Protein Shakes..

thecapillary

Here's some links I found when I was considering protein powder. It basically depends on whether or not you're trying to use it to build muscle mass or lose weight. The trickier situation being losing weight: while protein powders do offer more protein for better muscle repair you have to factor in the carbs you consume with the powder you choose as you could end up increasing your caloric intake. Sugar free or low carb powders are available but they tend to be more expensive.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/drobson71.htm

http://www.livestrong.com/article/77974-whey-protein-shakes-losing-weight/

http://www.divinecaroline.com/22177/98874-shake-up-skinny-protein-powder

MissMaryMac33

I've just started drinking protein shakes to up my protein intake to 1g of protein per lb I weigh. Which is a general rule a lot of people go by. Protein powder certainly helps with reaching that goal, as well as other added nutrients they have.

IMHO that is too much. As you want to match your lean body mass. No need to take protein for the fat content. I'd probably cut it to 0.5 grams per lean body mass and see what happens.

this is not too much and is a pretty typical goal for many people. I cahnged my MFP settings to 40% protein, 30% carb/fat since I think the default is nearly backfwards. I would be in a carb coma all day if I followed their guidelines. I am only 5'4 and easily get 120-150g protein a day. I have 2-3 protein shakes a day between meals and count them just like I would food or any other drink.

READ LABELS. You can get plenty of zero carb/fat/sugar protein powders. My typical shake is approx 150 cals, 0carb/0fat and 27g protein. AVOID all of the pre-mixed crap and buy yourself a good jug of pure whey protein isolate and mix it yourself. I buy chocolate (all natural, unsweetened) and mix it with almond milk.

Jewel0124

I'm a fan of Pure Protein shakes. I usually get mine from Target and there is usually a coupon inside the box.

Jeff92se

I've just started drinking protein shakes to up my protein intake to 1g of protein per lb I weigh. Which is a general rule a lot of people go by. Protein powder certainly helps with reaching that goal, as well as other added nutrients they have.

IMHO that is too much. As you want to match your lean body mass. No need to take protein for the fat content. I'd probably cut it to 0.5 grams per lean body mass and see what happens.

this is not too much and is a pretty typical goal for many people. I cahnged my MFP settings to 40% protein, 30% carb/fat since I think the default is nearly backfwards. I would be in a carb coma all day if I followed their guidelines. I am only 5'4 and easily get 120-150g protein a day. I have 2-3 protein shakes a day between meals and count them just like I would food or any other drink.

How did you determine it's "not too much"? By experience? Or what an article says? I'm not defending the MFP ratios. I basically ignore them. I'm saying unless you are doing some serious weight lifting, having too much is a waste. I have actually upped my intake to about 0.5-0.75 grams per lean body mass. I think it makes a diff with recovery. I don't know if upping it to 1 gram per total body weight would be of additional benefit.

melizerd

A lot of reading will show that the 40% protein 30/30% carbs/fat is a very reasonable ratio. Which works out much closer to the 1g of body weight not just lean body mass.

It's the ratio I've used for quite awhile as well.

Jeff92se

A lot of reading will show that the 40% protein 30/30% carbs/fat is a very reasonable ratio. Which works out much closer to the 1g of body weight not just lean body mass.

It's the ratio I've used for quite awhile as well.

And? If you getting this ratio from food so be it. But if you add this much from protein powder, I question the need for that much.

rayleansout

EAS makes a low carb protein shake 17 grams of protein - SAMS club sells them in a 24 pack. would be perfect after a workout with half a banana - after a hard workout carbs mixed with protein help muscle repair and dont get stored as fat - note Hard workout.

melizerd

A lot of reading will show that the 40% protein 30/30% carbs/fat is a very reasonable ratio. Which works out much closer to the 1g of body weight not just lean body mass.

It's the ratio I've used for quite awhile as well.

And? If you getting this ratio from food so be it. But if you add this much from protein powder, I question the need for that much.

You're not adding all of it from powder. I do use a protein shake to supplement the amount i eat because I have an issue eating the sheer volume of food that requires of me. So it's a really easy way to get an extra 20-30g of protein a day in a shake after a workout especially.

Jeff92se

A lot of reading will show that the 40% protein 30/30% carbs/fat is a very reasonable ratio. Which works out much closer to the 1g of body weight not just lean body mass.

It's the ratio I've used for quite awhile as well.

And? If you getting this ratio from food so be it. But if you add this much from protein powder, I question the need for that much.

You're not adding all of it from powder. I do use a protein shake to supplement the amount i eat because I have an issue eating the sheer volume of food that requires of me. So it's a really easy way to get an extra 20-30g of protein a day in a shake after a workout especially.

I imply that if you have to supplement with powder to get to that much protein, I question the need (ie.. justify the expense). I didn't imply that you got all of it from protein shakes. You'd have to down 6-7 shakes a day to do that.

I take shakes. Sometimes twice a day. But I don't get that much protein. Probably around 130g. That's below the 1 g per lean body mass for me. I don't think getting 1 g per pount of bodyweight would add anything. ie.. downing over 170g of protein everyday

melizerd

I should really edit my posts but I'll put it here too.

The amount of protein per body weight should be in the healthy range of your TARGET weight, not your current weight.

So my current weight is 165lbs but I'm consuming about 145-155g of protein a day (on a good day, I don't always hit that).

And of course what works for one person doesn't work for everyone. I find if I skip the protein I feel hungrier, my muscles hurt more etc. so it's worth it to me. The expense isn't that bad if you buy the protein powder in bulk from Costco or GNC when there is a sale etc.

tigersword

I've just started drinking protein shakes to up my protein intake to 1g of protein per lb I weigh. Which is a general rule a lot of people go by. Protein powder certainly helps with reaching that goal, as well as other added nutrients they have.

IMHO that is too much. As you want to match your lean body mass. No need to take protein for the fat content. I'd probably cut it to 0.5 grams per lean body mass and see what happens.

This is good advice. Most people on this board seem to go for way too much protein, which, while in general isn't harmful, it doesn't really benefit either. Any excess protein that your body doesn't use for muscle repair (which isn't that much, about 1 gram per kilogram of bodyweight is all it needs for regular maintenance of muscle tissue,) just gets converted to glucose and then into glycogen and used just like carbohydrates. The downside to that, is gluconeogenesis is a longer process, so it slows uptake of glycogen to the muscles, and also, since the liver is needed for gluconeogenesis, that means the liver isn't burning fat as efficiently as it could be.

So yeah, 1 gram per kilogram of body weight, or .5 to 1 gram per pound of LBM, is a good number to shoot for. More than that, isn't bad, but doesn't benefit, either. And protein shakes are expensive.

roxxanna

I use the Whey Protein Vanilla Shake and like to add either frozen strawberries or blueberries with a tsp ground cinnamon for added flavor which makes it yummy plus some water. I love these for my lunch meal or if not using it as a meal replacement i drink one after my workout!