Yo,
If you’ve been in the fitness space for a little while (or even when entering it), it is likely that you will come across the term “anabolic window” or “protein window”. You know, the whole “eat protein within two hours after your workout or you ruin the muscle-building process brah”. You may also hear things like, “You can’t consume more than 30g of protein in a meal”.
So many ideas and conceptions surrounding the timing and amount of protein that you can consume. It can be really scary if you don’t know the truth. When I first started and heard the whole “anabolic window”, I was so scared that my efforts in the gym would be in vain.
Picture me, an inexperienced lifter whose only goal is to put on muscle, and he hears “Don’t forget to eat some protein within two hours after working or your muscles are done”. This only leads to fear and naive decisions.
Maybe you are in a similar decision, whereby you don’t know when’s the best time to have protein and/or when to take some protein powder.
I’ve been through it, all the confusion and stress, so today I’ll share my experience and understanding of having it all the different times and will conclude by giving my answer on the best time. I hope I’m able to help you. 
Morning
This is a good time. Personally, if I have a protein shake, more often than not it is in the morning.
This comes down to my own personal preference, as having it after breakfast enables me to feel even more full and satisfied throughout the day. When I embarked on my first ‘cut’ (fat loss phase), I repeatedly had this in the morning (on top of my standard breakfast), and this significantly suppressed my urge to snack on foods that were not within my caloric limit.
This may be able to benefit you as well if you’re on a fat loss phase, as having a sufficient amount of protein in the morning can help you to avoid indulging in foods that may be too high for your deficit and feel “guilty”.
It’s also good to have in the morning when “bulking” (muscle building phase), as if you wake up early in the morning, consuming a good amount of protein in the morning will lessen the burden on you to have a bunch later in the day and squeeze it in such a short amount of time. Essentially, I’m implying that your future self would thank you for eating enough (I know I did).
However, maybe you won’t need to take it in the morning, since your appetite may be so big that it won’t be necessary to spread them out throughout the day (unfortunately, I cannot relate so I was forced to spread them out during the day to help myself).
So basically, having a protein shake (on top of a nutritionally dense breakfast, with all the macronutrients) in the morning enables you to avoid indulging in foods that would derail your deficit calories. Moreover, it relieves you of having to consume so much protein in a short amount of time later in the day when bulking.
Before workout
Alright, I typically do not have a protein shake before a workout, but I do always have a relatively nutritionally dense meal before a workout (kind of small). However, this does not mean that you cannot have it before a workout.
Let’s say that ‘before’ is about two hours before training. Additionally, let’s define a term: “Muscle protein synthesis”. This is not a scientific journal on the muscle-building process, so I’ll define it like this using some simple words. “A metabolic process where protein is produced to repair and build muscle.”
When we consume protein before a workout, we can actually trigger this process before the workout, where in the workout our muscle fibres will become slightly damaged (meaning they’ll need repairing.) Therefore, we are preparing our body to repair our muscles in advance from weight training.
Although, even if you do not have some protein before the workout, it is not the end of the world.
After workout
So this might be your biggest concern. “Anabolic window brah”, “eat within 2 hours or you’re done”.
Look, there is some truth to that, being the concept of eating protein after a training session. This is good, as after training, your body will need nutrients to repair itself and ultimately grow.
Here is my problem with it though. The strict idea of “2 hours” is just a theory and honestly, when I compare myself back to the past where I used to follow it, compared to now where I do not; there is no difference in muscle growth.
Sure, there are times now, when I happen to eat a protein-filled meal or a protein shake within two hours, but there are also times when I just don’t. Sometimes I don’t feel hungry after and sometimes I do. It’s all down to preference.
It honestly isn’t that deep guys. Yes, you can decide to have your protein powder after an hour. You can decide to have it two hours after. You can also decide to have it four hours later. The bottom line is, you can have it whenever you like afterwards.
Muscle building/maintenance is not supposed to be this complex process guys.
Night
Last but not least, nighttime. I always have a nutritionally dense meal at night time and I don’t plan on changing it for a long time. This is because I typically get hungry around this time (about 6-7 pm) and dinner is arguably my favourite meal of the day. Again, this comes down to preference.
Moreover, apparently consuming protein at night time is shown to increase muscle protein synthesis during sleep. I did not know this when I started training, but it’s something interesting I thought I would share.
Additionally, you may have eaten enough calories throughout the day and may not want to eat at night time. This is alright too. Most people though, probably have some calories to catch up on at night so you may need to eat something at this time.
The Best time is…
Ultimately, there isn’t really the best time from my experience. I always aim to spread out my protein intake equally throughout the day. Moreover, if I go through a phase where I am hungrier at certain times of the day, I will allocate my calories according.
Muscle building is not supposed to be this complex guys. Have your protein powder for whatever times suit you. Morning, before or after training and at night is fine.
The point is to get consume a sufficient amount of protein in the day, with good vitamins and minerals, alongside carbohydrates and fats.
Hopefully, this cleared up some confusion and you’re not so stressed about the “anabolic window” anymore.
Thanks for reading
