Is it better to eat protein-rich food the day you work out or the day you rest?

Question

I know it is best to eat something after workout. But lets assume I can't do that for argument sake.

So, my question is, if I work out say on Monday evening and rest on Tuesday. Is it better to consume more protein on Monday morning or Tuesday?

I know the important time would be to eat something on Monday after workout, but I can't consume 120g of protein everyday, as my daily diet has around 60g of protein.

So, I decided to eat maybe 120g worth of food once every two days, and I am not sure which day to chose.

I am thinking I should take it on resting day since that's when the body rebuilds the muscle and that might be when more protein is require.

Answer 1

Just to summarize what we went over in the comments, we recommend that you don't worry about the details of WHEN you consume the protein, but rather make sure that you DO consume the protein.

The idea that you must consume the protein as close to the workout as possible is largely a myth propagated by those who try to sell protein shakes and bars. Intuitively, it's not like the muscles stop requiring protein after an hour.

I should also mention that 120g of protein sounds like you're overdoing it. Remember that excess protein gets converted to fat.

This study concludes, among other things, that

high-quality protein dosed at 0.4–0.5 g/kg of LBM at both pre- and post-exercise is a simple, relatively fail-safe general guideline that reflects the current evidence showing a maximal acute anabolic effect of 20–40 g [53,84,85]. For example, someone with 70 kg of LBM would consume roughly 28–35 g protein in both the pre- and post exercise meal. Exceeding this would be have minimal detriment if any, whereas significantly under-shooting or neglecting it altogether would not maximize the anabolic response.

For more guidelines, read the entire "Practical applications" section of the study I linked.

Answer 2

Answering your question alone, it's logical to think eating more at Tuesday is the correct move, because body start repairing the muscle after you work it out.

But I think it's better to spread the intake, so it will be more natural and less stressing to keep the schedules. You can get protein cheaply from Milk, Eggs and soy products (especially Tempeh(+-19g of Proteins per 100g) and Tofu(+-8g of Proteins per 100g)), which can be consumed as a snack or side dish for your heavy food. If you want to switch one of your heavy food, try to get chicken breast (+-31g of Proteins per 100g).

Answer 3

What is your target body weight? You only need to eat 1.2-2.0 gram of protein per kilo of body weight, to gain muscle. 120g is required by someone who weighs 75-100kgs.

Your body repairs and grows everyday and needs protein spread evenly throughout, else excess protein gets converted into fat.

Drink 3-4 glasses of milk and eat eggs, if you can, they are pretty cheap. Peanuts are cheap as well in most parts of the world.