Want to build muscle?

Don’t “spike” insulin, just raise it a bit

Almost every gym junkie will tell you that promptly after training you need to hit the body with fast-absorbing carbohydrates to elicit a dramatic insulin response. This sounds great in theory, since insulin is a highly anabolic storage hormone and conducive to muscle growth and repair.

But before you run off looking for the closest bottle of dextrose-laden Gatorade to chug with your protein, there actually doesn’t appear to be much “extra” benefit for muscle protein synthesis from exorbitant increases in insulin in the physiological range (the response is not linear).

Research seems to indicate that while some insulin does amplify the muscle protein synthesis response to feeding, there is a point of saturation in which extra insulin doesn’t confer a more intense response.

Also, consider that you can still achieve a sufficient insulin response from complex carbohydrates that aren’t necessarily high in glycemic index. This is to say you don’t have to “spike” your insulin. A slow, transient insulin response will provide much the same muscle protein synthesis benefits as a rapid, acute surge.

The bottom line

Ultimately, insulin does indeed augment the muscle protein synthesis response to a nominal dose of amino acids, but superfluous amounts of fast-absorbing carbohydrates are not necessary nor do they provide extra benefits (at least as far as muscle protein synthesis goes). [6]

As far as carbohydrate source goes, that will mainly depend on what your overall goal is. I could see the case for fast-absorbing carbohydrates in the case of endurance athletes and people needing to replenish glycogen quickly or for bodybuilders who train for extended periods of time. The other thing to keep in mind is that fructose (mainly found in fruits) is not an insulinogenic carbohydrate, so don’t rely purely on fructose-rich foods (like most fruits) as a carbohydrate source

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