[@hubermanlab] How to Lose Fat & Gain Muscle With Nutrition | Alan Aragon

Link: https://youtu.be/h_1zlead9ZU

Short Summary

Number One Action Item/Takeaway:

Prioritize total daily protein intake (0.7-1 gram per pound of body weight) as the cornerstone of nutrition, with timing being a secondary consideration. This is the "cake" while timing is only a thin layer of "icing."

Executive Summary:

Alan Aragon clarifies various nutrition and fitness myths, emphasizing that flexibility in dietary timing, particularly with protein, is acceptable if total daily protein and caloric needs are met. He debunks the strict "anabolic window" concept and highlights that individual preferences regarding fasted or fed training should guide choices as long as calorie and macronutrient goals are reached by day's end. Finally, while plant based protien sources can be used they need to be matched in overall daily protein goals in order to keep parity with muscle protein synthesis rates as animal based protein.

Key Quotes

Here are 5 direct quotes from the transcript that I found particularly valuable:

1. "So the 2530 g cut off it's usually listed like some people say 20 uh that refers specifically to muscle protein synthesis where there seems to be a plateau at 25ish 30-ish g...What McNottton and colleagues did, they hit the subjects with a 24ish set regimen, full body. So it was a little bit more ecologically valid in the sense that they tried to um mirror what goes on in the real world...So when they ran this experiment and they compared 20 versus 40 grams of protein, the 40 gram of protein actually had a greater muscle protein synthesis response than the 20 grams. And it took us all the way to 2016 to to figure that out." - This quote highlights the evolution of understanding regarding protein utilization and challenges the long-held belief about a protein absorption limit, emphasizing the importance of higher protein intake with higher training volume.

2. "General rule of thumb, if you're burping your pre-ex exercise meal towards the end of your workout, then you don't need to run towards this [post workout meal]." - This is a practical and humorous way to think about nutrient timing, suggesting that pre-workout nutrition can still be contributing post-workout.

3. "total daily protein is the cake. The specific timing of protein relative to the training bout that is the icing on the cake and it's a very thin layer of icing on the cake." - A simple but effective analogy illustrating the relative importance of total protein intake versus strict nutrient timing.

4. "If you prefer to train fasted uh and you just feel better doing your cardio in a fasted state, great, do it fasted. If you can't stand doing fasted cardio and you'd rather have a a breakfast beforehand, then go ahead and do that. Just know that that's not going to necessarily hinder your fat loss efforts as long as you're net hypoc caloric by the end of the day or the end of the week." - This emphasizes individual preference and adherence over rigid rules in the context of fasted cardio.

5. "Yeah, it's it is pretty freaking awesome. Now, here's the the the thing that needs to be said. Okay, so there was a metabolic ward study done in 2013ish by Bray and colleagues where they subjected the uh participants to escalating amounts of protein. Um and the it was a protein overfeeding study...with the escalating protein amounts. So, there's different stuff going on. When you lock people up in a metabolic ward and they can't train and then you're escalating their protein intakes and calories, they will gain fat and lean mass. But in free living conditions with resistance training, if you just overprotein the subjects, they actually have a tendency to lose fat. " - This quote points out the paradoxical effect of protein intake in controlled versus real-world settings, highlighting the importance of resistance training in protein utilization for body composition.

Detailed Summary

Here's a detailed summary of the YouTube video transcript, focusing on the key topics, arguments, and information discussed, while excluding sponsor announcements:

• Introduction and Guest:

  • Andrew Huberman introduces Alan Aragon, a respected figure in fitness and nutrition known for his evidence-based approach.
  • Aragon's expertise spans nutrition and training for various goals (health, fat loss, muscle gain) for both men and women.

• Protein Assimilation and Needs:

  • Addressing the myth of a 30-gram protein limit per meal.
  • Clarification that digestion and utilization differ from muscle protein synthesis (MPS).
  • The 25-30 gram limit primarily applies to MPS, but higher protein doses (up to 40g, even 100g) can be beneficial with higher training volume.
  • Recommendation: 0.4 to 0.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per meal (0.2 to 0.25 grams per pound) to maximize MPS.
  • Criticism of the 100g protein dose study due to the lack of an intermediate dose.

