary is: the study found that CAS was

good at preventing protein breakdown (proteolysis), but was not so

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good for increasing protein synthesis. WP had basically the

opposite effects: it increased protein synthesis but didn’t prevent

 protein breakdown. The problem is that they were using fasted

subjects for a single meal.

Keep that in mind as we move along here…

So far so good right? So what can we conclude from this study and

how useful are the results? Like so many studies, the results were

interesting—and of little use to people in the real world. Do these

results hold up under more “real world” conditions where people

are eating every few hours and/or mixing the proteins with other 

macronutrients (i.e., carbs and fats)? The answer is probably not,

which is exactly what the researchers found when they attempted

to mimic a more realistic eating pattern of multiple meals and or 

the addition of other macronutrients. The follow up study was

called “The digestion rate of protein is an independent regulating

factor of postprandial protein retention.” Four groups of five to six

healthy young men received:

• a single meal of slowly digested casein (CAS).

• a single meal of free amino acids mimicking the composition of casein (AA).

• a single meal of rapidly digested whey proteins (WP).

• repeated meals of whey proteins (RPT-WP) mimicking slow

digestion rate of casein (i.e., reflecting how people really eat).

So what did they find? In a nut shell, giving people multiple doses

of whey—which more closely mimics how people really eat-—had

 basically the same effects as a single dose of casein, and mixing

either with fats and proteins pretty much nullified any bigdifferences between the two proteins.

Even that’s not the end of the story, however, as multiple follow up

studies done by the same group and others found these effects

could also be different in older versus younger people and male

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versus female! How messed up is that?! So how much press did

these follow up studies get? Little or none, as I recall.

 Now, a later study did attempt to examine the actual net amino

acid uptake after resistance training with whey vs. casein, andfound both proteins had essentially the same effects on net muscle

 protein synthesis after exercise despite different patterns of blood

amino acid responses.

Does that put to rest the issue or debate of one protein vs. the other 

 post-workout? No, as there are yet more conflicting studies out

there and my bet is still on whey as the superior post-workout

 protein, but it’s important to realize the answer is far from

established at this time.

Got Milk?

Milk: nature’s original MRP. Despite all the fancy proteins out

there all claiming to be the next step in the evolution of proteins

that “will blast you past your plateaus in the gym,” good old milk 

seems to be competing—and winning—against some “high tech”

 products on the market. We have various studies finding increased protein synthesis and other positive effects when a purified protein

supplement (e.g., whey, soy, casein, etc.) ingested right after or 

 before a workout—usually in conjunction with carbohydrates—but

what about good old milk, a “real” food?

One recent study found good old milk to be an effective post-

workout drink that increased net muscle protein synthesis after 

resistance training. Yet another recent study compared 2 cups of 

skim milk as a post workout drink compared to a soy drink and a“sports drink.”

In this study, the milk and soy drinks were matched for basic

macronutrient ratios and calories and all three were matched for 

total calories. 56 male volunteers were split into three groups, with

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all put on a resistance training program for 12 weeks. The

volunteers were then randomly assigned one of the three drinks to

consume as a post workout drink and again one hour after the

workouts.

Although no major differences were found in strength between the

3 groups, the group getting the milk had the greatest increase in

muscle mass (via increases in Type I and II fibers) with researchers

concluding

“…chronic postexercise consumption of milk promotes greater 

hypertrophy during the early stages of resistance training in novice

weightlifters when compared with isoenergetic soy or carbohydrate

consumption.”

But it gets better: how about our favorite childhood drink,

chocolate milk? How about chocolate milk vs. two commercial

energy/fluid replacement drinks, such as Gatorade and Endurox

R4?

One recent study—albeit a small one—found chocolate milk as

effective as Gatorade, and more effective than Endurox, as arecovery drink for trained cyclists between exhaustive bouts of 

endurance exercise.

 Now is this a condemnation of sports drinks and an endorsement

for milk/chocolate milk as the last word on post-workout drinks?

