Many people look to protein shakes to help them achieve their desired body, and when used well, the protein shakes work. Following from using the protein shake well, you may wonder how many protein shakes you need to drink daily to gain weight. Well, this article will look into the appropriate amount of protein shakes to help you determine how many protein shakes you need to drink per day.
How do protein shakes work?
Protein shakes raise your body’s protein bank for muscle building as proteins comprise amino acids, which are your muscle’s building blocks. Your body creates amino acids; however, some vital amino acids necessary for muscle growth only originate from meals like meat, beans, nuts, and soy. Because protein shakes have essential amino acids that your body may not produce, you give your body the necessary materials to grow muscles as you take them. Research has shown that protein supplements significantly develop muscle strength and size in healthy persons who undergo resistance exercise training like lifting weights.
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How many protein shakes do you need to drink daily?
After understanding how protein shakes work, we can now figure out how many you need to drink daily to bulk up. The number of protein shakes you require daily is based on your protein and calorie requirements, typical daily nutrition intake, and health goals. Likewise, your protein and calorie requirements vary depending on several factors. These include your body weight, height, age, sex, and activity level.
As a rule of thumb, you should increase your calorie intake by about 300-500 calories daily for every pound per week you want to gain if you want the extra weight. Furthermore, the minimum protein requirement for humans with regular activities is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight. However, as a weightlifter, your protein requirement climbs as more protein will facilitate muscle repair and development. As a result, your daily protein requirement climbs to approximately 1-1.2 grams per kilogram.
💡 Quick Tip: You can increase your overall strength by starting small and using simple, portable gym equipment. I recommend the Hex Dumbells for this, as they are cheap and easy to use for beginners
Hex Dumbbells
A regular protein shake gives you about 20-30 grams of protein and roughly 120-160 calories per serving. Doing the maths, if you need about 300-500 calories per day to gain a pound in a week, 2-3 daily protein shakes should offer the additional necessary calories and protein to gain weight.
Other tips to help you gain weight with protein shakes
Here are some additional tips that can help you on your weight gain journey with protein shakes:
Avoid overdoing it
Consuming too many protein shakes daily in addition to a balanced diet may be counterproductive and potentially dangerous. Your body can only utilize a specific amount of protein, depending on your diet, gender, and activity level. As a result, it stores the excess calories as fat.
Furthermore, your liver also has to process the protein you consume so that overeating protein can overwork it. An overworked liver becomes unable to function correctly and can no longer remove toxins, leaving excess insulin, amino acids, and ammonia in your body.
Eat well
Eating is essential to gaining weight as it provides your body with the necessary energy to perform energy-intensive activities like weightlifting. You should make sure your meals are nutritious and well-balanced so that you can reap the best benefits from your meals. It is also vital that you eat at the proper periods daily. Starting your day with a nutritious and balanced meal replenishes your blood sugar, helping your body power your muscles and brain.
Avoid substituting your meals for shakes
Protein shakes are an excellent occasional meal alternative. Because of this, you can fall back on them if you are occupied and can not prepare a proper meal. If you intend to use your protein shake as a meal substitute, you should ensure it comprises vegetables, healthy fat, a serving of fruit, and some scoops of protein powder. If you intend to use protein shakes as meal supplements, I recommend the Premier Protein Shake, Caramel, 11.5 Fl. Oz.
However, despite the fact that protein shakes can be meal substitutes, this capacity still needs to be improved, and you should not rely on them as substitutes for a traditional meal. They simply complement regular meals. You can also buy and use whey protein, and I recommend the Isagenix IsaLean Shake Packets. You should ensure that your meals also contain protein.
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Use them after your workout sessions
The post-workout period is a small window that facilitates maximums benefits if you consume the necessary nutrients. Because of this, this post-workout window is a great time to get in your protein shake, especially if you can not make time for a regular meal. You may require a bottle to carry your protein shake to the gym, and I recommend the BlenderBottle Shaker Bottle Pro Series.
Rest well
Resting well is also vital to converting the protein you take from the shakes into lean muscle mass. Because resting well is necessary for your body to repair and build muscles, you need to ensure you practice healthy sleeping habits. You require about eight hours of sleep daily to give your body enough time to develop your muscles.
💡 Quick Tip: Besides resting well and increasing your calorie intake, you need to work out. I recommend the Omni Rack Builder as it can help you begin your weightlifting journey with many exercises in one spot.
Omni Rack Builder
Be consistent
Consistency is necessary if you want to transform the calories and proteins into muscles. As you consistently train your muscles, your body adapts to new stress levels, making you stronger. However, your body also tends to forget after a while and returns to the strength level that is instead necessary to go through a regular non-weightlifting day—because of this, increasing your PR in the leg press may be challenging if your weightlifting approach is irregular.