protien powder shakes??

I have a vanilla whey protein that I use, its pretty good. I usually do half a scoop of powder, and mix it in the blender with frozen fruit like strawberries or blueberries, half a banana, some water, ice cubes, maybe a little juice. The protein powder basically is there to balance out all the sugar in the smoothie, it slows down the way your body absorbs the sugar. You want to make sure you have protein with every meal, so when you're making a smoothie quick you can just toss in the protein powder to have a balance

Iv tried a number of Protein powders and for me Cellucor Whey is one of the best tasting around. Peanut Butter Marshmellow flavour is amazing.
Your looking at about 130 Calories
Protein: 25g
Fat: 1.5g
Sugar: 1g
Carbs: 3g

I use an unsweetened vanilla almond milk, 40 cals a cup, and a scoop of body fortress premium whey protein powder in strawberry, at 160 cals, though I don't drink it as a meal replacement, just after working out. Though if you wanted it as a meal replacement just stick a banana in it because strawberry banana shakes are wicked.

I've been using Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Natural Chocolate protein powder for a while now and it tastes/works great. I have a shake in the morning along with my shredded wheat and a half glass of OJ. 500 calories, 40g protein, and I'm full until lunch around noon. ON 100% whey has 24g protein per serving and 130 calories. Mix it with an 8oz glass of skim milk and you get another 80 calories and 8g protein. Much healthier for you than those shakes with tons of junk in them.

I also make my own protein bars by using the protein powder, rolled oats, peanut butter, honey, cocoa powder, skim milk, and crushed flax seed. All natural ingredients and they taste better than the store bought protein bars that are loaded with junk.

If you go with a protein powder I recommend getting one with NO artificial sweetners in it. I tried the regular ON 100% whey stuff before and after a week or so I started getting headaches. It turns out it has some weird artificial sweetner in it. I got the natural version that is sweetened with a little sugar and stevia (plant extract) and I've had no issues.

I've been using Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Natural Chocolate protein powder for a while now and it tastes/works great. I have a shake in the morning along with my shredded wheat and a half glass of OJ. 500 calories, 40g protein, and I'm full until lunch around noon. ON 100% whey has 24g protein per serving and 130 calories. Mix it with an 8oz glass of skim milk and you get another 80 calories and 8g protein. Much healthier for you than those shakes with tons of junk in them.
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If you go with a protein powder I recommend getting one with NO artificial sweetners in it. I tried the regular ON 100% whey stuff before and after a week or so I started getting headaches. It turns out it has some weird artificial sweetner in it. I got the natural version that is sweetened with a little sugar and stevia (plant extract) and I've had no issues.

I second Optimum Nutrition. You can pick up a tub of it on Amazon.

The one part I politely disagree with is the "side effects" of the flavored types. It is not a "weird" artificial sweetener - it is Sucralose aka Splenda. Sucralose is based on common sugar but processed so you can't digest it (similar to insoluble fiber). Sucralose works for many and may bother a few like anything else. Headaches are common for a handful of people - just treat it like any allergy. If you know Sucralose bothers you, simply avoid it. If it doesn't, then it's fine to use.

I don't want to turn this into an artificial sweetener flame war - use your judgment in the end. (This may still initiate one, though)

Vanilla flavoring is the most flexible as you can make just about anything out of it. Add some Trop50 orange juice and lowfat milk to make an Orange Julius. Drink it FAST because it will separate the milk. You can add in fruit and greek yogurt to make a delicious smoothie of any type. For just plain straight drinking then I highly recommend Double Chocolate. Tastes identical to chocolate milk as long as you use at least 4 ounces of milk.

The unflavored is fine but you'll always be seeking something out to add to your shakes. This may not always be a good thing. You usually add something sweet that adds additional calories/carb content you may not want/need. It also takes more time to make. Sucralose doesn't add any calories in contrast.

Just keep in mind that these powders are supplements. They exist to help you meet your protein goals & are not an actual "meal replacement". The meal replacement shakes have a lot of micronutrients (among other things...) that you won't find in the protein powders. They're both convenient, however.

These will all work fine to suppress hunger. You may want to consider that a huge chunk of cooked chicken breast, turkey, and even a lower fat cut of steak does the same thing with a smile. Just depends on your circumstances and what you're trying to do.

Avoid the Shakeology cultists.

I use EAS Lean Protein Powder and mix with unsweetened Silk almond milk. I also add fresh fruit and occasionally peanut butter. I really like it because it gives me the protein with less calories and less sugar than most. It comes in vanilla and chocolate. My shake this morning was 2 scoops chocolate flavored, 1 cup almond milk, and 1/2 cup fresh raspberries.

I think the ON 100% whey regular stuff uses Acesulfame K as the artificial sweetner. I think its different than sucralose but it could be a variation. I know for me it gave me headaches so I opted to stop taking it. WIth the natural stuff, no headaches and it tastes about the same too. From what I've read artificial sweetners aren't bad for you in low doses but I just choose to avoid them if I can.

You may also want to check out the article Consumers Reports did a while ago about the various protein powders out there. Quite a few of the popular ones had high levels of heavy metals in them (i.e. Muscle Milk). ON was on the low side and below all of the FDA's RDA allowances. Supplements are regulated by the FDA so companies dont have to follow as many rules as regular food manufacturers/processors have to.

