Whey Proten for weight loss - Yay or Nay?

gaillimh

I am a 36 year old male who would like to ideally lose a bit of weight.
I am not hugely overweight or anything like that - have been a regular footballer since I was a young lad but have not played much over the last 18 months and I've noticed that I've put on probably about 10 pounds in that time.
Around my belly especially I have noticed I'm carrying a bit more than I'd like (and seem to have the start of some unwanted love handles at my sides).
I'm just at the stage now where I'm uncomfortable with the extra meat on my belly and I want to try and get rid of it.

I'm about 5'8" or 5'9" I'm not 100% sure and my weight is currently 156 lbs.
I have just started back in the gym and would hope to go 3 times a week.
I will go back gaa training when it starts up again next month which will be twice a week initially.in the meantime I play astro once a week.aside from that I'm just really doing bits and pieces of cardio - maybe a 5k walk/jog combo once or twice a week.

So...my question is - would taking whey protein immediately before and after my gym workouts be of any benefit to me in trying to lose weight/tone up my belly flab?
Or would it just cause me to put on more weight?
I've read conflicting articles re whey protein online.

I'm pretty new to weight training - so the weights I'm using would probably be light in comparison to most regular gym goers.I will hopefully build this up over time.I wouldn't be naturally the strongest physically I must admit.
Generally my gym sessions so far would consist of sets of bench press,deadlifts,ab roll outs,bicep curls,one arm rows & push presses.All done using dumb bells.

So what do ye think - would whey protein be of benefit to me or should I steer clear?
Thanks in advance for any help and apologies for the long winded nature of the post.

TimeToShine

Yes. Protein promotes muscle mass retention, a higher ratio of protein in your diet means you'll maintain more muscle and if your calorie intake is in check you'll lose the flab. Use them as a substitute for snacks as opposed to drinking them on top of what you normally eat. Remember, eating less calories than you expend is the key here, and getting as much protein as you can from these calories is the best way to tone up/lose fat. Ramp up the weights you're lifting every week as well for best results. Whether or not it matters when you take the protein is debatable, you should aim to maintain a consistent diet all week, the anabolic window (protein before/after workouts) has not been clinically proven to be beneficial, but obviously it's better than snacking on something else.

TL;DR Lift weights, increase protein intake, keep calorie intake relatively low and you'll be flying.

shamrock55

Im currently about 185lbs and 6ft, i would be more into running and cycling more then weights, i would say i have pretty good muscle deffinition in my arms and legs, i certainly wouldnt call myself fat but i do like many others have a bit of a belly, my question is if i am doing mostly cardio workouts would taking whey protein be of any benefit to me or do you have to do weights to get any benefit from it, i just want to tone up a bit rather then turn into the hulk:D

colossus-x

Well, it depends. It depends on what your doing overall. Taking protein drinks before and after your workouts is promoted by the supplement industry as some kind of 'magic' muscle building formula. It's noting of the kind, it's liquid food that's all that has calories just like food. Which your trying to cut down on , no ?

I recommend instead to eat high protein real food meals thoughout the day. 4 to 6, whatever suits you. The high protein meal will help you to feel full quicker and for longer , much better than starchy carbohydratey foods. Google "bodybuilding meals" or whatever, I guess you already know whats high in protein. There is absolutely no problem with substituting some of your meals with a protein shake but there is absolutely no special value doing this in your meal directly before and directly after your workout. You will find people who will disagree about this all the time. I take whey protein after my oats in the morning as I don't really like eggs and usually one more something throughout the day , but not as a rule - just for convenience.

If your hell bent on doing the protein drink before and after your workout then just remember to add the calorific content of them to your daily total. You'll obviously have to eat less real food during the day to cancel the extra calorific content out.