Can plant proteins build muscles as well as animal proteins?
The Anabolic Response to Plant-Based Protein Ingestion
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Plant proteins like soy or wheat don’t spike muscle growth as much right after eating compared to animal proteins like whey. But you can fix this by eating more of them, mixing different kinds, or adding missing building blocks called amino acids.
Surprising Findings
Slow-digesting plant proteins can be just as effective as fast-digesting animal proteins for building muscle—if total protein and training are equal.
Most people assume fast-absorbing whey is superior, but long-term gains depend more on total intake and workout consistency than digestion speed.
Practical Takeaways
Eat 50–60g of plant protein per meal to match the muscle-building effect of animal protein.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Plant proteins like soy or wheat don’t spike muscle growth as much right after eating compared to animal proteins like whey. But you can fix this by eating more of them, mixing different kinds, or adding missing building blocks called amino acids.
Surprising Findings
Slow-digesting plant proteins can be just as effective as fast-digesting animal proteins for building muscle—if total protein and training are equal.
Most people assume fast-absorbing whey is superior, but long-term gains depend more on total intake and workout consistency than digestion speed.
Practical Takeaways
Eat 50–60g of plant protein per meal to match the muscle-building effect of animal protein.
Publication
Journal
Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.z.)
Year
2021
Authors
Philippe J. M. Pinckaers, J. Trommelen, T. Snijders, L. V. van Loon
Related Content
Claims (5)
Plant proteins like soy and wheat don’t help build muscle as much right after eating compared to animal proteins like whey or milk, especially in older people when they're not exercising.
Some plant proteins don't help build muscle as well as animal proteins because they often don't have enough of certain important building-block nutrients, especially lysine and methionine, which are low in foods like wheat, corn, and oats.
Mixing different plant proteins, like peas and rice, can give you all the amino acids your muscles need, just like animal protein.
Adding missing amino acids like lysine or methionine to plant proteins might make them better for building muscle, but we don’t have solid proof from human studies yet.
Eating larger amounts of plant protein, like wheat, can build muscle just as effectively as eating animal proteins like whey.