Is taking protein shakes without exercising beneficial or dangerous?

Question

My 25 year old brother joined a gym two months ago. He does one hour of exercise when he goes to gym. Due to excessive office work, he can't go to the gym regularly. He takes daily, 30 gram protein shakes.

If he doesn't go to gym for a whole week, but continues to take protein shakes, is it beneficial?

Or, is it dangerous to take protein shakes while not going to the gym regularly?

I know that after a workout there are two to three days of recovery. I think that there is no need for protein shakes after that recovery period.

If he doesn't go to the gym and continues to take protein shakes, is there a chance that it will be converted into fat? Or is it not converted into fat because it is not fat?

Answer 1

First of all, this all depends on the protein he is taking and some other life style aspects.

My initial answer is that this is not a problem because supplements are simply meant to supplement your diet. getting 30 grams of protein from a shake isn't really different than getting 30 grams of protein from chicken or any other source of protein for that matter. 30 grams of protein, is 30 grams of protein. Protein is necessary for muscle recovery after a workout, but it does not harm your body if you do not workout.

You have to look at his diet as a whole rather than just this one protein shake. Meaning, look at the total amount of proteins, carbs, fats and calories he consumes in a day to decide whether this protein shake is beneficial or not.

Will his protein shake cause him to gain fat if he consumes more "food" than he burns?

Once again, this all depends on his whole diet. It also (once again) depends on the protein shake he is taking. If he were to continue to take a mass gaining shake, which is high in carbs and calories, then he could definitely put on fat. If his shake is just pure whey protein, which is low in carbs and calories, then it probably won't make much of a difference.