[telemike]

I recently had a discussion about protein requirements with a friend after reading an AARP article on seniors not getting enough protein in their diet. The article recommended 25 - 35grams (about 1 oz) with each meal, that is, three times a day. They also suggested increased amounts after significant exercise.

I looked at my protein intake and it seemed to average about 10 - 40 grams per meal with the average below the articles 25 - 35 gram at each meal. I get protein at breakfast from an egg, a small sausage patty, and whatever amount is in the english muffin, fried potatoes, or toast that goes with breakfast.

Lunch is generally a sandwich, often a quick PB and J, or a slice of ham etc with a slice of provolone.

Supper usually has couple of chicken legs or thighs or some other kind of meat, often braised pork or beef with a little protein coming from very fresh veggies (locally grown in our garden) and some pasta, rice, potatoes, or baked goods.

How much protein do you understand we need as cyclists and how do you get it?

 

[DeoreDX]

0.5g to 0.9g per pound of body weight. Go higher in the spectrum the more you are training or if you are trying to lose weight while training without losing muscle mass. That was the number told to me by people a lot in the know than I do t have any data or sources to back that up.

 

[J.B. Weld]

Agree with DX. I get mine from veggies and sometimes supplement with a post ride protein shake.

 

[BadgerOne]

Unfortunately dietary best practices change constantly, which tells me that those who publish them don't really have concrete knowledge and to some degree use educated best guesses. In many ways you have to understand your body and how it best performs with specific diet types. For me personally, I work on complex carbs, fiber, vegetables, plant based fats (nuts and coconut) and fruits. Only occasional meat. My wife does fantastic on just animal fats and meat with some veg thrown in - beef, cheese, cream, stuff like that. If she eats like me she bloats and feels lousy. If I eat like her, I feel like absolute crap and I swear I'd be pathological in a year's time. Listen to your body, including protein intake.

 

[Sir kayakalot]

Unfortunately dietary best practices change constantly, which tells me that those who publish them don't really have concrete knowledge and to some degree use educated best guesses. In many ways you have to understand your body and how it best performs with specific diet types. For me personally, I work on complex carbs, fiber, vegetables, plant based fats (nuts and coconut) and fruits. Only occasional meat. My wife does fantastic on just animal fats and meat with some veg thrown in - beef, cheese, cream, stuff like that. If she eats like me she bloats and feels lousy. If I eat like her, I feel like absolute crap and I swear I'd be pathological in a year's time. Listen to your body, including protein intake.

Spot on. It takes a long time to figure out what works for YOUR body. We’re all different

 

[WHALENARD]

Your gut flora is selective to what you eat too though...not that I necessarily disagree with the above. I feel best on wild salmon, greens, dark berries, and fermented stuff. Sunshine, sleep, stimulation, mountain air, and low stress.

Sent from my Pixel 4a (5G) using Tapatalk

 

[r-rocket]

Substituting out half the potatoes for beans would give you some more complete proteins.

 

[J.B. Weld]

Spot on. It takes a long time to figure out what works for YOUR body. We’re all different

True but every body needs adequate protein to thrive and it's especially important for older athletes. We're not all that much different.

 

[Sir kayakalot]

True but every body needs adequate protein to thrive and it's especially important for older athletes. We're not all that much different.

No doubt, but, some folks can get their protein from eating fried chicken/fish and fried okra/French fries and hop on the bike and turn out a 5000’ climb. Others have to eat tofu and a protein shake exactly 6 hours before the ride or they can’t perform. Figuring out what to eat and how much of it at the right time is the key

 

[J.B. Weld]

No doubt, but, some folks can get their protein from eating fried chicken/fish and fried okra/French fries and hop on the bike and turn out a 5000’ climb. Others have to eat tofu and a protein shake exactly 6 hours before the ride or they can’t perform. Figuring out what to eat and how much of it at the right time is the key

You can only thrive on fried chicken and fried okra for so long. That's a young man's game, I'm in it for the long haul!

 

[spaightlabs]

True but every body needs adequate protein to thrive and it's especially important for older athletes. We're not all that much different.

100%. You can’t truly ‘trust your body’. There are 150 million Americans whose bodies are telling them they need more Highly processed foods.

over 50 we also need to lift. Not your wife’s pink weights or the 2 pounders that came with your peloton. Move some iron, compound movements at least a couple times a week.

 

[BadgerOne]

100%. You can’t truly ‘trust your body’. There are 150 million Americans whose bodies are telling them they need more Highly processed foods.

over 50 we also need to lift. Not your wife’s pink weights or the 2 pounders that came with your peloton. Move some iron, compound movements at least a couple times a week.

