Protein Shake Concerns

morkiemama

I was thinking of working protein shakes into my regimen since I am now more concerned with reducing bodyfat, building muscle, and toning rather than weight loss. I have been led to believe that protein is important for these goals when you are weight training and that MFP's default levels are low.

However, I have become concerned after doing some research that I could do harm to my body in selecting the wrong powder. Talk of toxicity, metals, mercury, etc. has made me extremely wary. Does anyone know of brands that avoid these things and also do not taste horrible? (I will admit I probably won't choke it down as often as I should if it doesn't taste good...)

In addition, I have seen varying arguments on how many grams of protein I should be aiming for. I'm a 5' 5" female and currently sit at 135lbs.

Any help would be appreciated as I would rather not slowly kill myself through daily consumption of toxic amounts of things I should not be eating.

Natihilator

good question, bump for answers!

morkiemama

Bump, would really like some input! Thanks!

melaniecheeks

I can't advise on protein pwders, as I avoid anything "false" like that.

From your stats, I'd say you should be looking to take in 100-120g protein per day. That's not impossible using real sources such as chicken breast, tuna, eggs etc.

UponThisRock

There was a study done by consumer reports that showed results of tests for heavy metals in protein supplements (Muscle Milk was the worst, if I recall).

What the study did not point out is that you get just as many heavy metals and more in foods we eat everyday, especially fish & crustaceans.

Lorleee

My dietician told me that protein shakes are not necessary and it's better to get protein from real food. I know there are many opinions to the contrary but she's been right about everything else she's told me.:). Could you put some Greek yogurt in a healthy smoothie instead? There's loads of protein in Greek yogurt.

XXXMinnieXXX

bump for answers... x

Acg67

scapez

I personally avoid soy and consider whey protein only. I've seen pea protein but have no idea how that measures up to whey.

I try to look for ones with the shortest list of ingredients and those not artificially sweetened, if possible.

jennajava

Don't worry so much. :flowerforyou:

oneIT

Just eat chicken! low cals and high in protein!

rissabella123

We use Biochem protein powder here in our home since we don't like to use anything with sucralose or other chemical sweeteners. I use it only after a hard workout to supplement my protein intake as I eat primarily a vegetarian diet. I originally purchased it at Whole Foods but found it much cheaper on Amazon with free shipping. We've used the vanilla and chocolate 100% whey formula.

laddyboy

Since reading the reports I only use Optimum Nutrition.

www.strongpotential.com is a pretty good place to buy.

You'll Pay more for ON but almost no metals or arsnecs

mikethom

Bump!

Aaloo79

Saw a post on other thread http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/419791-protein-deficiency-for-vegetarians
And I quote from a user
"
The World Health Organization puts a lot of work into figuring these things out (for pretty obvious reasons). I also feel like they're perhaps less subject to the lobbying efforts of the meat and dairy industries, which I worry about with US FDA recommendations (I'm from the U.S. so that's my governmental reference). There is a detailed report here http://whqlibdoc.who.int/trs/WHO_TRS_935_eng.pdf with a table on page 87 for ratio of protein calories to total calories for adults and children of different ages and body sizes. My reading is their recommendations are all under 10% of calories from protein. Most vegetables and whole grains easily make this mark. Although you have to be careful, because added fat upsets this balance pretty quickly. For example, if you're sauteing vegetables in oil (which isn't bad in moderation), the oil adds a lot of calories, and no protein.
"

Up to you guys if you want to follow WHO or not?

Good Luck.

samantha64118

I use the Visalus Body by Vi protein shakes. They are a non-GMO product, and it has a sweet cream flavor to it. It tastes amazing if you add a banana to it, or you can also add in some Ovaltine if you like chocolate milk. It's what my personal trainer recommended to me, so that's why I use it. For 1 a day it's like $55 per month (30 day supply). Some might think it's pricey, but then again you get what you pay for so if you're worried about taste, quality, and safety it's better to splurge a little for those things.

melbaby925

I use BlueBonnet grass fed, cold processed French Vanilla whey powder - it's got all the good stuff and none of the bad. It costs a bit more, but I like the taste, and I always mix it with fruit and coconut water, so you don't really taste the powder anyway!

I just a few new ones at Whole Foods yesterday, and Hemp is supposed to be good source of protein as well. But I'm sticking with what works for me, which is the blue bonnet.

It's 26g of protein per scoop, and I have 1/2 in the a.m. before I work out and 1/2 as my snack after my workout, that has been working pretty good so far, and then I add in 3-4 ounces of chicken at lunch and 2-3 ounces of meat or fish for dinner.

