Many people who are actively involved in sports come to a threshold of physical development when normal nutrition no longer provides the required amount of vitamins and active substances needed to build the body. In order to cross this threshold, a series of proteins and various nutritional supplements were created, which, by and large, are simply a concentrated portion of the necessary substances.
There is an opinion that, since all these substances are created chemically, they contribute little to the development of the body, sometimes taking a significant toll, for example, an overloaded liver. Therefore, athletes have come to the conclusion that preparing protein at home, which is chemical-free and under personal control, will bring more benefits to their body than the same protein purchased at a sports nutrition store. Moreover, a pretty good cocktail that anyone can make at home will cost the same as a fairly cheap one in a store.
Scientists have found that the amount of protein in the daily diet should be 1 gram. per 1 kg of total human weight. And with a fairly active life or exercise with weights, the limit should increase to 1.2 g. protein, so you will promote stable muscle growth and strength building.
Overcoming this limit, as scientists say, can negatively affect health, because the intestines absorb only a certain amount of useful substances in the form of amino acids and vitamins; when processing amounts exceeding the limit, quite dangerous carcinogenic substances begin to be released in the human body. This fact has also been proven and does not need further discussion, so when preparing to prepare protein at home, you need to take this information into account.
There are several ways to create a great protein shake.
The first method is more popular, this is creating protein shakes without adding protein powder or any other mixtures.
This method is used by experienced athletes. They do not create protein from conventional products, but enhance regular whey protein with homemade products for better absorption. Whey protein cannot be prepared at home, because it is an ideal combination of essential amino acids and other beneficial substances.
In this article we will tell you how to prepare both options.
When to use protein?
As you already understand, athletes use protein to grow muscles. But there are so-called “protein windows” when protein is absorbed best. So, let's figure out when protein use will be most effective.
In the morning
At night, food does not enter the human body, which leads to an increase in the catabolic background under any load. Even if you don’t train in the morning, this background is still high.
The result of this is muscle destruction. If you drink protein at this time, this reaction will slow down significantly.
Before training
Before starting it, it is necessary to fill the body with useful substances that can fill the muscles with energy. Of course, you don’t need to eat a lot before training, because then it’s very difficult to exercise.
During the day
You should try to eat every 2-3 hours. Very often such regular nutrition is simply impossible. If you know for sure that you won’t be able to eat on time, then take a protein shake with you.
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In the evening
Even in a calm state, muscles need a lot of energy. In the evening, solid food is poorly absorbed by the body, so protein shakes will come to the rescue again.
Cooking protein at home
Ingredients:
- Wheat. But we need it not ordinary, but sprouted, with sprouts of 1 or 2 millimeters - during this period the grains release a large amount of vitamins and amino acids. In order to germinate wheat seeds at home, you need to perform some manipulations with ordinary wheat. First you need to prepare the wheat grain. After thorough rinsing, pour it into a jar two or three times. Fill it with cool boiled water, but just enough to cover the grains. Leave it overnight.
- The second ingredient we need to prepare protein is low-fat cottage cheese. It contains about 20% protein and a little fat, which are perfectly absorbed by the body.
- Powdered milk. There are two types of it: whole and low-fat, and the second version has more protein and healthy carbohydrates, which are also perfectly absorbed by the human body. But if you don’t have it, regular whole meat will do, since you can’t buy low-fat milk everywhere.
- Regular drinking milk. It will act as a universal solution for us.
- Egg powder. It contains about half protein, but also quite a bit of fat and carbohydrates.
- Soy protein concentrate. The most protein-rich product is approximately 60%, and very little fat. In consumer markets you can find such a product called “Soyushka”.
- Peanut. It contains a lot of vegetable protein and fats, which are also necessary for the body, just like animal ones.
In the morning, remove the lid, wrap the jar in double-layer gauze and drain the water. For convenience, it is better to strengthen the gauze with an elastic band and not remove it yet. Place the jar with drained water at an angle of 45°. In the evening, pour cool boiled water into the jar, immediately drain it and place the jar in its original position at 45°. By morning the grains sprout. We remove the gauze, wash the wheat two or three times, and it is ready.
What is protein?
