Perform Ep 19: Dr. Michael Ormsbee: Food Timing, Nutrition & Supplements for Fat Loss, Muscle Growth & Recovery

My guest is Dr. Michael Ormsbee, Ph.D., a professor of nutrition and integrative physiology and the director of the Institute of Sports Sciences and Medicine at Florida State University. We explore how pre-sleep nutrition affects fat metabolism, muscle growth, performance, and recovery, while helping individuals meet their daily protein goals without causing weight gain. We discuss what to eat at night, including different protein sources—whey, casein, and plant-based proteins—or carbohydrates, and explain whether whole foods or supplements are more beneficial.Additionally, we highlight the importance of resistance training and sufficient protein intake for long-term weight loss success and how collagen supplementation may reduce joint pain. We also examine the potential benefits of lesser-known supplements, including betaine, theacrine, and butyrate postbiotics. Whether you’re an athlete or simply looking to improve your health, listeners will learn how to optimize nutrition for enhanced performance, recovery, and weight management.

Articles

• The Health Impact of Nighttime Eating: Old and New Perspectives (Nutrients)
• Circadian variation of diet-induced thermogenesis (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition)
• The Time of Day of Food Intake Influences Overall Intake in Humans (The Journal of Nutrition)
• Night-time consumption of protein or carbohydrate results in increased morning resting energy expenditure in active college-aged men (British Journal of Nutrition)
• Effects of milk proteins and combined exercise training on aortic hemodynamics and arterial stiffness in young obese women with high blood pressure (American Journal of Hypertension)
• The Effect of Casein Protein Prior to Sleep on Fat Metabolism in Obese Men (Nutrients)
• Lipolysis and Fat Oxidation Are Not Altered with Presleep Compared with Daytime Casein Protein Intake in Resistance-Trained Women (The Journal of Nutrition)
• Protein Ingestion before Sleep Increases Overnight Muscle Protein Synthesis Rates in Healthy Older Men: A Randomized Controlled Trial (The Journal of Nutrition)
• Protein Ingestion before Sleep Increases Muscle Mass and Strength Gains during Prolonged Resistance-Type Exercise Training in Healthy Young Men (The Journal of Nutrition)
• Resistance training during a 12-week protein supplemented VLCD treatment enhances weight-loss outcomes in obese patients (Clinical Nutrition)
• Effects of high-protein diets on fat-free mass and muscle protein synthesis following weight loss: a randomized controlled trial (FASEB Journal)
• Presleep Casein Protein Ingestion: Acceleration of Functional Recovery in Professional Soccer Players (International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance)
• Effects of Pre-Sleep Whey vs. Plant-Based Protein Consumption on Muscle Recovery Following Damaging Morning Exercise (Nutrients)
• Pre-sleep protein in casein supplement or whole-food form has no impact on resting energy expenditure or hunger in women (British Journal of Nutrition)
• Pre-sleep Protein Ingestion Increases Mitochondrial Protein Synthesis Rates During Overnight Recovery from Endurance Exercise: A Randomized Controlled Trial (Sports Medicine)
• Slow-Absorbing Modified Starch before and during Prolonged Cycling Increases Fat Oxidation and Gastrointestinal Distress without Changing Performance (Nutrients)
• Pre-exercise nutrition: the role of macronutrients, modified starches and supplements on metabolism and endurance performance (Nutrients)
• Collagen peptides supplementation improves function, pain, and physical and mental outcomes in active adults (Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition)
• The effects of betaine supplementation on fluid balance and heat tolerance during passive heat stress in men (Physiological Reports)
• Betaine Supplementation May Improve Heat Tolerance: Potential Mechanisms in Humans (Nutrients)
• The effects of a caffeine-like supplement, TeaCrine®, on muscular strength, endurance and power performance in resistance-trained men. (Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition)
• The Potential Role of Creatine in Vascular Health (Nutrients)
• Supplementation Strategies to Reduce Muscle Damage and Improve Recovery Following Exercise in Females: A Systematic Review (Sports)

Other Resources

• Collagen Peptides
• TeaCrine
• CoreBiome
• Retraction Watch
• Examine

People Mentioned

• Robert Hickner: professor of nutrition & integrative physiology, Florida State University
• Luc van Loon: professor of physiology of exercise and nutrition, Maastricht University
• Jeong-Su Kim: professor of health & human sciences, Florida State University
• Eddie Jo: professor of exercise physiology & sports medicine, Cal Poly Pomona
• Paul Arciero: professor of health & human physiological sciences, Skidmore College
• Stuart Phillips: professor of kinesiology, McMaster University
• Keith Baar: professor of physiology, UC Davis
• Ravinder Nagpal: professor of nutrition & integrative physiology, Florida State University