Proteins are the essential building blocks of muscles. Without them, it's impossible to build and repair muscles, just like you can't build a wall without bricks. Similarly, protein quality is crucial. For muscle building, it's important that proteins come from animal sources because only they contain all the necessary "essential" amino acids that the body cannot produce on its own.

The body of a trained individual who wants their muscles to grow must be in a positive energy balance. This means that their body needs to intake more energy than it expends. Each individual's energy requirements may vary. The foundation is to ensure that body weight increases appropriately or that the proportion of muscle mass increases compared to fat. This can be measured by weighing or measuring the fat layer. When energy intake is insufficient, we lose weight; when it is excessive, we gain weight. It's necessary to adjust energy intake to ensure that muscles grow while maintaining a reasonable increase in the fat layer. It is very difficult, sometimes even impossible, for muscles to grow while reducing body fat. This is only possible for beginner trainees who have less developed muscles and whose muscles respond better to training. In advanced individuals, the muscles are "accustomed" to intense training, so they no longer respond as well to low-calorie intake and may not respond at all in a stricter diet. That's why bodybuilders or advanced trainees have specific periods of "bulking" (positive energy balance) and "cutting" (negative energy balance). Therefore, it's not possible to maintain a competition-ready physique year-round if the goal is muscle growth.

Sources of Protein:

Meat - all lean types, especially chicken, turkey, beef, lean pork, fish. Dairy products - milk, cheese, yogurts, cultured products. Eggs are also one of the highest quality sources. Plant sources - Legumes such as lentils, peas, beans, and soy contain a fair amount of protein.

However, these plant sources do not contain all essential amino acids, or some are present in minimal and insufficient amounts. This means they need to be combined with other plant sources that contain these missing amino acids - grains. As the primary source for athletes who require a high amount of protein, they are not suitable due to their lower percentage of protein and higher fiber content and less digestible carbohydrates - causing bloating.

How Much Protein to Consume?

To increase muscle mass and promote optimal recovery, a protein intake of 2 to 2.5 grams per kilogram of body weight is considered. This is a relatively high number, and it can be quite challenging to supplement that much protein from regular food, especially if we want to maintain high utilization and avoid digestive issues. Consuming more than a kilogram of meat daily is no easy task for the digestive system.

Protein supplements are perfect for supplementing protein intake. They are concentrated protein mixtures that are easily soluble and digestible. The speed of protein supplementation and their easy digestibility is crucial for athletes. On one hand, when consumed before training, they do not burden the stomach, and after training, they are quickly utilized by exhausted muscles, allowing them to quickly recover and build. It is important to take advantage of the so-called anabolic window after training when muscles are capable of absorbing larger amounts of nutrients than at any other time.

When and Which Protein Supplements to Take?

In our offering, you will find a wide range of protein supplements with varying protein content per 100 grams, different sources (whey, casein, egg, collagen), and different processing methods (WPC, WPI, WPH). Different protein sources and processing methods affect their digestion rate. In general, whey protein (Whey) is the fastest-digesting protein. Even within whey proteins, the digestion rate varies, increasing from whey concentrates (WPC) to whey hydrolysates (WPH).

Egg protein is digested more slowly, and casein, which is a fraction of milk protein remaining after whey separation, is digested the slowest. Depending on the need for rapid protein supplementation, you can choose the type of protein. Whey protein, which is quickly digested, is needed before (half dosage) and after training. For example, 100% Whey Protein or CFM Whey Protein Isolate, which are quickly digested, can be used. Throughout the day, a multi-component protein with both "fast" and "slow" proteins can be used to ensure that muscles receive an adequate amount of protein over a longer period. Before bed, when we want to prevent muscle "starvation" during the night, a slow-digesting protein can be used.

Benefits of Proteins (in brief):

• Promote muscle growth and regeneration.
• Help maintain muscle mass.