Protein helps replenish the balance of proteins and carbohydrates lost during physical activity. Its regular use helps to increase mass and give the male half of athletes a beautiful muscle definition.
Thus, isolate can replace a meal and saturate the body with the necessary protein compounds when there is no time to prepare lunch after training. In addition, the absorption of proteins from food occurs much later than 15 minutes, during which, after playing sports, the body greatly needs calories to gain weight.
Cooking method
It’s clear that we won’t throw it all into one big bowl and eat it. It is necessary to break all these products into components for complete sports nutrition.
- Porridge. You need to make porridge from wheat or cottage cheese, fill it with regular milk and sprinkle with peanuts. A serving should be no more than 100-200 grams, and it should contain 50 grams of protein. For example, 100 grams. wheat, add 50 grams of skim milk, and pour regular milk on top, about 200 grams. Mix everything thoroughly, you can add honey or chopped banana to taste. Don’t forget – it is not recommended to overdo it with portions.
- Cocktail. In this case, we mix soy concentrate and egg powder with milk; you can also add condensed milk or honey to taste. This cocktail should be drunk once a day, immediately after training. On a day that you do not dedicate to training, it is also recommended to drink it once a day for better muscle growth.
Wheat must be chewed thoroughly, otherwise you will not get the vitamins and substances you need from it, and when mixed in the mouth with saliva, you get very healthy wheat milk. Eating this porridge once a day will be quite useful; if necessary and desired, of course, you can make it more.
As you can see, protein at home is not at all difficult to prepare for a person who has decided to seriously start building his body. In addition to the porridge and protein shake described above, you can resort to alternative options for creating protein at home.
With juice
Before you make homemade muscle protein with juice, you should pay attention to the fact that it is recommended to use only citrus drinks for its preparation. You need to combine 200 g of low-fat cottage cheese, half a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, one persimmon, half a glass of low-fat kefir. If someone does not like persimmon, then this fruit can be replaced with a simple banana. A ready-made protein shake can not only saturate a person with proteins, but also give the body a large amount of vitamins, a boost of energy and vigor for the whole day.
Alternative Protein Recipes
Now we will try to prepare protein drinks at home, resorting to several other popular recipes. To implement them, we will need a shaker, mixer or blender to mix all the ingredients until smooth. Here are a couple of recipes provided by professional athletes:
Recipe No. 1. Ingredients:
- Skim milk - 500 ml;
- Low-fat cottage cheese - 200 grams;
- Boiled eggs – 2 pieces;
- 2 bananas;
- Jam - 200 grams
We peel the boiled eggs, separate the yolks from them and cut them into small pieces. The bananas are also finely chopped, then all the ingredients are loaded into a mixer and mixed until smooth. Take immediately after or without training once daily.
Recipe No. 2. Ingredients:
- low-fat cottage cheese (if you don’t have it, you can use regular cottage cheese) - 250 grams;
- low-fat kefir (if you don’t have it, you can use regular kefir, but not too fatty) 500 ml;
- jam - 200 grams;
- 2 bananas.
Everything is the same as last time, only without eggs - finely chop the banana and pour all the ingredients into the mixer.
Egg protein shake
You can easily make a muscle-building drink with your own hands using chicken eggs that are available to everyone. To prepare the cocktail, in addition to 2 eggs you will need 2 glasses of milk, half a glass of sugar and a packet of vanillin. To prepare it you will need to do the following:
- Add half a bag of vanillin to the mashed yolks and 50 grams of sugar.
- Beat the egg white with the remaining sugar.
- Yolks are added to milk.
- The foam whipped from the egg whites is poured onto the top of the container with the liquid and lightly mixed.
For athletes of any gender, the amount and method of application of a high-protein mixture should be calculated individually, depending on the intensity of physical activity and other characteristics of the body.
Making a whey protein shake at home
You don't need a lot of time or ingredients to make a delicious shake using whey protein. To do this, it is enough to pour milk into the whey, throw in chopped bananas and mix everything thoroughly in a mixer or blender. You can add cottage cheese, egg whey or soy whey, the main thing is not to overdo it with the proportions, because it is very important to remember - do not overload the body with excess protein foods, remember that the body also needs carbohydrates and fats in the required quantities.
