Im not upset - mostly confused. A post said protein is the only macro that can alter body composition, I disagreed, it was expanded on that they meant the only one we pay attention to for a positive body comp change.First, why the trepidation? You seem upset.
The OP asked, "Arnold used to say that if you were trying to build muscle and didn't want diet to be limiting your growth, you needed 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight per day. That was a long time ago. Does this still hold true?"
That is what I thought we were discussing. Is that not the case? Was there an imaginary pivot? If there, was lay it out and I can debate both sides.
And when I say nutrients I refer to "a substance that provides nourishment essential for growth and the maintenance of life."
Ideally, you want to eat the most nutrient dense diet if the goal is to carry the highest amount of muscle. Which should be the goal as it pertains to the greatest metabolic flexibility.
This stuff is not complicated in application. Only complex when you start to analyze the mechanism. Those who consume more protein carry more muscle than those that don't. Those who eat the most nutrient dense proteins tend to carry more muscle than those that don't. For example - 300 grams of plant based vs 300 grams from red meat. Those that can maintain muscle mass and strength the longest tend to survive the longest. I was looking at actuarial charts for a talk I did recently on Metabolic Flexibility and a clear point of death is plotted with a loss of strength and muscle.
Old people die because they fall (loss of strength/balance/coordination), break a hip (osteoporosis) then become bed ridden and pass away.
So what do you got?
Then you posted:
- Correlation is not causation. I never said anything to the contrary.
- I have yet to see anyone carry a high amount of muscle eating a low protein diet. I never inferred otherwise.
- And I have seen athletes of all shapes and sizes eat different macros and be both fat and shredded. I have seen people eat a Paleo diet with massive amounts of inflammation and get fat. The moral of the story is - calories matter. The law of thermodynamics tells us that if you use more calories than you consume you will decrease your mass. Consume more than you burn and you will add mass. And if you eat enough protein in a caloric deficit you wont lose muscle - just fat. This was the most confusing - no one here has mentioned calories. This is just basic knowledge, most dont go to the effort of discussing it. Just because its not discussed doesnt mean anyone is disagreeing.
- Not all proteins are the same - red meat will always be more nutrient dense than chicken. Obviously Im asking which specific nutrients you are referring to. As Ive already stated, I am speaking directly and only to protein density.