Your body is hard at work repairing and rebuilding even while you sleep. A clinical study found that consuming 40g of casein protein 30 minutes before bed was fully digested and absorbed, sustaining elevated amino acid levels throughout 7.5 hours of sleep. This extended the window for muscle repair and enhanced overnight recovery. Compared to placebo, pre-sleep protein: ✅ Increased muscle-building activity by ~22% overnight ✅ Shifted the body from breaking down muscle to building muscle (a positive protein balance) ✅ Kept muscle repair going all night during the usual fasting period In contrast, smaller doses of protein typically stimulate muscle repair for only ~4 hours—highlighting how 40g of slow-digesting protein like casein optimally supports overnight recovery. Notably, this strategy enhanced muscle protein synthesis without disrupting sleep quality. PMID: 22330017