Using Protein Shakes

loca

Hi there,
I am jogging the last 4 months and I am now up to 10K's. I'm contemplating training for a half marathon to begin with althought right now i'm really enjoying the buzz of getting fitter and pushing myself!
I'm a 25 yr old female. I'd like to know about incorporating protein shakes into my regime. Would it help me tone, lose weight or build muscle? I know it would help muscle repair.
I'm currently jogging 5Ks 3 times a week and 10K one day a weekend with alternating rest days.
Any thoughts would be great, Thanks!

ponderaabel

I would recommend to begin to use protein shakes 3 weeks before competition! Anything you take it takes mostly 2 weeks to have any affect. It helps to build up muscle and endurance.

I would also recommend to do other exercises besides running! Gradually increase the distance!

loca

Right now i'm not losing any weight but I am definitely losing size cause i'm down to a 10. Will I eventually start to tone with the running and start tightening up or would the protein help me do that along with muscle repair?

--amadeus--

Ignoring the elite end of things I don't personally know any road runners who take protein shakes on a regular basis.

Protein shakes are traditionally used to build muscle mass - to bulk up. This is pretty much the opposite of what a road runner wants as any muscle above the waist is effectively just dead weight to be carried around.

You're currently covering ~12 miles per week so if you are eating a good, well balanced diet with the right proportions of carbs and proteins and plenty of fresh fruit and veg then you don't really need any supplementation at all.

heffsarmy

loca wrote: »

Will I eventually start to tone with the running and start tightening up or would the protein help me do that along with muscle repair?

Running will help you shed some weight but won't tone you up, you need to incorporate some weight training into your regime. Clean up your diet and you will see results. Protein helps with muscle repair, its not a magic pill that will tone you up, you need to be doing some weight training or some sort off resistance training.

plodder

You could try skim milk either. It has much the same protein as the shakes, and comes ready mixed

loca

Really? Skimmed milk does the same thing? Its just that I have a large Jar of Protein Mix and I was hoping it would help me. Thanks for that, i'll definitely start some of weight training.
My diet is pretty good. I don't snack between meals apart from on fruit. I eat porridge for breakfast, at least 2 litres of water plus other fluids, lunch is usually a sandwich or a salad, and I have meat and 2 veg for dinner. I don't know why i'm at a standstill weight wise unless its the muscle i'm building in my legs. I don't eat sugary snacks and i'm fibre intolerant so can't have too much fiber. One portion a day.
I don't know how far i'm going to go with the running, i'll keep it up but as for marathon etc im undecided yet. Half marathon definitely. I just want to keep fit & healthy.

plodder

I'm not an expert, but as far as I understand it, the protein in those shakes comes from milk anyway. Of course, there's bound to be other stuff in there as well.

But, a lot of runners swear by skimmed milk as a recovery drink after running. Basically, a small amount of carbohydrate, protein, water and very little fat, can be beneficial, soon after a run. I'd have a big glass after all long runs.

As the others have said, I wouldn't over estimate the value of any of this, unless you're training at a high intensity (which I'm not, I hasten to add)

loca

Well milk is good for you so it certainly can't do any harm!! Thanks for that! Its amazing how addictive it is when you get into it, isnt it? I found myself fighting with myself in the beginning! "Stop, no don't stop, keep going"... I was like a mad woman!! haha! Now its enjoyable!

plodder

Yeah. The trick in the early days, is to think ahead to how you'll feel afterwards, not how you feel during the run . :pac:

menoscemo

I have a glass of milk after all my runs too and find it does the job perfectly.
I have read somewhere that chocolate milk is the perfect post run recovery drink as it has the perfect ration of carbs and protein.

loca

plodder wrote: »

Yeah. The trick in the early days, is to think ahead to how you'll feel afterwards, not how you feel during the run . :pac:

Good Advice!! I'll try to remember that next time i'm struggling!! (Probably after the weekend!!!!):P

A glass of milk it is!!

Poncherello

Are you running to lose weight and tone up or just for the enjoyment and feel good factor ?
If its to lose weight and tone up you should definitely be incorporating some resistance/weight training in to your regime.
Head over and read some of the threads in the fitness forum.

Mick Rice

There are a number of pieces of advice here that I'd really disagree with, as well as a number of pieces that I'd fully agree with. From what I know it's not reasonable to say that skimmed milk and protein shakes are basically the same thing, although they both contain many of the same elements. Protein drinks are usually used to supplement your diet if you believe you're not getting enough protein from other dietary sources. I use them regularly because I don't eat meat and when I'm training well they are a good way of ensuring that I'm getting enough protein to repair and rebuild after training.

I'd say that what you really need to do is ask yourself the question, 'Do I get enough protein from what I eat normally?' If the answer is yes, and from what you say I suspect the answer is indeed yes, then I wouldn't bother with the shakes for now.

Well done on getting up and 'running' and I'm sure that before long you'll be completely hooked like the rest of us.

menoscemo

Hey Mick, the reason I recommended milk is because i find it an easy way to get a bit of protein/crbs in directly after a run. I have heard that it is best to get in a drink to aid muscle repair within half an hour of finishing the excercise. You would know better than me- is this true?

It is just i find that i would not normally get my dinner (between cooking and updating the 100 mile challenge :pac:) until over an hour after finishing a run, so I use milk as a 'recovery drink', much like people in the gym would take a protein shake after excercise. Is this a good idea, or would it be just the same to wait until I have cokked the dinner?

plodder

Mick Rice wrote: »

There are a number of pieces of advice here that I'd really disagree with, as well as a number of pieces that I'd fully agree with. From what I know it's not reasonable to say that skimmed milk and protein shakes are basically the same thing, although they both contain many of the same elements. Protein drinks are usually used to supplement your diet if you believe you're not getting enough protein from other dietary sources. I use them regularly because I don't eat meat and when I'm training well they are a good way of ensuring that I'm getting enough protein to repair and rebuild after training.

