Confusion over protein combining...

[tatman6006]

I apologize in advance if this has already been covered in the past. I tried doing a search, but either I'm incredibly forum-challenged and can't figure out how to do a search properly, or I didn't find any results on my question... so here goes...

 

On here, I've been seeing a lot of information about the amino profiles of certain types of proteins such as brown rice protein vs. soy protein vs. pea protein, etc. Some people have recommended the combining of these proteins to have a better "more complete" amino profile when using protein supplements for post-workout purposes.

 

I'm a bit confused on this because I thought that this whole idea was a bit outdated and was introduced by the "Diet for a Small Planet" book (or I believe some reasonable facsimile of that book name). I understand that the idea was later retracted because it was discovered that the body operates an "amino pool" of sorts, and reconfigures proteins as it needs to.

 

Now I'm seeing the protein combining idea showing up in here, and I'm confused as to whether or not this is just bad info, or if there's really something to this whole protein combination thing after all.. Can anyone clear this up for me? I generally use a combination of proteins (I make a brown rice protein shake for post-workout, and eat soy and nut protein throughout the day for the rest of my intake). Is there a good reason for me to be doing this?

 

Color me confused.... Anyone care to offer up their wisdom in this area?

 

Thanks!!

[tatman6006]

My apologies if this should go in the nutrition section. If a mod feels the need to move it, please do

[DaveNoisy]

Hiya,

 

Protein combining is 'true', in the respect that it's optimal to consume enough of all 9 essential amino acids (building blocks of protein) within a 24hr period.

 

Unless you are starving, or eating a severely restricted diet (say, only bagels), protein will really be the least of your concerns...including getting enough essential amino acids. If you're eating enough calories, and it's from varied food sources, you're unlikely to be deprived.

[tatman6006]

Dave, being deprived isn't really what I'm concerned about. I understand that it's hard not to get enough protein on a daily basis if you're eating enough calories.

 

On the other hand, if you're trying to build muscle (which I am), is there more of a benefit to combining types of protein in order to get that "synergy" of aminos? Is your body able to re-combine what it needs to create that synergy, or should I be mixing my rice protein with other proteins such as soy and pea?? Should I just continue supplementing with straight brown rice protein and trying to eat other protein sources to round out my day's worth of protein intake?? That's the question that I was trying to ask in the OP.

 

Thanks!

[Guest]

I don't think that really matters much. Honestly if you don't put on fat easily nothing is gonna make you bigger than eating as much as you possibly can. I was gifted with an ridiculous appetite..maybe more so than natural strength which allowed me to train extra hard without any time to recover. Eating as much as I could let me do that...however eating as much as I could was 3-4 times as much as most people can stomach.

[_raVen_]

My vote goes to no . I say, you do not need to combine all those. The reason you may want to, however, is to not eat one single food so much, so often. It's the same with most foods in that you should be eating a variety, not just a handful of foods.

 

So, how about eating a variety of leafy greens, a variety of nuts, and a variety of seeds too? Now that would be giving you a lot of fatty acids and protein, not to mention, vitamins, minerals, micronutrients, phytochemicals and macronutrients. .

[DV]

This topic is too complicated, IMO, and too late (for me to be commenting on in any depth tonight). For Bodybuilders it's a whole different situation as compared to someone just looking to maintain their current lean muscle mass.

 

Even omnis need to be worried about protein combining if we take into consideration the need for branched chain amino acids, etc.. If there was truly a food combination (omni or vegan) that was optimal for bodybuilding then there would not be all the supplement studies (and results!) happening at this time.

[Guest]

If the tests were all that effective and the results were extremely conclusive...people wouldn't be wasting their time gaining mass on "imperfect" diets. Many people can gain on eating pretty much anything with very little training...some gain nothing on eating what is deemed as optimal no matter how hard they work.

[Odidnetne]

I don't think it's even worth that much focus or worry if you're trying to put on muscle. You're going to probably be eating the foods people suggest to combine anyway if you're trying to put on weight (rice & beans, oats, soy products, hemp products), which are "high quality sources of protein" to begin with. As long as you're eating the heavier foods which most recommend to put on the weight in the first place, you're doing all right.