The Protein Book – Lyle Mcdonald

Of all the topics in sports nutrition, perhaps none raises more questions (or debate) than that over protein for athletes.

How much protein should I consume every day? Is there a best dietary protein for athletes? When should I consume protein during the day? Or around my training sessions. All of these questions and more come up constantly and there is endless confusion and controversy over the topic.

Those questions are all context dependent. The type of sport, the goals of the athletes and the specifics of the situation all determine the answer. There can’t be any single answer that is correct for all athletes, situations and goals.

Unfortunately, many who write about dietary protein tend to give exactly those types of single answers. It doesn’t matter if it’s a sprinter, bodybuilder, powerlifter or distance runner….everyone is given the same recommendations.

With The Protein Book: A Complete Guide for Coaches and Athletes, I set out to take a comprehensive look at the issue. To examine all of the research on the topic so that I could provide science and evidence based answers to those questions.

Topics Discussed in The Protein Book

The first half of the book addresses basic protein metabolism and physiology. I provide some basic definitions and background first. Then I look at topics of protein digestion, absorption and metabolism. Researchers have debated protein requirements for athletes for decades and I address both sides of the debate. The final general physiology chapters address protein quality and amino acid requirements.

From there I discuss the long-debated topic of protein requirements, protein quality and individual amino acid requirements. This is followed by a look at meal frequency and nutrient timing around workouts. Protein controversies are addressed before I examine whole food proteins, protein powders and protein based supplements.

Finally I show athletes how to put all of this information together for specific athletic situations and goals. With over 200 pages of information and 500+ scientific references, the book leaves no question about dietary protein for athletes unanswered.

Feedback on The Protein Book

The Protein Book not only covers everything you can possibly imagine regarding protein, but it has easily the best nutrient timing information I’ve ever come across – it alone is worth the price of the book. One thing that separates this book from others is that it takes the research data on each topic, and synthesizes it into realistic concrete applications that can be put to work immediately. Although it’s only recently released, this book is already one of the most used references in my library.

Alan Aragon – Author of Girth Control: The Science of Fat Loss and Muscle Gain

Don’t let the name fool you, The Protein Book is not only the most comprehensive resource on what protein is, how much and what type is optimal, while dispelling the most common myths – it also goes into sound dietary habits for losing weight safely or gaining lean muscular weight without excessive fat gain.

There is no other book on the market which will give you the answers you want to every possible question about protein, in simple-to-understand language and with an extensive list of the most recent and relevant studies pertaining to human nutrition. This book should be your chosen reference, and there is a good reason I keep it right on top of the stack of books next to my computer, when writing nutrition articles and setting up diets for advanced lifters and athletes in various sports.

Borge (aka Blade) – Norway