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Nutrient timing: two rules I dropped

I used to drink a shake within 30 minutes of finishing a session and treat a missed pre-sleep casein dose as a wasted night. Both rules came from evidence that's since been superseded or was conditional on something I don't have (low daytime protein).

The 30-minute anabolic window isn't real​

Schoenfeld's 2013 meta-analysis plus follow-up 2024 work put the practical post-workout window at 5h+ when a real meal was eaten 1-2h pre-workout — narrower fasted, but still hours, not minutes.

What changed: I train fasted in the AM and eat 30g+ protein 1-2h after, not in the car on the way home.

Pre-sleep casein isn't mandatory — it depends what you did earlier​

Snijders 2015 and the older pre-sleep-protein studies were run against insufficient daytime intake. Trommelen 2023 (see protein-and-energy) shows a single ~100g dose covers 12h+ of MPS on its own — so if the day's total already hit 1.6g/kg+, a separate pre-sleep dose isn't closing a real gap.

When I still take it: training late + under 2h to sleep. Then it's whey, not casein — the point is a dose before sleep, not a specific protein type.

Post-workout carbs: high-GI is for after training, not all day​

High-GI carbs (white rice, white bread) refill glycogen ~1.5x faster than low-GI. I use that window specifically — white rice post-workout, brown rice everywhere else for steadier blood sugar.

Sleep is the upstream lever, and it's not close​

  • One night of total sleep deprivation: MPS -18%, testosterone -24%, cortisol +21%
  • Chronic 5-6h sleep: MPS down ~20%

7.5h is the floor I actually protect; 8h is the target. No amount of nutrient timing compensates for this one.

The counter-argument I take seriously​

"No mandatory pre-sleep protein" assumes the day's total already lands in the 1.6-2.2g/kg range. If a real day comes up short — travel, a skipped meal — the old pre-sleep-casein rule is a reasonable patch, not a superstition. I use it conditionally, not as a rule I deleted outright.