Protein Shakes?!?!

cs821

I've been told by many people including personal trainers that protein shakes are the way forward when it comes down to recovering from gym workouts as well as helping get "good carbs" to aid weight loss. I've been recommended Maximuscle ProMax Diet. Anyone taken protein shakes before and can maybe shed some light on whether this is worth the money?

Squible

I have one for breakfast, or add a scoop or whey protein powder to my spinach shake.

The reason people have protein and protein shakes is that it fills you up for longer, builds muscle which in turn helps you lose weight.

Be carefult though which brand you use as some have lots of sugar (which is bad for you) I now get mine form myprotein.co.uk it seems to be the most reasonable and the flavours are yum

I also mix it mine wil milk for add fullness and flavour.

Dizzle_65

Maximuscle is overpriced and any diet whey is a complete waste of money. You don't want anything that has “fat burner” in it as this causes adrenal fatigue. Also if you workout in the evenings, good luck trying to get to sleep after drinking one!

Don’t look for a “Women’s protein” either, this is just marketing to get you to pay more. I change my protein quite often but I check the ingredients and then it’s based on cost / taste. I currently have Kinetica which was £49.99 for a 4.5kg sack – a bargain (and it’s from grass fed cows). I also use PHD Pharma whey depending on what offer they have.

Shop around look for a good quality whey at a good price but remember they are supplements and can’t compensate for a poor diet

kittyraj

I use them.

They stop me feeling hungry (and therefore peckish).

I notice many 'diet' ones contain caffeine and other 'fat burning' ingredients.
Unless you're considering starving yourself during the day until you feel hungry I'd stay clear of the caffeine laced ones.

I recommend regular protein shake (no caffeine) and make sure you're not lactose intolerant or whey intolerant etc or you could end up bloated and 'windy'.

I can't imagine a day without them as I can never be bothered to eat breakfast (often feeling sick) so a protein shake kick starts my metabolism. It's great!

prima073

I used to have these shakes all the time when I was a teenager and they're one of the main reasons I'm fat. As far as I'm concerned they are a waste of time and money. I'm doing well and losing the weight but with proper nutrition and exercise. There are no shortcuts. :-)

Graceious1

I use Maxitone definity shake and find that works for me. I found that it, along with sensible eating and exercise helped me to look more toned and feel like I have a spring in my step.

sijomial

I've been told by many people including personal trainers that protein shakes are the way forward when it comes down to recovering from gym workouts as well as helping get "good carbs" to aid weight loss. I've been recommended Maximuscle ProMax Diet. Anyone taken protein shakes before and can maybe shed some light on whether this is worth the money?

Be cautious of accepting nutrition advice from PTs - that they are trained to help you in the gym doesn't mean they are likely to be any more knowledgeable than random people on the internet. Like people on MFP for example!

"Good carbs" is a horrible phrase - what on earth is a bad carb without any context to a person's overall diet and goals?
Eating extra "good carbs" to aid weight loss is nonsense if you think about it, lose weight by eating more calories..... Hmmmm, sounds like PT mumbo jumbo.

Having said that a mix of carbs and protein post exercise is a good aid to recovery. A protein shake is just liquid food in a convenient form, it doesn't have any magical properties. Your post exercise recovery could just as well be food with a good carb & protein profile.

Having said that and maybe appearing to be anti-protein shake I do have them myself. It's a convenient way to hit my protein goal (1g per pound of lean mass). So on days where my normal food isn't enough I will supplement my protein count with a whey shake made with milk. Other days I might supplement by adding a portion of chicken breast to my normal meal.

My favourite protein shake is from The Protein Works - one of the few flavoured whey proteins without sucralose or aspartame.
http://www.theproteinworks.com/products/protein-shakes/whey-protein/naked-whey-protein-80.html

Personal choice in the end, set a suitable protein target and if you can't meet it without supplementing then that's the time to consider shakes.