Macro partitioning
Distributing protein intake evenly across three daily periods (breakfast, lunch, dinner) is positively associated with increased lean mass, upper-body strength, and lower-body strength in healthy women.
For healthy women, try to spread your protein out across breakfast, lunch, and dinner. You don't necessarily need to hit a perfect number at every meal, but aiming for at least 25 grams of protein in at least one meal, or hitting relative targets (0.24 g/kg for <60yo, 0.4 g/kg for ≥60yo) in one or more meals, is associated with better muscle mass and strength. Ensure your total daily protein and calories are adequate, as distribution benefits are observed on top of those totals.
Intakes of 25 g or more of protein at 1 or more of the 3 periods was positively associated with lean mass (β ± S.E.; 1.067 ± 0.273 kg, P < .001) and upper-body (3.274 ± 0.737 kg, P < .001) and lower-body strength (22.858 ± 7.918 Nm, P = .004) when controlling for age, body mass index, physical activity, and energy and protein intakes.
Why this rating
Cross-sectional design limits causal inference; however, it controls for key confounders (energy, protein, BMI, MVPA).
Source
Evenness of Dietary Protein Intake Is Positively Associated with Lean Mass and Strength in Healthy Women
Nathaniel Johnson et al. · Nutrition and Metabolic Insights · 2022
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