Protein and muscle gain

[Meshounah]

First post here. been creeping for awhile now. I'm a 16, high school junior, and have been a Vegan for 2 years. about 5'7 121lbs.

Anyways onto my question. For muscle development, what is a good amount of protein. I know most non-vegans swear by the 1-1.5 gram/pound rule. But that seems too much. Can someone enlighten me?

http://realisticflightsimulators.blogspot.com/

[vegimator]

There are many threads about that already. Most people agree that aiming for around 1 gram per pound is best for putting on muscle. A little less than that is probably okay. Much less is needed if you're just trying to maintain muscle mass (but I'm assuming that's not you).

I'm guessing from your stats that you're a hard gainer and will need to be eating a lot of high calorie meals to gain weight. Just making sure that there's a solid protein source in each meal should get you to your target but if you still have trouble, that's where protein powders can come in handy.

[Meshounah]

Thanks for the quick reply. I'll most likely be buying some some of protein powder soon. Right now im thinking Vega Sport Performance Protein, does anyone have any other suggestions?

[Gulliver]

http://www.myprotein.co.uk do rice, pea, soya and hemp protein powders at non-shocking prices. They also have B12 tablets. They also have a vegan filter so you can seek out vegan products easily. Use code MP135271 to get a 5% discount on your first order.

I use a ½ pea, ½ rice mix; I've found better results than with soy.

[muchluv]

It'll probably be better for him to find an American supplier.

[vegimator]

Trueprotein.com

Use the custom mix function. 70/30 pea/rice protein yields the best AA ratio and only costs about $6 a pound.

[thestoatyone]

http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/73/2/767

1.6g-2g per kilo bodyweight should do it. You can achieve that easy with food (bombay mix is favourite; do you guys get that in the states?) Your gunna need the extra calories too if you really wanna grow.

[Meshounah]

Thanks for the replies, and especially Vegimator, already got my order in

[XkillerX]

it's not just about the protein. You have to eat like a rhino to get big. When i started i quickly got very strong but did not get big. The aussie guys, on the other hand...

[baldy]

Hey Meshounah welcome to the board!
What is your training program like, that is probably more important than the exact amount of protein you consume.

You are also still growing so should be eating tons. I know when I was 17 I just wanted to eat and sleep all the time because I was growing so fast.

[Meshounah]

I have a very liberal training program so to speak. Of my two gym classes in school. One consists of general aerobic activities. The other is a body conditioning class.

*2 miles daily running
*2 miles cycling
*30 mins general aerobic activities
*45 mins gym work out(curls, leg lifts, lateral raise, etc)

I don't really keep track of # of reps. I just follow the "push till it burns" motto and just keep myself busy for the duration of the class.

[Phil.]

You should try to go to your limits if you want to build mass. Better do few compound exercises and really push yourself than doing lots of "any" exercises and stop when its getting exhausting.

[Alistar]

I'm assuming you're a guy? Just remember you're only 16. Can be quite hard to bulk up at that age depending if you're and early or late developer. Considering that so much energy goes toward growth etc. 18 or 19 it gets a lot easier. I only started growing at 15 and ate meat back then. Mountains of cheese, milk and protein powders did nothing it seemed at the time, to make me any bigger.

But I've no interest in bulking up these days. I waste my time biking around in circles instead!

[powerlifer]

Try to focus more on the compound movements such as bench press, over head press, squats, deadlifts, bent over rows. These should be the bulk of your program. You can add in the supplementary lifts such as chin/pull-ups, dips and so on.

1 gram - 1.5g of protein is good rule for bulking. At that age i would say if he was consuming excess calories bulking would be a doddle due to the amount of testosterone he'd be outputting.

[quote="powerlifer"]Try to focus more on the compound movements such as bench press, over head press, squats, deadlifts, bent over rows. These should be the bulk of your program. You can add in the supplementary lifts such as chin/pull-ups, dips and so on.

1 gram - 1.5g of protein is good rule for bulking. At that age i would say if he was consuming excess calories bulking would be a doddle due to the amount of testosterone he'd be outputting.