For years, whey has been the fast-digesting, amino-rich, proven to spike muscle growth, king of protein supplements. While this is great for people who can tolerate dairy, for those that can't they've been left with few other options. Of the options left to choose from, they've been told over and over that plant-based protein was an inferior option. But is it really true?
What if plant-based protein blend could match whey—gram for gram in terms of muscle protein synthesis?
Muscle protein synthesis is the name of the game. Without it, your hard work turns into wasted effort. That’s why what you eat after training is just important as your training itself.
Resistance exercise stimulates muscle protein synthesis, which is crucial for muscle recovery, adaptation, and hypertrophy. Without adequate nutrition, particularly protein, muscle protein breakdown can exceed muscle protein synthesis, leading to a negative net protein balance and limiting muscle growth(1).
Post-exercise protein ingestion augments myofibrillar protein synthesis, creating a net positive muscle protein balance and supporting the adaptive response to training(2).
Therefore, maximizing the combined effects of exercise and protein intake to enhance myofibrillar protein synthesis is essential for providing nutritional support to the body's adaptation to long-term training.
Animal-derived proteins, particularly whey, are generally considered more effective at stimulating post-exercise muscle protein synthesis compared to plant-based proteins. This perception is often attributed to lower postprandial amino acid bioavailability in plant proteins due to factors like higher fiber and phytonutrient content hindering gut absorption(3).
Another key factor is the often less favorable amino acid composition of plant proteins, particularly lower levels of essential amino acids like leucine, lysine, and methionine.
Whey protein's effectiveness is often linked to its high leucine content, an amino acid thought to be a primary trigger for myocellular anabolic signaling pathways(4).
However, other essential amino acids are also important for signaling and preventing substrate limitation for sustained muscle protein synthesis. Plant-based proteins often have lower levels of key amino acids, requiring strategies to overcome these deficiencies.
A key strategy to optimize plant-based protein supplements is to create blends with complementary amino acid profiles to overcome individual protein source deficiencies. Previous studies on protein blends have shown robust increases in muscle protein synthesis, but often included animal-derived sources, were conducted in resting muscle, or did not compare directly with whey protein.
A recent study focused on an exclusively plant-derived blend of pea, brown rice, and canola protein isolates, specifically chosen for their complementary amino acid profiles to assess myofibrillar protein synthesis rates after resistance exercise, and in comparison to whey protein(3).
The novel plant-based protein blend, formulated to deliver sufficient total protein (32g) and leucine (2.5g), stimulated post-exercise myofibrillar protein synthesis rates to an equivalent extent as an isonitrogenous bolus of whey protein in resistance-trained young adults. This equivalence was observed over both short (0-2 hours) and longer (up to 4 hours) post-exercise periods.
What the heck is an 'isonitrogenous bolus of whey protein'?
An "isonitrogenous bolus" is just a fancy way of saying 'a single serving of protein that has the same amount of nitrogen as another serving it's being compared to.'
Think of it like this: Imagine you have two smoothies. One is made with whey protein, and the other is made with a mix of plant-based proteins like pea and rice. Even though they come from different sources and might digest differently, they both have the same amount of protein.
Scientists use this idea in studies to compare how different proteins affect muscle growth. It helps them make sure they're testing things fairly—kind of like making sure two runners are racing the same distance before seeing who finishes faster.
The study achieved a substantial increase in myofibrillar protein synthesis rates in both conditions (~100% for whey, ~91% for the blend) compared to resting rates over the entire 4-hour recovery period, suggesting an optimal anabolic stimulus.
Figure: Myofibrillar fractional synthetic rate for the basal (postabsorptive) temporal postprandial (0–2 h and 2–4 h) (A), and total 4 h postprandial period (B) in healthy young adults. Postprandial state represents a 4-h period after ingestion of 32 g protein from whey (WHEY; n = 10) or plant-blend (BLEND; n = 10) and a bout of bilateral resistance exercise.
Despite comparable myofibrillar protein synthesis rates, the study observed differences in circulating amino acid levels between the whey and plant-blend groups.
Whey protein resulted in greater peak concentrations and overall postprandial availability of essential amino acids, including leucine, lysine, and methionine. The reasons for these differences in amino acid availability for the plant blend are not fully clear but could be attributed to factors like splanchnic extraction, oxidation, or potentially less complete bio-accessibility due to the complex.
The findings contribute to a growing body of work questioning the direct and quantitative relationship between the speed, magnitude, and overall postprandial leucine response and the stimulation of (post-exercise) muscle protein synthesis. The study suggests that as long as sufficient leucine is provided to trigger a systemic rise, the exact circulating levels might be of lesser consequence for muscle anabolism than previously assumed(5).
Further research is needed to determine if parity between well-considered
plant-based protein blends and whey protein exists at lower protein or leucine doses, after prolonged supplementation, and in populations with reduced anabolic sensitivity.
This study provides compelling evidence that a carefully designed plant-based protein blend can be as effective as whey protein for stimulating post-exercise muscle protein synthesis in young, resistance-trained adults. This has significant implications for individuals seeking plant-based dairy-free alternatives for sports nutrition and highlights the potential of strategic protein blending to overcome the traditional limitations associated with single-source plant proteins.
If you're serious about muscle recovery and growth, what you feed your body post-workout matters.
VEG-PRO delivers a powerful blend of high-quality pea and rice protein, giving your muscles the essential amino acids they need to repair and grow—without the dairy, bloating, or slow digestion of whey. With 15 delicious flavors to choose from we're sure you'll find one you can't resist.
References:
1. Damas F, Phillips S, Vechin FC, et al: A review of resistance training-induced changes in skeletal muscle protein synthesis and their contribution to hypertrophy. Sports Med 45:801-7, 2015
2. Burke LM, Hawley JA, Ross ML, et al: Preexercise aminoacidemia and muscle protein synthesis after resistance exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc 44:1968-77, 2012
3. I VDH, Monteyne AJ, West S, et al: Plant Protein Blend Ingestion Stimulates Postexercise Myofibrillar Protein Synthesis Rates Equivalently to Whey in Resistance-Trained Adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc 56:1467-1479, 2024
4. Fujita S, Dreyer HC, Drummond MJ, et al: Nutrient signalling in the regulation of human muscle protein synthesis. J Physiol 582:813-23, 2007
5. Wilkinson K, Koscien CP, Monteyne AJ, et al: Association of postprandial postexercise muscle protein synthesis rates with dietary leucine: A systematic review. Physiol Rep 11:e15775, 2023
