Yes, you need adequate, high-quality protein daily to build muscles. Yes, you need to work the muscles you wish to develop. Yes, you need sufficient anabolic hormones (whether natural or exogenous). However, something just as important, but commonly overlooked, is that you need adequate potassium in your diet, or none of the above will be effective!
Potassium is the essential mineral within your 70 trillion cells. Its presence allows your cells to generate the voltage needed for cellular function—much like a car battery provides the energy to start your car. Just as critical is the fact that proteins in your body (90% of them) rely on potassium for stabilization. Proteins, which are composed on average of about 500 amino acids each, need 500 positively charged mineral ions. In 90% of cases, this ion is potassium; in the remaining 10%, it is zinc.
Notice the word 'acid' in 'amino acid'. Because your cells have an alkaline pH of 7.4, when an acid enters an alkaline environment, it needs to become the salt of an acid to stabilize. Visualize the frustration of bodybuilders who hit a dead wall due to insufficient potassium hindering their muscle growth.
Adding to this challenge is the widespread belief among bodybuilders that carbs are bad. The real issue is with empty carbs. These are the ones that contain fewer than 350 mg of potassium per serving (refer to mineral tables in my books or editorials). Examples of empty carbs include bread, pasta, rice, corn, oats, barley, wheat, spelt, and rye. These foods become even more potassium-deficient when processed into a box, bag, or can, or served as fast food.
The problem with severely limiting all carbs from your diet is that it makes obtaining adequate potassium difficult. The one exception in a carnivore diet is superior cuts of meat, such as ribeye steaks, which are rich in potassium. Salmon is also a good source. On average, you need 4,000 mg of potassium per day. If you’re trying to build muscle, you need even more. If you are overweight, you also need more while carefully watching your carb intake at first. This step is important because obesity often correlates with a low-potassium diet.
Obesity is also linked to the increasing prevalence of fatty liver disease. Yes, potassium deficiency is a common driver of fatty liver (as explained in my non-alcoholic fatty liver editorial). If you continue consuming potassium-deficient foods year after year, your liver becomes impaired in its ability to lower blood sugar by storing it as glycogen. Why? Because a certain amount of potassium is necessary for glycogen production!
Imagine the daily struggle of a typical American liver dealing with constant doses of empty carbs. If you are healthy and we removed all sugar (carbs) from your bloodstream, it would total 6-7 grams. If it drops to 3 grams, you may pass out. If it rises to 9 grams, you're diabetic. For an empty-carb eater, the only remaining pathway to lower blood sugar is through the cholesterol and triglyceride pathway (see my cholesterol editorial)! I hope you’re beginning to see the chaos a low-potassium diet triggers.
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