 Not at all: remember those essential questions I mentioned above?

You have to look at such a study in context—in other words, at the

experimental design and how that applies to the “real world.” The

subjects fasted for 10 – 12 h prior to the chocolate milk experiment, and these drinks were the only food these guys had for 

14 – 16 hours. The results may have been quite different had they

 been following their normal eating patterns.

They also measured effects on endurance vs.—say—strength or 

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increased protein synthesis, etc.

So, in the context of this particular study design, look at it this

way: chocolate milk has casein (a “slow” protein), and whey (a

“fast” protein) as well as calcium, some vitamins and a bunch of carbohydrates—so it makes a pretty good, cheap MRP, if that’s all

you are going to get all day long. It’s not a half-bad post-workout

drink either. It’s not the best MRP—or post workout drink—I

could design, but it’s cheap and easy to find. The reality is that

there are some inexpensive foods out there can be used, and most

of your old school bodybuilders and strong men used milk as the

original post workout drink/MRP.

The study that looked at milk vs. soy and sports drink, was done in

novice weight lifters, so that too needs to be taken into

consideration. Regardless, milk, in particular chocolate milk,

should make a perfectly acceptable and inexpensive post workout

drink and people who think it’s too “old school” or not “high tech”

enough to be if any use are clearly misinformed and the victim of 

marketing.

 Now the study we need to see that does not exist, of course, is milk or chocolate milk vs. a well thought out post-workout drink of— 

say—whey and maltodextrin (high GI carb source), in experienced

weight lifters who are not fasted—but don’t hold your breath on

that one. Studies like that get expensive quickly and also pose

 practical issues. For example, if you wanted to match the protein

content of—say—2 scoops of whey isolate to chocolate milk (so

the groups were getting an equivalent amount of protein), the

subjects would need to drink a large volume of milk (remember,

milk is mostly water).

My hunch is that a correctly designed post-workout drink would be

superior to chocolate milk, but it would be nice to see the two

compared, no?

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The Pre-Workout Drink 

The pre-workout drink craze followed the post-workout craze after 

a study found pre-workout nutrition may be more effective than

 post-workout nutrition.

The study that got this craze going was called “Timing of amino

acid-carbohydrate ingestion alters anabolic response of muscle to

resistance exercise” which found that drinking a mixture of 

essential amino acids and carbohydrates induced a greater anabolic

response (i.e., a net increase in muscle protein balance) when taken

right before weight training vs. right after.

This study had everyone taking in a pre-workout drink as well as a

 post-workout drink in an attempt to cover all the bases. It should

 be noted, however, that—once again—they were using fasted

subjects. Think of it like this: you have not eaten in 8-10 or more

hours, then you are made to work out on a (very) empty stomach.

Under those particular circumstances, does it not make sense

getting something to eat before the workout would be superior toafter the workout? We all know hitting the weights on an empty

stomach is not an optimal method to preserve—or build—muscle

mass. Nor is it reflective of real world eating patterns where the

vast majority of people have eaten a full meal at least a few hours

 before they hit the gym.

After this study, everyone started drinking a protein drink before

they hit the gym. Interestingly, however, a recent study done by thesame group who did the pre-drink study mentioned above, found

whey taken before hitting the gym did not result in an improved

net protein balance vs. taking it after the gym.

“Well wait a dang minute Will, now I am really confused!” you are

saying angrily to your comp screen! Does this new study show pre-

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workout nutrition is no more effective than post workout nutrition?

 No, and here’s why. It’s an apples vs. oranges study. The first

study used free amino acids plus carbohydrates, and the follow up

study used whey alone without carbohydrates—which is very oddif they were truly trying to see if free aminos were superior to a

whole protein such as whey.

Unfortunately this latter study really didn’t do much to confirm or 

deny the first study’s findings. And, don’t forget my comments

regarding using fasted subjects, which adds yet another wrinkle to

all this.