I'd say that what you really need to do is ask yourself the question, 'Do I get enough protein from what I eat normally?' If the answer is yes, and from what you say I suspect the answer is indeed yes, then I wouldn't bother with the shakes for now.

Well done on getting up and 'running' and I'm sure that before long you'll be completely hooked like the rest of us.

Are you saying there that shakes are a better source of supplementary protein than skimmed milk? Maybe they are, and for someone in you situation (high mileage, plus not eating meat) that makes sense. But for the average runner, I wouldn't be so sure the equation stacks up (cost/benefit). Whey comes from milk at the end of the day, and skimmed milk is a lot cheaper than shakes. This article probably reads like it was written by the dairy council, but it's where I got the info about skim milk.

menoscemo

I much prefer full fat milk. The actual amount of fat in full fat milk is pretty small (about 3%). A lot of people are afraid of fat in their food but don't realise that it is actually an essential part of a healthy diet. If your diet is generally good a bit of full fat milk cetainly won't do you any harm!!

loca

Poncherello wrote: »

Are you running to lose weight and tone up or just for the enjoyment and feel good factor ?
If its to lose weight and tone up you should definitely be incorporating some resistance/weight training in to your regime.
Head over and read some of the threads in the fitness forum.

I was running for stress in the beginning... pounding the roads to get over a break up!!! I used to run alot until I had a car accident then I couldn't run but thankfully better now and started to try it again. Never thought I'd get back to where I was but I'm so happy now to be up to a decent level of fitness that i'm not going to let it go this time! 2 dress sizes down too!
The weight doesn't really concern me too much anymore!! I'm 10 and a half stone so i'm a healthy weight. Now that i've shed a good few pounds i'm getting more into the endurance stuff and looking towards my next challenge. I would like to tone... really I just want an athletic toned & fit body, I don't want to be a skinnymalink!

Mick Rice

From what I know, a glass of milk directly after a run wouldn't be a bad idea at all. I'm no dietician but the best advice I've seen has been to aid the recovery process by taking in some fluid, some carbohydrate and some protein as soon as possible after a run so that you can start to rehydrate, refuel and repair after the session. Again, from what I've read, it seems to be important to start this process as soon as possible after your training session as you can and I've seen 'within twenty minutes' mentionned in a few places.

While skimmed milk will obviously help with hydration and will contain some protein and some carbohydrate, I don't think it would be a particularly good source of either carbs of protein unless you drank an awful lot. I suppose it depends on how hard you've worked as to whether it's going to cover all the bases for you individually. It's certainly much better than having nothing at all and, if it was all I had, I'd go for it myself. The difference between the milk and the shake is that the whey or soya drink will be loaded with a good quality protein that will absorb quickly into the system and won't be too high in calories and so promote weight gain. A few fast guys that I've talked with have mentionned thowing a sports drink and a bannana into their training bag for after the run to tide them over 'til they eat a proper meal. One or two of them would have a protein drink as well, but I'd guess that the majority don't. If you eat meat and have a reasonably well balanced diet the difference between supplementing with protein within the first 20 mins after a session and an hour later is probably not that great.

Wally Runs

IOCA,
Well done on the running, it sounds as if you have got over the initial hump of ‘this is just too much like hard work’ and you are getting into flow of getting out and about. My advice is, if you have the stuff give it lash and see how you feel about it.
There are many other options open to you if you want to tone, lose weight and get fit. I would recommend a book by Anita Bean ‘Sports Nutrition’. It is part of the ‘complete guide to’ series. You should be able to get a copy at your local library, if not on line or PM and I can send out the lend of my copy. It gives a very basic but balanced introduction into sports nutrition and what the various foods do for You. It also has a simple method of determining the optimum nutrition you will need for your own goals.
The bonus is, it has some meal plans worked out with the calories toted up.

loca

thanks wally!! Yea im definitely over the initial 'hump' of i cant be bothered. I'm actually itching to go out on my rest days now but i havent. I want to do it right and stay enthused! Just back from my run now!! great tips on the book, i'll get onto getting that!! Sounds good!! Looking forward to the summer now so when the weather is good i can really enjoy it!! What to eat now... Im ravenous!!

itsallaboutheL

.

DULLAHAN2

menoscemo wrote: »

I much prefer full fat milk. The actual amount of fat in full fat milk is pretty small (about 3%). A lot of people are afraid of fat in their food but don't realise that it is actually an essential part of a healthy diet. If your diet is generally good a bit of full fat milk cetainly won't do you any harm!!

The only difference between low-fat and whole fat is there is alot less calories in the low-fat milk as there is not as much fat. For someone trying to lose weight it would be better for them to use low fat alternatives. skimmed milk would be the best.

RacoonQueen

Way to bring up an old thread L...anyway, I take protein shakes after any run longer than 13 miles and swear by them especially for back to back LSR's. Take them straight after marathons now and since I started doing so after marathons which I did Dublin, Barcelona(well I didn't run them at pace) and Connemara I was flying in the days following the races with very little pain or stiffness bar a proper injury.

--amadeus-- wrote: »

Protein shakes are traditionally used to build muscle mass - to bulk up. This is pretty much the opposite of what a road runner wants as any muscle above the waist is effectively just dead weight to be carried around.

Well, not necessarily. The people who take them to aid building muscle mass are doing serious lifting. If you're not doing serious lifting it's not going to magically add muscle - it helps repair and in turn can help to burn fat. Protein shakes are going to add very little muscle to someone to whom long distance running is the main part of their training.

Still, I'd agree that it's only really be high mileage runners that need it.