• Meal Timing and Anabolic Window:

  • Criticism of the strict "anabolic window" concept based on research performed on fasted individuals.
  • Pre-exercise meals provide a sustained anabolic/anti-catabolic effect for 3-6 hours.
  • Meta-analysis showed that as long as total daily protein intake is adequate (around 1.6-1.7 g/kg or .7g/lb), timing relative to training is less critical.
  • Flexibility in when to consume protein, especially if eating prior to training.
  • Nutrients are circulating and available for muscles even hours after ingestion.

• Practical Protein Consumption:

  • There's nothing inherently wrong with consuming high-protein meals, even infrequently, for convenience.
  • A study comparing immediate pre- versus post-exercise protein intake found no significant advantage to either.
  • Another study comparing the timing and dosing of 25g of protein immediately prior to and post exercise showed that total daily protein was the primary determinant to results.

• The Takeaway on Protein

  • Tremendous flexibility as to when you consume protein
  • Overall protein requirement centers around .7 to 1 gram per pound of body weight per day
  • Emphasis should be made on what is in circulation versus when one ingests something.

• Fasted Training and Fat Burning:

  • Fasted training burns more fat during the workout.
  • However, studies show that overall fat loss is equivalent between fasted and fed training groups if total daily nutrition is equal.
  • A study comparing fasted vs fed cardio in college aged women found no significant difference in body fat reduction.

• Practical Implications of Fasted Training

  • If you prefer to train fasted, that's fine. If you prefer to eat beforehand, that's fine too
  • As long as you're net hypocalloric by the end of the day or the end of the week
  • Overall studies by Hagstrom and Hackett overall showed no significant differences or significant advantages in terms of body compment fat loss in the fasted versus the fed conditions as long as total nutrition is equated between the groups.

• Critical Role of Protein:

  • Protein is vital for body composition due to its direct support of lean mass.
  • Lean mass serves as a metabolic engine.
  • Protein is the most satiating macronutrient.
  • Protein has a higher thermic effect (higher energy cost for digestion).

• Protein Quality:

  • Animal proteins are generally higher quality, gram for gram, due to essential amino acid profiles, especially leucine.
  • Studies comparing vegan vs omnivore diets with adequate protein (1.6 g/kg) showed no significant differences in muscle gain, despite lower essential amino acid content in the vegan diet.
  • Exercise stimulus can be robust enough to make protein type effects secondary.

• Vegan vs Animal Protein Conclusion

  • More research is needed on highly trained, highly resistance trained subjects.
  • But in studies shown, as long as total daily protein is where it needs to be, then apparently the the animal free group can hang with the omnivores.

• Body Recomposition (Gaining Muscle & Losing Fat):

  • Yes, it's possible to gain muscle while losing fat.
  • It doesn't necessarily require a caloric deficit.
  • Studies show that the "recomp" phenomenon often involves lean mass gain being dominant over fat loss.

• Approaching Body Recomposition:

  • Aim for a judicious caloric surplus (10% above maintenance).
  • Emphasize high protein intake (1-1.5 grams per pound of body weight).
  • Protein intake can affect the intake of other macros
  • Protein may increase the exercise energy expenditure
  • The addition of 80 to 100 grams of protein may incur the feeling of sweating while you sleep.

• Protein Caloric Intake

  • Subjects tend to overreport their intake of the healthy stuff that is assigned to them, and under report the unhealthy stuff.
  • People will say "Okay, maintain your usual dietary habits and then just add 50 to 100 grams of protein on top."

• Importance of Protein

  • "Stack the protein on top, nobody gains fat, and some people lose fat."

• Free Living Conditions

  • In free living conditions with resistance training, if you just overprotein the subjects, they actually have a tendency to lose fat

• Carbohydrates:

  • As long as total calories and protein are equated, carb vs. fat intake has little impact on fat loss in well-controlled trials.
  • Ketogenic diets lead to spontaneous calorie reduction, contributing to weight loss.
  • Hyper palatable (easily over consumed) foods are typically refined carbs and fat mixed together.

• Inflammation:

  • Any diet that facilitates fat loss will lower inflammatory cytokines.
  • A "low inflammation diet" that is lacking hyper palatability is a good strategy.