So does that essentially disprove the pre-workout drink vs. the post-workout drink studies? Nope. One recent study did look 

specifically at the issue of timing and does support the idea that the

 pre- and post-workout window is the most effective period for 

ingesting some fast-acting protein and carbs.

This study, titled “Effects of supplement timing and resistance

exercise on skeletal muscle hypertrophy,” has gotten a fair amount

of attention in the bodybuilding/sports nutrition oriented publications. The researchers examined the effects of a drink of 

whey, glucose and creatine given to two groups of experienced

weight lifters, either morning and evening (M/E) or pre- and post-

workout (PP), to see if the actual timing of the drink had an effect

on muscle hypertrophy or strength development.

The study found that the group getting the drink PP had an increase

in lean body mass and 1RM strength in two of three assessments

that were tested. The group getting the drink PP also experiencedgreater creatine retention and glycogen resynthesis, which means

timing of specific nutrients is an important strategy for optimizing

the adaptations desired (e.g., increased muscle mass and strength)

from your hard work in the gym.

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So does this study finally put to rest the issue of pre- vs. post-

workout nutrition? No, it did not compare one strategy to the other 

 per se, but did confirm that nutrient timing is an important aspect.

One obvious issue is that this study used a drink that containedcreatine throughout, so technically it’s not a pro + carb study, but a

 pro + carb + creatine study. On the plus side, it was done in

experienced weight lifters and they were not fasted, so it does at

least represent the metabolic realties of “real world” people

looking to get the most of their nutrition. Either way, it supports

the idea of taking in the right nutrients both pre- and post-workout,

 but people should not be under the impression that this issue of 

timing has been “put to bed,” so to speak, and realize there are still plenty of unanswered questions yet to be explored.

Of course, there are more studies than just the ones mentioned

above, so there are plenty of measurements on indicators of 

recovery from exercise, such as effects on glycogen resynthesis,

alterations in hormones, and hormone levels. Nonetheless, I prefer 

to look at the actual endpoint that really matters at the end of the

day: did this person gain muscle mass, strength, or performance by

using this product? Without that, everything else—though potentially interesting—is mental masturbation.

Conclusions, and Real World Recommendations.

 Now I didn’t write this article to confuse you, but to demonstrate

that the optimal strategy for increasing strength and LBM in

response to resistance training is not as cut and dried as you are

often led to believe. However, it’s also probably simpler than you

are led to believe, as the human body is far more adaptable to thetypes of protein it receives as well as the amounts it receives.

Thus, the people who stress over whether they got 35g of protein

and 60g of carbs in their post workout drinks vs. 32g of protein and

70s of carbs in the drink are probably wasting their time, and

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causing what is known as “paralysis by analysis.” Put more

 practically, the amount of cortisol you produce from worrying

about such minutia probably offsets any gains you might make

from one drink vs. another!

I also wanted to dispel some of the hype over one protein vs.

another, and the fact that expensive pre-made high tech drinks that

are all the rage right now are just that: expensive and over hyped.

In the real world, people have used variations of the idea that fast

acting proteins and a good dose of simple carbs can improve the

effects of resistance training for many years. My good friend, the

late Dan Duchaine, used to give people whey mixed in water and

Corn Flakes with skim milk as their post workout meal.

One bodybuilder I knew who went onto be a well known IFBB

 pro, used to have a drink of whey after his workouts and several

slices of apple pie at the local Friday’s restaurant next to the gym

for his post-workout meal.

Most of your old time strong men and bodybuilders drank quite a

lot of milk, and as we have seen from the research, it’s not a half  bad post workout drink either.

If people want to buy pre-made carb/protein mixtures with other 

nutrients added (e.g., creatine, glutamine, various vitamins, etc) out

of convenience and don’t care that they can “roll their own” for 

less money, there’s nothing wrong with that.

Just don’t think there’s anything magical about the pre-made post-

workout drinks, no matter what the marketing material or web sitesays to entice you to purchase it.

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