Research
Macro partitioning
Carbohydrate co-ingestion with protein does not enhance muscle protein synthesis or muscle hypertrophy beyond protein ingestion alone, although it may aid in glycogen restoration.
You do not need to eat carbohydrates with your post-workout protein to build muscle. Protein alone is sufficient for muscle growth. Only add carbohydrates if you need to restore energy levels (glycogen) for your next training session.
GoodRefutesHIGH confidence
Thus, carbohydrate coingestion with protein does not enhance the anabolic effect of protein and does not contribute to a greater hypertrophic potential following resistance exercise.
Why this rating
Based on meta-analysis and specific trials (Staples et al.) showing no added anabolic benefit.
Source
Recent Perspectives Regarding the Role of Dietary Protein for the Promotion of Muscle Hypertrophy with Resistance Exercise Training
Tanner Stokes et al. · Nutrients · 2018
DOI 10.3390/nu10020180
narrative_reviewCited 254×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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- Consuming approximately 20 g of high-quality protein (or ~0.24–0.30 g/kg body mass) per meal maximally stimulates muscle protein synthesis (MPS) in young adults, with doses exceeding this threshold (e.g., 40 g) providing negligible additional MPS stimulation.Good
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Related findings · Macro partitioning
- Total daily protein intake of 1.6 g/kg/day is sufficient for maximizing resistance training-induced muscle gains, with an upper confidence interval of 2.2 g/kg/day.Strong
- Resistance exercise training combined with sufficient dietary protein intake acts synergistically to maximize skeletal muscle hypertrophy, with protein intake saturating around 1.6 g/kg/day for general populations and potentially requiring 2.0-2.2 g/kg/day for resistance-trained individuals.Strong
- Trans fats should be completely eliminated from the diet, as they increase LDL cholesterol, decrease HDL cholesterol, and are directly associated with increased coronary risk.Strong
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