When trained guys drink a special ketone drink after a tough leg workout (and also eat protein and carbs), their muscles send stronger 'grow' signals than when they drink a fake version — even though...

When rats do regular strength training, their muscles show higher levels of certain proteins that help with insulin signaling. This might help their muscles build protein even when another important pathway isn't as active.

The protein signal that tells your muscles to grow (mTOR) turns on just as well with plain protein as it does with protein plus sugar or alanine.

Drinking ketone drink after a hard workout doesn’t help your muscles refill their energy stores any faster than drinking a fake drink — even if your blood ketones are high.

After a hard workout, ketone drink helps your muscles calm down their 'energy alarm' (AMPK) twice as fast as a placebo, likely because ketones give your muscles another fuel to burn and restore energy quicker.

Consuming a specific combination of amino acids and carbohydrates one hour after a resistance workout in young, untrained men leads to a measurable increase in muscle protein synthesis and activation of key signaling proteins involved in protein production, compared to performing the workout without this nutritional intake.