714rah714

You said the MFP's default levels are low, that's not true in my case. I'm set at 113 grams which goes up depending on the type of exercise I do that day. Yesterday needed to consumed 207 grams of protein an impossible task.

O2Bslimagain

Whey Protein Isolate- I buy this kind of protein powder. The ingredients are : Whey Protein Isolate and Bromelain. It's nice to have on hand if you can't get your protein from another source or if you want to supplement.

fearlessbetz

Hi there, I just went to my nutritionist and she said if I was needing protein, that I could use a protein shake. She stated I could use a whey protein powder, add greek yogurt, and do fruit or even avocado (mild taste). She stated no more than 25 grams of protein though per serving (? forgot to ask why). She also said to add flax seed to it. I'm curious to try this concoction.

Dyannparham

I here you on the concerns. I have been using Shakeology for almost two years now and love it. It is a little on the pricy side but that is because it is all natural, made from real raw, organic foods. And it tastes amazing.

In the end you just have to find what works for you and your body. There are a ton out there. I can share more about it with you if you'd like.

Dy

KMiche82

Try to look into herbalife shakes they are made from natural ingredients and I did not find in mercury on the label!!!!!

Dyannparham

I think the protein limits per serving are because protein can be hard on the liver to process. :-)

morkiemama

Thanks for all the responses! I really do appreciate them!

I thought about trying to hit the protein I need through foods first and see if I can manage it. However, I'm sure a lot of the processed junk I eat does the same, if not more, harm as a shake would. >.<

My issue is that I have officially started semester and I commute. I literally spend ALL DAY and then some on campus (we're talking 18+ hours on campus) between classes, teaching (I am a TA), office hours, group meetings, studying, etc. There is no way I can (practically) bring a lot of food with me to campus and I am limited in what I can eat since I don't have access to things like a fridge or many cooking devices.

I have trouble fitting in my current not so specific macro meals and my workouts as it is, so I thought a shake might be a good option for me. Then I read things like consumer reports, etc. that made me wary of just charging forward on my own (limited) knowledge.

AggieCass09

http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/opt/natwhey.html

thats what i use...good, cheap, no funky texture, all natural! vanilla is easy to mix with anything

my breakfast shake was protein, coconut milk, coconut flakes (unsweetened), banana, ice....SO GOOD for only 363 cals!

Aperture_Science

I can see the arguments that (in an ideal world) you can get your protein requirements from food rather than a supplement. This is something that I attempt in my daily life. But sometimes I mess up with the planning and I don't have (or can't be bothered to make) a real food protein hit.

In this instance I fall back on a Protein shake or two and I don't feel guilty about it.

As for the amount of protein to consume I've seen a few different calculations from 1g per LB of Lean Mass to 1.5-2g per total mass. As you can imagine the Protein values vary considerably depending on these calculations. To make matters worse there is a mass of conflicting data about when to load up on Protein. Some advocate spreading it through the day, some prefer the end of the day and others say that it depends upon your work out times!

My advice: Get your cals right and an exercise regime that you love and works for you first. Then work towards getting your macros right with about 1g - 1.5g of protein per lean mass LB, if doing this means that you need to use protein shakes so-be-it. Only when you have those two things in place should you worry about dropping the shakes in favour of "real" food. Finally tweak the Cals and exercise to maintain progress, if you feel you are putting on fat, drop the cals. If you feel that you are getting burnt out raise them (note: don't skimp on the fat or sleep when trying to increase strength).

Best wishes

mathen2

Heard that Jay Robb's whey protein powder doesnt have all the harmful ingredients that you see in normal protein powders and is one of the cleanest protein powders out there. I havent tried it yet because I dont like the protein powders I have tried and the Jay Robb's powder is a bag which is around 25 bucks. Not sure if I should buy it only to dislike the taste

AggieCass09

I think the protein limits per serving are because protein can be hard on the liver to process. :-)

there is a limit to what your body can process but it doesnt hurt you, you just flush it out

smurfee11

Beverly products are by far one of the best, we use it daily. It also has a great taste and you can cook with it. we make pancakes, cookies. Lots of great recipes. Clean ingredients and low sugar. Trying to add muscle takes heavy lifting.

hedgiie

Personally, i like to get my protein from whole foods. I do take protein shakes if i'm not getting enough protein from food otherwise, I drop the protein shake for the day.

saxmaniac

I've been eating EAS powder for a year and am not dead yet.

It's an adjunct, though, not replacement for all your protein. One-two scoops a day (25g-50g) is all I need to get up to my 1g per lb of bodyweight. The other 100+g comes from food.