Published Sun March 4th, 2024

Up the Protein Intake for Enhanced Bodybuilders!

“Yeah you know, I am sauced up, so I need 400g protein per day.”

“All the biggest guys ate massive amounts of protein, that’s evidence enough for me.”

I have heard it all and done it all coming up through the pro ranks. Personally, I have done the massive protein intake of 400+g and I have gone low as 1g per lb of body weight. As bodybuilders we are not ones to ever do too little of something. Whether it is more protein, more training, or even more PEDs. But there is usually a sweet spot for most things, so we don’t under do it and lack progress nor over do it and impede our health.

I really wanted to know do you actually need more protein if you are enhanced?

Unfortunately, that study of comparing varying protein intakes amongst PED users does not exist. I think the modern day research ethics board is not going to approve. So, we have to make do with the research we have available.

Digging through some old studies on supra-physiological doses of testosterone and rate of muscle gain in relation to protein intake. Bhasin 1996, took 40 subjects and divided them into 4 groups 600mg testosterone with resistance training and without, or control group with resistance training or without.

The protein intake was set at 1.5g/kg/BW. This is low for bodybuilding standards.

So these 80kg were consuming 128g of protein on average and in a calorie surplus (36kcal/kg). The only group to have a significant increase in fat free mass was the testosterone and resistance training group, they gained ~13lbs of muscle in 10 weeks.

Over 1lb of muscle per week on suboptimal protein and IMO suboptimal training as well.

Next Bhasin in 2001, then looked at the dose response of testosterone in 61 men, separating them by 25, 50, 125, 300, and 600mg dose for 20 weeks.

No weight training was conducted, protein intake set at 1.2 g/kg/BW. The 125, 300, and 600mg increased fat free mass by 7,11, and 18lbs respectively.

Again 600mg of testosterone adding nearly 1lb of muscle per week on suboptimal protein and NO weight training!

So, what are you saying? Less protein goes farther with supraphysiological doses?

Yes!

What we see is an increase in protein synthetic efficiency (Church, 2019). Testosterone can increase protein synthesis rates and pull amino acids from protein breakdown to be incorporated into tissue. So, we see an improved ratio of protein synthesis to protein breakdown i.e. your same protein dose becomes more effective.

Think about who would really requires the most protein?

It would be a guy growing at the fastest muscle gain rate possible right. Like the guys in the study gaining 18 lbs of muscle in 20 weeks! So, a IFBB Pro that is only adding on 5lbs of muscle in an entire year needs more protein? That doesn’t make sense, he simply is not adding near the amount of protein at the same rate. Now, keep in context as body weight increases protein intake will scale up as well.

The question to make is if the guys in the study above had another group that doubled the protein intake would they have grown more? Great question to ask. I can only speak anecdotally that even those consuming excessive protein intakes we still aren’t seeing anyone repeatedly gain 20lbs of muscle per year.

Now, I am by no means a minimalist and want to make sure we all are covered for protein needs. Current science based recommendations range from 0.8-1.4g/lb of body weight per day (Helms, 2014). Then also speaking from in the trench coaching experience many bodybuilders fall within this range and are some of the largest guys in the sport. For myself, this current 2023 offseason I have gone from 220 in the pic on the left to 254lbs, while using 1.3g per lb of protein. This is also counting protein from all macros not just meat sources.

So, natty or enhanced, I can’t justify changing the protein recommendations as 1-1.5g/lb of body weight will cover most needs. This is highly likely going to fully cover all needs whether you are a newbie, natty or enhanced bodybuilder.

If you want evidence based and experience driven coaching education. J3 University is the place to up your coaching game. Join one of our courses for more deep dives into Nutrition, Training, and all things Physique Enhancement.

John Jewett

J3U Founder & Educator

MS, RD, J3U-PC

References

Bhasin et al. The Effects of Supraphysiologic Doses of Testosterone on Muscle Size and Strength in Normal Men. N Engl J Med. 1996 July; 335:1-7.

Bhasin et al. Testosterone dose-response relationships in healthy young men Am J Physiol Endocrine Metab. 2001 Dec; 281 (6):E1172-81.

Church DD, Pasiakos SM, Wolfe RR, Ferrando AA. Acute testosterone administration does not affect muscle anabolism. Nutr Metab (Lond). 2019 Aug 22;16:56. doi: 10.1186/s12986-019-0385-0. PMID: 31440303; PMCID: PMC6704643.

Helms ER, Aragon AA, Fitschen PJ. Evidence-based recommendations for natural bodybuilding contest preparation: nutrition and supplementation. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2014 May 12;11:20. doi: 10.1186/1550-2783-11-20. PMID: 24864135; PMCID: PMC4033492.

In this episode, John and Cory cover multiple questions surrounding the female athlete and athlete process following the launch of the female module on J3U.

Timestamps: 

Intro 00:20

Safety & Use of AI’s 11:20

Diuretic Use on Prep: Is it Bad? 32:24

PED Use as a Beginner 53:39

Closing Thoughts 1:11:05

In this episode, John & Luke cover a multitude of questions that are often looked over when dealing with female clients and how by asking them, we can take our female athletes to the next level.

