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Anyone who has ever tried to gain a significant amount of weight has tried or at least heard of taking down a protein shake in the middle of the night. Most importantly, this is an opportunity to bump up caloric intake in a 24-hour period without adding more food to what is probably already an inconveniently and uncomfortably large amount. Some will also argue that it helps supply more raw material for tissue repair and growth during the time when most of this recovery is taking place: sleep.

There is no doubt this practice is effective, and those looking to gain weight should certainly try it out. However, keep in mind the importance of sleep, especially to hypertrophy and recovery in general. Consider the consequences of waking versus the benefits of the additional food. If you're the kind of person who can fall back to sleep easily, this shouldn't be a problem. But if you're the kind of person for whom a 5-minute protein shake drinking excursion will become 2 hours of of sleeplessness in the middle of the night, the practice is not advisable.

My suggestion for both types of individuals is to make a shake before bed and leave it in the fridge. If you wake up naturally, go drink it. If you sleep through the night, you can drink it the next morning and be thankful for your rest.