Here is a link to the article I was referring to. Keep in mind that many common food items like fish and potatoes also have higher levels of heavy metals than other foods, so a small level of these is probably entering our bodies through other food sources, albeit at low/safer levels. But some of the protein powders are a little excessive with what's in them.

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine-archive/2010/july/food/protein-drinks/whats-in-your-protein-drink/index.htm

I use Evox Lean Pro shakes as a meal replacement. It's the best tasting shake I've ever tried and not that sweet. Tastes like milkshake and mixes instantly. I find many shakes have a very powdery feel in the mouth. You can mix with milk and / or water and each 300ml only has 98calories. I dont find the need to really blend with fruit or anything, occasionally I do have a bite of fruit with it but as is.

I've been using Walker Diet Shake Meal Replacement ... The Chocolate flavor Ingredients: Protein Blend of (Whey Protein Concentrate, Milk Protein Isolate, Calcium Caseinate, Egg Whites and Sodium Caseinate), High Oleic Sunflower Oil, Inulin, Lecithin, Dutch Process Cocoa, Natural and Artificial Flavor, Oat Fiber, Vitamin and Mineral Blend of (TriCalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Magnesium Oxide, Calcium Ascorbate, Vitamin E Succinate, Opti™ Zinc Methionine, Calcium Pantothenate, Sodium Molybdate, Niacinamide, Selenomethionine, Copper Gluconate, Pyridoxine HCl, Manganese Sulfate, Thiamine HCl, Riboflavin, Vitamin D3, Chromium Polynicotinate, Vitamin K1, Potassium Iodide, Vitamin B12 and Folic Acid), Xanthan Gum, Glutamine Peptide, Soy Fiber, Guar Gum, Carrot Fiber, Mono & DiGlycerides, Choline Bitartrate, DiPotassium Phosphate, Citrus Pectin, Sucralose.
Contains: Milk, Eggs and Soy. I usually have the vanilla and chocolate on hand.

It comes in at 180 calories with 60 calories from fat and provides 7 grams of carbohydrate, 6 grams of fiber and 24 grams of protein for 2 scoops mixed with 8 ounces of water and 1 ice cube whirred in a blender.

I usually use it as an after-workout snack and cut back to just one scoop with coconut water instead of plain water. I've also added hemp seed or chia seed to it and used almond milk with berries or 1/2 a banana ... I find it quite good and affordable.

It's pretty inexpensive on line ... about $23 for 36 ounces and $13 for 18 ounce ... but Vitacost usually has it on sale for less on line.

Avoid ON 100% protein it has many fillers and its low quality protein. I would suggest a protein from Kaizen http://www.kaizennaturals.com, it is high purity no artificial sweetener, no GMO's (Genetically Modified Organism/Additives). They're a great company and have lower prices than most protein brands on the market. In addition it tastes great.

While the Kaizen product looks to be great. Do you have any information showing that ON uses inferior whey in their process? There is plenty of information available to the opposite saying they are one of the best manufacturers of all forms of protein since they own the facilities where the whey is produced and control 100% of the process.

Yes, it has sucralose and coffee creamer as some of the ingredients, but 90+% of proteins do. I have no issues with it personally and I certainly do not believe that using completely safe products in the process makes this inferior.

Please cite some sources that show ON is a bad product. This will also implicate BSN since they are ON as well.

I've been using the MyProtein protein shakes as a supplement - it's sugar-free (the Impact Whey which get, anyway) and you can get unflavoured to add to almost anything (I add the banoffee one to greek yoghurt which makes an amazing breakfast with banana...). Pretty affordable compared to most protein shakes, imo. It's not a meal replacement, though, so you'll need to add in some veggies etc to make up the difference.

Lots of people need something as a meal replacement rather than skip a meal. Lots of people would rather skip a meal than use a replacement. Me, I'm not skipping any, so if I need to use a shake, its on. Someone mentioned Walker Shake - In all my years on this earth, using protein shakes and meal replacements, Walkers is the worst I have ever tasted in my life. Someone mentioned making their own protein bars - so do I, its so much better than buying them cause they cost too much.

I've bounced between Optimum Nutrition (loads of flavors to choose from omg), iForce (basic flavors), and currently working my way through a tub of Myofusion (this one is gluten free!). They all work the same to me as far as I can tell, and the flavors I've tried so far taste fan-freaking-tastic!

If I plan on making my smoothie the main part of a meal, I blend 1 or 2 scoops with 1 cup of almond milk, 1 1/2 cups of raw spinach, some ice cubes, and whatever fruits I have lying around. I find bananas blend really well. Also, spinach and blueberries make a tasty smoothie, albeit a really gross-looking one haha! If I'm just having it as a drink with a full meal, I just shake 1 scoop of powder with 1 to 1 1/2 cups of almond milk. Comes out gritty this way sometimes, but whatever. I ain't picky about that lol.

Bump!

Basically as everyone is saying, it's all about macros and what you're trying to accomplish. Plug the nutritional facts into your food diary and determine if it addresses what you want.

I do the raw organic thing.... They have both meal replacement and protein. I use protein because I struggle to reach my daily goals through my diet. http://www.gardenoflife.com/Products-for-Life/Foundational-Nutrition/RAW-Protein.aspx