Well...sort of. Those people are not performing athletically in any real capacity and certainly not in tune with their body's performance or signage. The pleasure centers of their brain is telling them to eat that crap, not their body. Athletes know and can tell the difference.

 

[J.B. Weld]

Well...sort of. Those people are not performing athletically in any real capacity and certainly not in tune with their body's performance or signage. The pleasure centers of their brain is telling them to eat that crap, not their body. Athletes know and can tell the difference.

Plenty of high level athletes eat like crap and still perform well. Usain Bolt once said his favorite pre-race meal was chicken McNuggets.

 

[MattMay]

Interesting new study about essential amino acids and dementia prevention.

Neurodegenerative processes accelerated by protein malnutrition and decelerated by essential amino acids in a tauopathy mouse model

Intake of specific seven essential amino acids affects the pathology of the brain.

www.science.org

 

[Sanchofula]

I recently had a discussion about protein requirements with a friend after reading an AARP article on seniors not getting enough protein in their diet. The article recommended 25 - 35grams (about 1 oz) with each meal, that is, three times a day. They also suggested increased amounts after significant exercise.

I looked at my protein intake and it seemed to average about 10 - 40 grams per meal with the average below the articles 25 - 35 gram at each meal. I get protein at breakfast from an egg, a small sausage patty, and whatever amount is in the english muffin, fried potatoes, or toast that goes with breakfast.

Lunch is generally a sandwich, often a quick PB and J, or a slice of ham etc with a slice of provolone.

Supper usually has couple of chicken legs or thighs or some other kind of meat, often braised pork or beef with a little protein coming from very fresh veggies (locally grown in our garden) and some pasta, rice, potatoes, or baked goods.

How much protein do you understand we need as cyclists and how do you get it?

Protein intake is not generally a problem for healthy active adults, the problem is in the geriatric population who no longer cook and who tend to snack on junk food.

This ^ is a big chunk of my adult patients and they are a tough nut to crack because they no longer care or at least don’t care enough to change habits.

A few things have led to an increase in this problem:

Increased availability of inexpensive processed foods: Fast food, snack food.
Increased longevity: more health issues
Increase in sedentary lifestyle: decreased mobility

On the whole, a less active older person needs less dietary intake, so they have less latitude to make poor nutrition choices. If they snack poorly, they no longer make it up with healthy meals.

So yeah, they’re not talking about us 🙄

AARP? You read that tripe? Get a couple textbooks on nutrition, it’s not a complicated science, teach yourself, don’t ask a bunch of yahoo’s on the internet.

 

[Sanchofula]

Plenty of high level athletes eat like crap and still perform well. Usain Bolt once said his favorite pre-race meal was chicken McNuggets.

see my comments above ^

 

[Sanchofula]

Unfortunately dietary best practices change constantly, which tells me that those who publish them don't really have concrete knowledge and to some degree use educated best guesses. In many ways you have to understand your body and how it best performs with specific diet types. For me personally, I work on complex carbs, fiber, vegetables, plant based fats (nuts and coconut) and fruits. Only occasional meat. My wife does fantastic on just animal fats and meat with some veg thrown in - beef, cheese, cream, stuff like that. If she eats like me she bloats and feels lousy. If I eat like her, I feel like absolute crap and I swear I'd be pathological in a year's time. Listen to your body, including protein intake.

I’m not sure how to put this, so I’ll just say it:

You are totally wrong.

All humans have the same dietary needs because we are genetically the same.

You may have allergies to certain foods or have a quirk in your metabolism, but those are the zebras, the rest of us are the same.

Yes, of course, science is always evolving, nutritional science is no different from any other science, but keep in mind that science builds on the theories that came before, so the nutritional science we know now is not all that different from what we knew a few decades ago.

Yeah, I know you won’t believe me, and that’s okay, I’m just trying to counter punch misinformation.

Hope this helps somebody, but if not, no worries, when you get close to death you’ll have all the answers, just no time to put them to practice 🤣

 

[chazpat]

Plenty of high level athletes eat like crap and still perform well. Usain Bolt once said his favorite pre-race meal was chicken McNuggets.

You can only thrive on fried chicken and fried okra for so long. That's a young man's game, I'm in it for the long haul!

I think you respond to yourself, somehow before you posted what you responded to.

 

[Bassmantweed]

I find the organ products to be very good. Not too sweet. I use it as part of my breakfast shake.

For post rides I use tailwind recovery.
Been very happy with both.

 

[Crankout]

On the flipside, WebMD gives an outline of symptoms that could indicate that you're not getting adequate levels in your diet:

7 Signs You're Not Getting Enough Protein

Are you getting enough protein in your diet? Learn to spot the warning signs of protein deficiency, who is the most at risk, and when you need more protein.

www.webmd.com

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