How to Take Beef Protein: Dosage, Timing, Duration

Beef protein is an ordinary dietary supplement, so the rules for taking it follow the same principles as for any protein. But there is a nuance: because of the lower leucine content in many isolates, the serving size should be chosen more carefully. Our editorial team gathered practical recommendations based on position statements and research.

First — the daily protein requirement

A protein supplement is not a separate “drug,” but a way to cover part of the daily protein requirement. So the answer to the question “how much protein to drink” begins with calculating how much protein you need in total and how much you already get from food.

The International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), in its 2017 position statement, recommends 1.4–2.0 g of protein per kilogram of body weight per day for most people who train. A meta-analysis by Morton and colleagues (2018) showed that the gain in lean mass from additional protein on average plateaus at about 1.6 g/kg per day, with the upper bound of the confidence interval reaching approximately 2.2 g/kg.

During periods of a calorie deficit, when the goal is to preserve muscle while losing weight, some experts advise aiming for the upper part of the range. For people who train recreationally, lower values are sufficient.

The practical algorithm is simple: assess your usual diet over a few days, count the protein from food, compare it with the target range, and cover only the difference with a supplement. It often turns out that one serving a day is enough or that a supplement is not needed at all.

How much protein is in one serving

Studies with whey and egg protein have shown that in young people muscle protein synthesis after training is maximally stimulated by a serving of about 20–25 g of quality protein, and a further increase gives a small gain. Moore and colleagues (2009) described this dose dependence for egg protein, and for older people the optimal serving is probably higher.

The key variable here is leucine. To trigger muscle protein synthesis it is important to get a certain amount of leucine per intake. Since beef isolate of collagen origin has noticeably less leucine than whey, a larger protein serving may be needed for a similar effect — notionally 30–40 g instead of 20–25 g.

The actual amount of leucine is easy to check from the amino acid profile on the label: multiply the leucine content per 100 g of product by the weight of your serving. If the manufacturer does not provide an amino acid profile, that is already a reason to reconsider your choice.

• Typical manufacturer serving:1 scoop, usually 25–30 g of powder.
• A rational serving for a trained person:25–40 g of protein depending on the amino acid profile and body weight.
• Number of servings per day:1–2, to cover the protein shortfall, the rest — from food.

Schoenfeld and Aragon (2018), in their review, proposed distributing protein across at least four meals a day at roughly 0.4 g/kg each. A protein shake is convenient to use as one of these meals.

When to take it

The concept of an “anabolic window” lasting 30 minutes after training, in its rigid form, has not been confirmed. According to the ISSN position statement on nutrient timing, total daily protein intake is more important, and consumption within a few hours before and after training is a sensible but not critical approach.

Intake after training remains a convenient option, especially if you trained on an empty stomach or your last meal was long ago. Hydrolyzed beef isolate is absorbed quickly, so it is well suited precisely to this time.

Protein intake before bed has been studied mainly with casein: Snijders and colleagues (2015) showed that such intake combined with strength training contributed to a greater gain in muscle mass and strength. Beef hydrolysate is absorbed faster than casein, so for an evening intake it makes sense to combine it with food that slows digestion.

In the morning a protein shake can be part of breakfast if ordinary food provides little protein. Intake on an empty stomach before training causes discomfort in some people, so here it is better to be guided by how you feel.

How to prepare it and combine it with food

Beef isolate dissolves well in water, so most people prepare a shake with it. Water adds no calories and contains no lactose, which is important for those who chose beef protein because of milk intolerance.

To make the intake more complete, the shake can be supplemented with fruit, oatmeal, or nut butter in a blender. This way you get a balanced snack with carbohydrates and fats, which is especially appropriate after long workouts.

Unflavored powder can be added to porridge, pureed soups, baked goods, or pancakes. Moderate heating does not “destroy” the protein in a nutritional sense: the amino acids remain available for absorption, although the texture of the dish may change.

Prepare the shake right before consumption and do not store diluted protein in the warmth — it is a medium for bacterial growth. Keep the dry powder in a tightly closed package in a dry place.

Duration of use and typical mistakes

For a dietary protein there is no concept of a “course” in the sense there is for medicines. It can be consumed for as long as it is needed to cover the protein shortfall in the diet, without mandatory breaks. A break is worth taking if undesirable reactions have appeared or if goals and nutrition have changed.

The most common mistake is to perceive protein as a mandatory basis of the diet and to replace full meals with it. Whole foods provide fiber, trace elements, and vitamins, which are absent or very scarce in an isolate.

The second mistake is to think that more means better. Beyond the requirement, excess protein is simply oxidized as a source of energy, providing no additional muscle gain but increasing the calorie content and cost of the diet.

The third is to ignore the composition. A “30 g” serving of powder may contain significantly less complete protein because of sweeteners, flavorings, and free amino acids. Count the protein and leucine specifically, not the weight of the scoop.

Editorial conclusions

The daily amount of protein is more important than any nuances of timing: for most people who train, the benchmark is 1.4–2.0 g/kg per day, and protein only covers the difference between this figure and the diet.

Because of the lower leucine content in many beef isolates, the serving can be a little larger than for whey — be guided by the amino acid profile.

A convenient time to take it is after training or as one of the even protein intakes throughout the day; there are no mandatory courses and breaks for a dietary protein.

We also recommend reading our articles “What to Combine Beef Protein With,” “Beef Protein: Release Forms and Which to Choose,” and “Side Effects of Beef Protein.”

References

1. Jäger R, Kerksick CM, Campbell BI, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: protein and exercise. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2017;14:20.
2. Kerksick CM, Arent S, Schoenfeld BJ, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: nutrient timing. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2017;14:33.
3. Morton RW, Murphy KT, McKellar SR, et al. A systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression of the effect of protein supplementation on resistance training-induced gains in muscle mass and strength in healthy adults. Br J Sports Med. 2018;52(6):376–384.
4. Schoenfeld BJ, Aragon AA. How much protein can the body use in a single meal for muscle-building? Implications for daily protein distribution. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2018;15:10.
5. Moore DR, Robinson MJ, Fry JL, et al. Ingested protein dose response of muscle and albumin protein synthesis after resistance exercise in young men. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;89(1):161–168.
6. Snijders T, Res PT, Smeets JS, et al. Protein ingestion before sleep increases muscle mass and strength gains during prolonged resistance-type exercise training in healthy young men. J Nutr. 2015;145(6):1178–1184.