Q: How much protein do women actually need in midlife?
Dr. Gillian Goddard:
That varies a little bit based on your goals.
Technically, the guidelines say you only need about 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day. Remembering that kilograms are pounds divided by 2.2.
So when you think about it, if you’re 140 pounds, that means you only need something in the neighborhood of 60 grams of protein a day. But that’s sort of the bare minimum.
If you are engaged in strength training, if you’re trying to build muscle, then you might want a little bit more protein. And then I think you want to get in the range of one to maybe a little bit above one gram per kilogram of body weight, which for most women will mean they need something in the neighborhood of 80 to 100 grams, depending on their body size.
Q: Does it matter when you consume protein?
Dr. Gillian Goddard:
Not as much as people think.
There is data that shows that after exercise is the time to consume protein. So if you’ve done a strength workout, you want to consume protein after that activity, but up to 24 hours after is what the data actually says.
So it’s not like you have to come home from the gym and, like, chug a protein shake.
Q: What does creatine actually do?
Dr. Gillian Goddard:
I think one of the things that was really confusing for a long time is that we had a lot of data in two specific groups of people: athletes and people over the age of 65 or 70, depending on the study.
And I don’t know about you, but I don’t consider myself a member of either of those groups. And I think most women in midlife don’t consider themselves to be athletes and probably aren’t actually athletes.
But in recent years, we’ve started to get some more data on women in midlife specifically. And so that’s really exciting because then all of a sudden you can look at this data and say, “Oh, okay, this makes sense.”
Creatine helps cells make ATP. ATP is what cells use for energy. We’re going back to organic chemistry here.
High-energy-requiring cells need creatine to help keep that ATP getting formed. And so the brain is a high-energy cell type, and muscles are high-energy cell types.
What creatine has actually been shown to be beneficial for is muscle recovery—so how long it takes for your muscle to recover after a workout—and cognitive function. And that makes sense because we’re talking about brain cells and muscle cells.
Again, that’s been proven in elderly people, especially the cognitive piece, and the recovery piece has been shown in athletes.
Q: Does creatine benefit women in midlife specifically?
Dr. Gillian Goddard:
We now have data that shows that women in midlife—sort of women between the ages of 40 or 45 and 60—benefit from creatine as well.
Both from a muscle maintenance point of view, which is important because we know that women lose muscle as they go through perimenopause and menopause, and also from a cognitive point of view.
Cognitive symptoms are so common in perimenopause. So really it can be helpful with both of those things.
Q: Does creatine cause bloating?
Dr. Gillian Goddard:
Creatine can, when you first start taking it, cause some gastrointestinal symptoms like bloating.
The key here is hydration. And so one of the things I like about Strength Water is that you’re taking your creatine with 20 ounces of water. So you really are getting that extra hydration at the same time.
But the key is definitely, for most people, making sure that they take their creatine with enough water. And typically it gets better with time.
Q: Does eating more protein hurt your kidneys?
Dr. Gillian Goddard:
If you have existing kidney problems, it can be hard for your kidneys to filter excess protein.
If you have healthy functioning kidneys and you’re eating a gram or a little bit more than a gram per kilogram of body weight a day in protein, you’re going to be just fine.
Q: What should women be spending money on for their health?
Dr. Gillian Goddard:
Strength training.
And that doesn’t mean you have to be spending a lot of money on it. Whether that’s to have some weights at home or some exercise bands at home or your gym membership, that’s what women should be spending money on.
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