Timestamps:

Intro 00:20

Birth Control 07:20

Expectation Management 18:59

Developing Athlete Psychology 25:09

Outro 38:45

In this episode, John and Luke touch on the balance between movement execution and the effort required in the gym to make real progress. 

Thanks for listening!

Timestamps: 

Intro 00:20

Movement Specificity 08:14

Programming for the individual 17:20

Teaching Effort 22:01

Different training camps in the industry 32:00

Main Takeaways 37:28

In this episode, John and Luke sit down to discuss the challenges that plague females headed into offseason, what can hold them back, and how to structure a successful offseason.

To dive much deeper into everything surrounding optimizing a successful offseason and prep for females, be sure to check out the Female Module coming to J3U on December 13th.

Timestamps: 00:20

Intro 00:59

Post Show Issues for Females

16:30 Training Needs in Offseason

23:20 Overdoing Cardio

28:45 The importance of Structure in the Offseason

31:19 Upholding Your Standards

33:30 The Dangers of Social Media

36:24 Remember Your Why

39:38 Closing Thoughts / Female Module on J3U

In this episode of J3 University, Luke and I discuss why I quit prep this year! I discuss
my ultimate goals and give insight into how we should all approach seeing out the best
version of ourselves. I also map out the contest prep timeline and what you can plan for in
2023 for J3U and bodybuilding.

Timestamps
John Quits 212, is the Division fading?- 00:00:14
Does size matter? – 00:02:59
Johns ‘WHY’ – 00:05:10
Seeing out the best version of yourself – 00:10:22
What will this offseason look like? – 00:14:18
Changes made transitioning out of prep – 00:18:07
Wrap Up – 00:23:40

Episode Available On: 
YouTube, Spotify, Google Play, iTunes

In this episode of J3 University, Luke and I are joined by coach and educator Sam Miller. Luke and I deal with many GI issues in clients and what many don’t know is this can impact your thyroid and hormone levels causing a suboptimal contest prep condition. Sam take us through how these
problems arise, how to assess for them, and what are strategies to use to resolve them.

Timestamps
Introducing Sam Miller, Metabolism School- 00:00:15
The initial client assessment – 00:04:20
How often do you see true Gut/Thyroid Issues? – 00:08:22
The ‘Perfect Storm’ Client Case – 00:16:22
Tracking Labwork for the female competitor – 00:20:59
Stress, Gut Health and Thyroid – 00:25:14
Trouble Shooting micronutrient deficiencies – 00:28:55
Managing Sleep and TDEE – 00:39:35
Advanced testing for gut issues – 00:49:09
Where to find Sam – 00:58:48

Instagram- @sammillerscience
@metabolismschool
Website- www.sammillersciecne.com
Podcast- Sam Miller Science

Episode Available On:
YouTube, Spotify, Google Play, iTunes

In this episode of J3 University, Luke and I discuss maintaining fertility in bodybuilding. Moving into the realm of enhanced fertility can be sacrificed. We cover what protocols might be in place to preserve fertility and make decisions based on your goals and priorities. PCT comes into discussion and our thoughts might go against the grain.

Timestamps
Deploying drugs, an HRT perspective- 00:01:16
HCG, what’s the idea behind it? – 00:03:55
Restoring Fertility in steroid users- 00:06:04
Using HCG when on cycle- 00:11:55
Prioritizing Fertility OR Bodybuilding, you can’t have both- 00:15:17
Bringing natural test levels back? – 00:19:28
PCT timeline, The Haarlem Study – 00:24:47
Having a conversation with your doctor – 00:27:09
AI and SERMS – 00:29:35

On this Episode Luke speaks on his trip to the United Kingdom and bodybuilding culture. We compare
and contrast the UK vs US culture towards bodybuilding and dive into what makes the UK thrive for
bodybuilding. Luke discuss training, nutrition, PED differences and what his takeaway is from the trip.

Timestamps
What is the bodybuilding environment like in the UK? – 00:02:06
Cultural influences in UK bodybuilding- 00:05:30
Culture of PED usage- 00:09:18
UK food and hospitality- 00:14:46
Environment and Influence in the gym- 00:19:11
UK and US differences- 00:24:33
Work Culture- 00:32:12

Episode Available On: YouTube, Spotify, Google Play, iTunes
Like, Share, Subscribe
LINK in BIO
J3University

In this episode of J3 University, Luke and I discuss fat loss agent deployment in enhanced
competition. We cover each potential compound that is an option and when this would be put
in place on prep, with some guidelines on dosing.

Timestamps
Growth Hormone- 00:00:47
Injectable L-Carnitine- 00:05:26
Dosing for Growth Hormone and Injectable L-Carnitine- 00:09:19
Thyroid Deployment- 00:11:57
Clenbuterol- 00:22:10
Dosing for Clenbuterol- 00:28:42
Yohimbine HCL- 00:31:41
Anabolics- 00:39:54
Cardio- 00:43:34

Episode Available On: YouTube, Spotify, Google Play, iTunes
Like, Share, Subscribe
LINK in BIO
J3University