The latest fad in
American society is the protein diet, and the belief that protein intake is the key to
everything from weight control to race performance. I believe this may be promoting the
power of protein a little too far. But protein is a necessity of our diets, as it is the
building material for our cells, muscles, and tissues. Eating more high quality protein
will improve your running and overall health.
Protein constitutes approximately one-fifth of our body weight and is one of our body's
most versatile constituents. Their are thousands of proteins, each protein differentiated
by a unique amino acid structure that dictates the task it performs. For example, we have
muscle proteins that help power us through our runs, immune proteins to help us fight off
invading bacteria and viruses, and red blood cell proteins to carry oxygen to our tired
legs. Proteins have very short lives though, in that they break apart into their
individual amino acids very quickly. Thus it is necessary to manufacture millions of new
proteins daily to replenish our damaged and used proteins.
The RDA for protein is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight daily. But as runners we
require more protein for two reasons. First, after a tough workout our muscle fibers will
have small tears, called micro tears, and we require protein to repair these tears.
Additionally, if you strength train, this will also increase your required protein intake
as you will need to repair additional micro tears and support an increased muscle bulk.
Second, running alters the protein recycling balance, as some amino acids are often
utilized as energy when our glycogen stores run low, instead of serving as a building
material for our cells, muscles, and tissues of the body. This can often boost your
protein needs by 25 percent or more. A safe recommendation is to get between 0.50 and 0.72
grams per pound of body weight, depending on your individual metabolism and energy
expenditure.
