Originally Posted by
Carbonfiberboy
If your legs hurt when you start riding, and continue to hurt while you ride, you need more protein. Otherwise, probably not. Everyone's legs hurt a couple days after a hard ride, protein or not.
Protein requirements in endurance athletes are mostly dependent on hours per week of exercise, because it gets burned right along with the carbos. If you are riding 150 miles per week or so, I'd say it's a real good idea, but after exercise is the most important time, rather than in the morning.
Eating more protein than necessary for building or repairing muscle is just calories. However, it can have other benefits as it reduces appetite and thus can assist with weight loss.
I do understand that their is pain involved and I dont attribute that to lose in protein even know I need more. I get pretty banged up during the week cause I play indoor soccer Sunday and Thursdays and its a little rough in are division.
Besides that I definitely do ride 150+ miles a week, and I know I do not eat enough protein during a day. Its not because I am not eating the right things its more I cant consume enough food to keep me going. This probably attributes to my lower performance on recent rides with my legs going quicker then in the past.
For weight loss thats about the last thing I want right now ha. I lost about 25 pounds just from biking and adding a extra day of soccer per week. I am a little more bonny then I would like right now ha. That said I am still losing a little weight but not as quickly when I should be gaining weight at this point. so the protein and added cals per day will definitely help. I am eating around 2500 per day as I look at it were I should be way more with my activity levels.
Just to give some numbers and I have been told these really dont mean much cause its your weight related to ur height. I am 5,11 and currently weight 167.3 which from what the doctors said is around average for me height. I should be heavier I believe but I need more muscel mass. My body fat levels I would believe to be low, cause I look at myself and I dont have much fat on me as I can tell. I would be interested to see exactly how much I have though.
In all the end goal of this is really to get as much out of daily protien and cals to keep me in good working order. I dont want to have huge muscels like body builders but I want the muscels I uses for biking to be well developed and get as much out of each ride.