GAINING MUSCLE WITH RESISTANCE TRAINING (RT): IS PROTEIN A BIG DEAL OR A MINOR PLAYER? After 30 years of studying protein and muscle, here’s the honest truth: protein plays a relatively small role in lean‐mass gains when you lift. In fact, at least 90% of muscle growth comes from consistent RT, regardless of sex or age. A meta‐analysis of 49 controlled trials (n ≈ 1,800) found that protein supplements added only 0.3 kg of fat‐free mass (≈ 0.5 lb, half of which is likely muscle), compared to ~1.1 kg of FFM gained purely from training—meaning training drives ≈ 90 % of hypertrophy (PMID: 28698222). A more recent dose–response analysis confirms a plateau at 1.6 g/kg/day (PMID: 35187864). Beyond ~1.6 g/kg/day, extra protein does not yield further FFM gains. In 42 study arms (n = 723), RT‐induced FFM increases plateaued at ~1.62 g/kg/day (95 % CI: 1.03–2.20 g/kg/d) (PMID: 28698222). Simply put, it’s implausible to gain more actual muscle above that intake. Another caveat: we measure “lea...