• Anti Inflammatory Effects:

  • Omega-3 fatty acids
  • Generally no criticism even with atrial fibrilation

• Added Sugars:

  • Sugars dilute nutritive value and contribute to hyper palatability.
  • Added sugars should be limited to 10% of total calories.

• Artificial Sweeteners:

  • Saccharine shows adverse potential for gut microbiome.
  • Negative effects on gut microbiome
  • May lead to impaired glucose tolerance over time
  • Stevia may have benefits and has no known negative effects.
  • Aspartame and sucralose are mostly neutral
  • But hard to study.
  • Positive benefits from the assistance of weight loss for those that substitute sugary soda

• Caffeine:

  • Caffeine has a modest thermic effect that may assist fat loss.
  • Coffee, used moderately (3-4 cups), has net positive health effects.

• Alcohol:

  • Red wine might have anti-cancer effects and does not carry the "brain shrinking" threat like other alcohol.
  • However, excessive alcohol consumption is associated with cancer, so it is a sensitive topic.
  • Also, there's caloric and social risks associated with Alcohol consumption
  • Disinhibition can occur where one can just "screw it"

• Seed Oils:

  • Seed oils are overvilified.
  • Land animal fats have more dirt than seed oils.
  • Consider: seed oil type, dosage, health concern, and supporting trials.
  • Canola oil outperforms olive oil for improving blood lipids by lowering LDL cholesterol.

• Overall Takeaway

  • Seed Oils do not have ill effects on the food
  • What seed oils hang out with, will impact one's health more.
  • "They're riding in the wrong vehicle."

• Benefits of Olive Oil

  • Quality of salad ingredients
  • They're thinking about the quality of the sourdough bread
  • As opposed to more refined sugar containing breads

• Benefits of Grass Fed Butter

  • They're thinking about the quality of the meat sources
  • They're not eating other protein sources that are laden with other preservatives
  • Too expensive for some to consume on a regular basis

• Seed Oils and its Effects

  • Cooking Oils that are being consumed by generally healthy populations (Flax, Chia, Sesame) for thousands of years.
  • Do not deep fry your foods and focus on the overall quality of the diet
  • Misunderstanding and falsely founded scaremongering. Focus on the overall quality of the diet

• Butter

  • You can find "dirt" on land animal fats. Be careful about eating sticks of butter.
  • cream actually had a neutral effect on blood lipids whereas butter kind of skewed things in an adverse direction
  • Neutral effect by component of the cream called milk fat globial membrane

• Saturated Fat

  • For the general population. Some is good
  • Zero can lead to brittle hair, skin, and achy joints

• Omega 3s

  • Consume fish oil to get nice lipids and micronutrients too

• Female-Specific Nutrition:

  • Few universally applicable differences between male/female nutrition.
  • During the menstrual cycle, do not totally fight the cravings
  • "Diet breaks" with higher calorie intake can coincide with menstrual cycle.

• Menopause Transition

  • Can set expectations at 50% of what a woman would normally go through
  • Body fat gained in the transitional period is 1.6 kilograms in general population
  • Lost amount of lean mass .2kilograms in general population

• Collagen:

  • Collagen is the most abundant protein.
  • People use it for raw materials.
  • Collagen fragments may make it to target tissues and increase activity
  • Collagen with consistent benefits on various skin outcomes.
  • Vegan diet might have a disadvantage.
  • Collagen is 80% collagen by dry weight

• Personal Supplement Stack:

  • Emphasize sleep, exercise, and a good diet first.
  • Multivitamin (multiple and different forms).
  • Vitamin D3 (4000 IU).
  • Fish oil (3 grams of EPA, DHA).
  • Magnesium citrate.
  • Creatine (5 grams).
  • Vitamin C (1 gram).

• Resistance Training

  • To make it cardio, short rest, cluster sets
  • Progressive overload
  • "I try to make my resistance training cardio."
  • Super sets of antagonist muscles.

• Cluseter Set

  • Great way to make up low time
  • Slow breathing to take time. Leg extension recommended for legs, or exercises that will bring you to failure

This summary captures the core insights shared in the video transcript.