Is protein powder needed if I don't want to build muscle?

lemonsurprise

I'm a female with no intention of bulking out. However, I'm wanting to go vegan on a (temporary) 1,200 a day diet.
I know there's plenty of vegan body builders that don't take supplements, but of course they are eating in surplus. No doubt that hitting protein goals can be done but it's near impossible on 1,200 cals a day.

Currently I'm buying protein shakes and easily hitting protein goals but these are made with milk. I've looked in to powders (to mix with soy/water) but they're way more expensive than I thought! Would it really even be worth it if I have no intention of bulking out? I'd fall short of about 20g of protein a day.

I work out for an hour daily including strength training.

Chief_Rocka

Protein powder is never needed, but you should be eating more than 20g of protein per day. A lot more. Like 4-5x that amount.

kgeyser

Protein powder is not for bulking, it's for getting protein in your diet. The only way you are going to bulk while using protein powder is if you are in a calorie surplus. That being said, getting enough protein in your diet coupled with resistance training has been shown to help retain lean body mass. If you are going to be on only 1200 calories per day, I would say making sure you get enough protein into your diet is the way to go and to use the powder if it helps you get more protein for your calorie buck so you have plenty of calories available to help you round out the rest of your nutritional needs.

pander101

Protein powder isn't just for bulking, as mentioned before, it's also an easy way to meet your protein needs.

If you are going vegan and haven't done the needed research, you need to make sure you do. Protein is still important and you don't want to come up short on that. You may also want to consider a multi-vitamin to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need.

BombshellPhoenix

Protein powder isn't just for bulking, as mentioned before, it's also an easy way to meet your protein needs.

If you are going vegan and haven't done the needed research, you need to make sure you do. Protein is still important and you don't want to come up short on that. You may also want to consider a multi-vitamin to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need.

^this

Though, unless medically or morally there is reason to, I'm not understanding why you're being so restrictive. It more than likely will lead to being hangry and possibly lead to binging and disappointment.

If you decide to still do it research VERY in depth on getting proper nutrition with this. Vegan cuts out a lot of things that may need supplementing or vegetables that aren't common grocery store items. It's definitely not something to do on a whim for a feeble scale weight goal, so think long and hard about this decision

lemonsurprise

Protein powder isn't just for bulking, as mentioned before, it's also an easy way to meet your protein needs.

If you are going vegan and haven't done the needed research, you need to make sure you do. Protein is still important and you don't want to come up short on that. You may also want to consider a multi-vitamin to make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need.

^this

Though, unless medically or morally there is reason to, I'm not understanding why you're being so restrictive. It more than likely will lead to being hangry and possibly lead to binging and disappointment.

If you decide to still do it research VERY in depth on getting proper nutrition with this. Vegan cuts out a lot of things that may need supplementing or vegetables that aren't common grocery store items. It's definitely not something to do on a whim for a feeble scale weight goal, so think long and hard about this decision

I'm doing it morally so it definitely not on a whim. I've been veggie for 6 years and actually put on weight when I did it so definitely not going vegan just to loose weight. It's coming off easily enough!

I've heard so many mixed reviews about multi vitamins and it's kind of put me off them. I'm only going to be on a 1,200 for a couple of months before I start slowly increasing my calories so by the time I get up to 1,700ish getting my correct protein from food will be doable. I think up until then I'll invest in some protein powder!

mizroxy13

Not necessary, but I find it super helpful for meeting my protein goal without any excess fat. I find that the money is well spent because I can add it to oatmeal, make protein pancakes, etc. So, it's really versatile and helps keep my diet interesting.

They make pea protein now for vegetarians and it's a great alternative to other protein powders out there without the (possible) side effects of soy.