Research
Macro partitioning
Post-exercise ingestion of high-quality protein (20–40 g) within 2 hours maximally stimulates muscle protein synthesis and supports strength and body composition improvements.
Eat 20-40 grams of high-quality protein (like whey, eggs, or meat) within two hours after your workout. Spread your protein intake evenly throughout the day, roughly every 3-4 hours, to maximize muscle building.
StrongSupportsHIGH confidence
Post-exercise ingestion (immediately to 2-h post) of high-quality protein sources stimulates robust increases in MPS. Ingesting a 20–40 g protein dose (0.25–0.40 g/kg body mass/dose) of a high-quality source every three to 4 h appears to most favorably affect MPS rates when compared to other dietary patterns and is associated with improved body composition and performance outcomes.
Why this rating
This is a position stand from the International Society of Sports Nutrition, synthesizing extensive research.
Source
International society of sports nutrition position stand: nutrient timing
Chad M. Kerksick et al. · Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2017
DOI 10.1186/s12970-017-0189-4
narrative_reviewCited 590×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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